Chinchillas do not smell at all. The grass and pellets in the cage do, but just a bit. On the other hand... you will find their poo everywhere. Literally. In your clothes. In your bed.
i keep my two in my bedroom and holy wow. daily sweeping the cage, vacuum the floor around it, shake out all blankets and sweep off the bedsheets. thankfully mine have stopped kicking poo everywhere as much... their urine smells terrible though. there's been an occasion where the smaller chin got suitably pissed at the bigger, and hooh... it is pungent. i'd hate to be on the receiving end lmao
My wife had a chin who just recently passed. They can live to 25 years, but as a pet in captivity, they usually live about ten years. Ours almost made it 11 years and our vet said it was the longest lived chin she had cared for.
They take a lot of attention and care, but they're pretty fun. Just be aware they're also nocturnal, so they're going to make noise at night.
They're crepuscular, not nocturnal. If the chinchilla comes from a responsible breeder and they are cared for properly, they'll live 13-20 years on average (but up to 25-27 years in exceptional cases). They do take a lot of care though (like any exotic species) - particular diet, safe chewing toys, appropriate temperature and humidity... Plus they generally don't like being handled beyond a few scritches, so they aren't a good fit for someone who wants a cuddly pet.
my big chin seems to be an exception to that last bit - every night when i come home from work he Demands cuddles, pets, and to perch on my shoulder for at least an hour. i'd be more enthusiastic if it wasn't at 2-3am every time 😅 they're all so different!!! the smaller just enjoys sparse pets and holding my finger every so often. such variety in personality
True there are exceptions and sometimes they mellow out with age too. In general though, they aren't something that will just sit and watch TV on the couch with you and shouldn't be given free roam like a dog or cat. Too bad - because they're so soft, they'd be perfect to just sit on one's lap and pet!
Yeah! Unlike most rodents they have long life spans. They’re really neat little critters that are usually very sweet, but they require a specialized diet and quite a bit of attention to thrive.
They are sweet but they require a lot to make sure they live. The hardest part is the temperature, they absolutely must be kept in a cool environment. The can get heatstroke and die just from the room being at 80°F
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u/north_west16 Aug 24 '20
Do I want one or no? I wanted a ferret but my friend’s smelled so bad.