What are chinchillas, anyway? Some kind of dog?

No, you’re thinking of chihuahuas. Chinchillas are small, furry mammals that resemble a cross between a squirrel and a guinea pig, to which they’re zoologically related. They are not like ferrets — chins are nocturnal, vegetarian rodents (which simply means they gnaw things; see below).

Where do chins come from?

Chinchillas are native to the high altitudes of the Andes of Bolivia, Peru, northern Chile and Argentina. For hundreds of years they have been prized for their fur, and have been hunted almost to extinction in the wild. Chinchillas are now a protected species in the region, and efforts are underway to restore their natural populations.

In 1923, the first chins were brought to the United States by M.F. Chapman, an American mining engineer working in Chile. Chapman wanted to establish domesticated chinchilla herds for pelt production, and by the 1960s chins were populous enough to be finally offered as pets.

What is their fur like?

Chinchilla fur is almost indescribable; some have said it’s like picking up a ball of air. Each follicle contains multiple strands of hair more than an inch long, making the chin look bigger than its body actually is (it’s amazing how small an opening they can squeeze through!). It’s no wonder that their pelts are so valued by the fur industry — however, we feel the coats only look good on the animals themselves.

Are they friendly? How smart are they?

Chinchillas have personalities as unique and different from each other as people do. Some chins will climb into your hands, while others turn tail and run rather than be “captured.” But all of them are gentle, nimble...and curious! They will do everything they can to explore whatever’s new to them, and once an idea gets in their heads, you’ll have a hard time getting it out again. Most chins will jump and climb onto people they know during their play times outside the cage.

Our conclusion is that chins are at least as smart as dogs — and maybe even more so! They have an uncanny ability to figure things out, and a tenacity that makes them unstoppable. We’ve had chins that would literally stare for several minutes at a problem (“Hmmm, how could I get up there?”), go away and think about it, and come back later and accomplish their goal.

What do they eat? Do they use a litterbox?

Our chins eat a diet of specially-milled pellets, compressed cubes of Timothy hay, a special supplement mix made up of grains and other nutirents, and water. Chinchillas’ digestive systems are designed to extract the maximum amount of nutrition from the grasses and seeds they eat in the wild, so the domesticated chin’s diet can’t be very rich. However, they can have limited amounts of special treats: raisons (their all-time favorite), dried fruit, and shredded wheat cereal.(The Jersey City Herd eats the Kline Diet, formulated by Alice Kline, a respected chin breeder with over 40 years’ experience. The Kline Diet is available from Carol Kessler.)

Chins cannot be litterbox-trained. They do tend to urinate in the same spot(s) inside their cage, but droppings are another matter — they leave a trail wherever they go. Fortunately, chins droppings are small, hard, and dry, and are very easily cleaned up with a vacuum or broom.

What about exercise?

While chins are perfectly content to sleep in their cage all day (they are nocturnal), when evening comes, they will want to romp! Play time outside the cage is essential at least every other day. It’s best if the chins have a large, open area where they can run, leap, and jump until they drop. This area, though, must be “chin-proofed” as they will chew on just about anything they can; chins’ teeth continue to grow throughout their lives, like beavers’, and they must constantly wear them down by gnawing. And smart as they are, they won’t distinguish the legs of your Queen Anne chair from the wooden chew toy on the floor! They also need to be protected from electrical wires, small openings they can get into (and out of your reach), and other household dangers (including cats and dogs).

If they have enough room, chins will amaze you with their acrobatics. There’s nothing quite like a young, wound-up chin tearing down the hallway at full speed, careening off the walls in the corner! They can also leap over barriers up to about four feet tall. Inside the cage, they can wear themselves out on a specially-designed wheel, such as the one sold by Leo Braun.

Since chins don’t sweat, their ears act as radiators to release heat; after a good run, a chin’s ears can be fire-red.

Do they get fleas, or smell?

Chins’s fur is generally too dense for fleas to live in, so that is rarely a problem. Chins are also quite clean and odor-free; they spend a great deal of time grooming themselves and each other. If they’re in the right mood, sometimes they’ll even groom their owners’ fingers — thought to be a sign that the person has been accepted as a “member of the herd.”

Chins normally hate getting wet; they “bathe” in a fine mineral powder similar to fuller’s earth, which absorbs the skin’s oils and fluffs the fur. It’s a really, really fun thing to watch, too.

Would a chin make a good pet for me?

Chins generally make excellent pets, but only for the right kind of individual. For example, smaller children may not understand that chins don’t like to be petted like a dog, or that they may nibble a finger (gently) to see what it is. Chins have a few special needs that are essential for their health and well-being — proper diet, a fairly regular schedule, quiet daytime environment, room to exercise outside the cage — so it’s important that you become as familiar as possible with their care before you bring one into your life. Chins can live for ten years or more, so you’ll be making a significant investment of your time with a chin.

To find out more about chins, please visit ChinNet — “the chinniest place on earth” — for a wealth of information about care and feeding, medical problems, tips on cages and play areas, and pictures of the cutest animals on the planet. Also check out the rest of our site, too, for pictures and streaming video of the Jersey City Herd.