new here have chinchilla question. hope i'm in d right place

hey, i've had my chinchilla for alomst two years, she is a total sweethheart.

i'm noticed that recently her poo has gotten a bit larger and softer, whereas before it was about half the size and very firm.

anyways, my guess is it could be diet... we've changed to a different basic chinchilla kibble ( i dont remember the name right now) are there any brands in particular anyone reccomends?

where could i get this food? (the main chain stores around here are pretty void of basic chinchilla neccesities... yet they sell them? makes sence.... :: )--- i'm thinking websites etc. i noticed ferretstore.com has a lot of good stuff.



also.... quick one.... her cage, poo gets on the -outside- of the cage, any suggestions on keeping it in?

though this isn't the right place for you, the food change in your chinchilla's diet might be the culprit in the softer poo. any change to an animals diet should be made moderately so it doesn't upset their stomache, as long as they are getting all the vitamins they need and minerals the brand shouldn't matter (just read the ingredients on the bags, and don't buy any bags older than 6 months, the vitamins start to lose its potency after that amount of period). the ferret store is a very good place to shop for supples, and its cheaper (shipping is free for orders over $25). as for the poo ending up ouside the cage, you can try adding a strip of plexi glass thats about the legth of the cage and about 6 inches wide around the cage, that way when they're digging anround, running, or prefer to use a certain corner for their bathroom, it doesn't end up on the floor. it happened to me too (my hamsters and piggies use to do it too) you can protect the edge of the plexi glass with the book report spine (the plastic kind) its very hard to chew through. hope this helps =0)

thanks, i never would have thought of plexiglass!

i did notice that she uses one corner mainly, but the other side is a prob too because when she runs in her wheel and she poos while she's running it flings across the room!

definetly not good for when guests are around and a piece of poo flies in their face.

yes i got new *fresh* food and have been giving her small amounts daily rather than just leaving a lot in a big bowl.... she also poo's in her food bowl so refresher food daily is neccesary anyways.

i'll make sure the food is new, i didn't know that vitamins can loose effectiveness... interesting... thats especially helpfull to me because chinchillas are not very common the food often is dusty and doesnt move from the shelves except when i buy it.


are there any chinchilla chats on ezboards? i haven't seen any where people actively post.

I've heard that this is a good place for chinchilla related questions - www.chins-n-quills.com/forums/

You can go to www.ezboard.com and search for the word chinchilla and see what the results are.