Is a chinchilla right for me?

Q: Hello, my husband and I are interested in adopting a chinchilla, but we have never owned a chinchilla before. I have had several hamsters and other pets, but chinchillas are new to me. I was wondering if someone from your organization could give me more information on chinchilla care.

A: Thanks for contacting us! It's wonderful that you're considering adoption and even more wonderful that your being so responsible and researching new pet species before considering actually bringing one into your home. We wish every potential home was so responsible!

Let's begin with a couple of websites:

www.chincare.com has tons of information. It may be a bit overwhelming, but just pick a few articles to get started.

www.chinchillaclub.com is another great one. They also have a nice forum for asking specific questons.

Just a few basics. Chinchillas are strictly nocturnal. They need a dim, quiet place to sleep during the day. Waking them up too often during daylight hours can cause stress and for a delicate creature like these exotics, stress can be fatal. Chinchillas need out of cage playtime on a regular basis, as well as dust baths using a special volcanic dust sold for their care. Chinchilla play areas must be carefully chin-proofed--easier said than done. They're clever, mischievous creatures and will find a way to get into tiny nooks and crevices and every last thing they find goes straight into their mouths. Any wires will need to be carefully bite-proofed, or choose a playspace without them (or with very few) such as a mudroom, bathroom, or similar.

Chinchillas do not like to be held or hugged most of the time, and if they do want petting/cuddling, it has to be done when *they* choose. If grabbed, they can snap their own backs trying to get away. While there are holds that can minimize the risk of this happening, they're not exactly fun for the handler or the chinchilla and are more for things like putting the animal into a carrier to take to the vet, doing health checks, or getting a chinchilla out of a dangerous situation than they are for interaction. Chinchillas are fabulous pets, don't get me wrong. I adore mine, but it does take a long time to build their trust, and even when they do trust you they may find it more fun to run away from you then to sit in your lap. Granted, mine does hop onto my knee for petting when I sit quietly, but it has taken years of patience for her to get to this point (keep in mind that she was unceremoniously dumped in the city pound before I adopted her, so we don't know her background as much as many of the chinchillas we have in the rescue. Personalities vary, and a chinchilla who has had a lot of exposure to people in their previous home or in one of our foster homes will make a difference in how outgoing they are.)

Overall, though, chinchillas are pretty hands-off most of the time. They love to run and jump and climb and hide, they perch on the tiniest edges and bars, being mountain-dwelling animals in the wild, and they will enjoy your attention, but they also enjoy hiding from you in any space they can get to. Sometimes I think they think the more dangerous their behavior, the better! They are definitely mischievous, definitely cute, and definitely fun. They also can be temperamental, they can spray urine (like a skunk sprays!) when they get angry (so far, though, I have never experienced this behavior. They give a vocal warning before doing anything extreme, typically. You can't misinterpret that strange buzzing wail! They can find trouble faster than any animal I have ever seen. Watch them like a hawk! They will escape the room if they can, climb behind appliances, chew everything you own (including the walls--if you are in love with your molding, a chinchilla is not a good choice), and everything--everything--they find goes right into their mouths. Even my cel phone has a bite out of it, not to mention my books, all of the cats' toys, my shoes, etc. As I said, they require a good amount of out of cage time to be happy and healthy (without it they cannot digest their food properly), and they need a quiet, undisturbed place to sleep during the day. They are smart little animals who also need a good amount of interaction and mental stimulation, usually between the hours of 5p.m. and 4 a.m.

Chinchillas are a big responsibility, but if you're ready for it, they make wonderful companions. I hope this information has helped with your choice. We look forward to hearing from you!

Finding a home for your pet when you're too far away for 3R to help.

Q: *Hello,* *I have 2 female gerbils under 6 months. They arent mean but need more handling. My ex left them after a break up and I just have to many pets to take care of them. I live near Pittsburgh PA if you know of anyone ? Thanks*

A: We're kind of far away to be of help, so you may want to contact a rodent rescue closer to you. Go to http://www.petfinder.com/ and search for "Small Animal" in your state. Typically a huge list of animals will come up. All you need to do is click on the names of the shelters and rescues caring for these animals to get contact information, and you already know that they take in rodents. :) It's a fabulous resource!

Best of luck to you and your pets. I hope this helps you find a safe, knowledgeable, and permanent home. Also, please visit our website and take a look at our adoption application for ideas for questions you will want to ask potential adopters who contact you. It's really important to screen anyone interested very carefully. Sadly there are a lot of people out there who think rodents are completely disposable, and they will feed them to reptiles, use them in practical jokes where they will be injured or simply tossed outside to die afterwards, or even worse, torture them for fun. One guy we encountered was buying mice at pet stores to throw them out the window of a moving vehicle to watch them bounce because he thought it was funny. Scary.

Remember, pet stores are there to make a profit, not to help animals, so please, do not give your pets to a store under any circumstances. It is often a fate worse than death to be sold to just anyone who has a couple of dollars, and pet stores don't typically give vet care or quarantine surrendered animals to prevent rampant disease, so things can go bad very easily. They may also dump animals together in mixed sex and/or overcrowded groups that can result in bloody fights or even death. I've seen badly injured animals and blood smeared cages at pet stores resulting from this practice. If you become this desperate, take them to your local animal shelter instead. If your area has a privately run shelter, all the better. Even though they may be put down, it's better than dying in horror in a snake's cage (snakes should be fed frozen rodents, never live, according to herpetologists.)

One last note. Make a point not to give away your pets' cage to the adopter. This is a good policy for several reasons. For one, making the effort to purchase their own cage and have everything set up and ready at home before the adoption shows a certain level of commitment that taking some free stuff doesn't. Also, this helps prevent having people answer your ad to get a free cage to keep or sell to make money, tossing your gerbils away. It's best if you keep the cage (passing along a toy or bed the gerbils are familiar with for their new cage) and either donate it to your local shelter or rescue, or sell it later. Free pets are just too easy to take on a whim without thinking about future costs of vet care, food, toys, and other needs. When the pet becomes inconvenient or costly, they'll likely end up dumped.

Again, thanks for working to find them an appropriate home. They deserve it!

Pet Store Rat Died Shortly After Purchase, When is it Safe to Adopt Another?

Q: I have a male rat, not sure of age. I'm still not sure he is ok following purchase of a rat companion that turned out to be sick. I am skittish about adding another rat due to this bad experience and am paranoid that my rat might now get sick. When is it safe to adopt another?

A: Thanks for your interest in adoption! You're right that you should wait until any illness passes completely before introducing another rat, not only to protect the new rat, but to avoid stressing yours and making him get worse. I'm guessing that he has been treated by your vet but if he hasn't healed entirely by the time his medication course is through, call your vet about a follow-up, since he may require a stronger treatment to prevent him from crashing again.

In petstores and other places that have a large number of rats coming in contact with others (most stores get their rats from "rat mills" with hundreds, even thousands of rats being bred in little drawers) virulent strains of bacteria can flourish. Thankfully these are not transmittable to humans or other pet species, but they can be hard to control. This is one of the reasons that we quarantine the rats we foster to observe their health before adoption. Of course, just like in people, sometimes illnesses kind of just occur, but the risk is lesser if they aren't exposed to other rats or items that have been exposed to other rats (pet stores that don't sell animals tend to have less risk of sending you home with mites or germs). There are some great stores in the area that don't. So, if he hasn't already, we recommend that you have him treated prophylactically for parasites.

You may have heard about myco, a ongoing, contageous condition that causes chronic respiratory problems. Pet stores are usually hotbeds of this disease. It makes pairing rats who are likely carriers a difficult decision. On one hand, you don't want your rat to be lonely, on the other, you don't want to infect another rat. Just to add a wrench in the works, there's speculation that most domestic rats are carriers anyway, while others believe it can be controlled. It's a tough call, but in the end, if I were you, I'd make my decision based on the health of your current rat. If your vet feels that he is healthy enough to handle the stress and excitement of meeting a new companion, I would go ahead and proceed with adoption.

I'm really terribly sorry that your last match went so terribly wrong. How heartbreaking! Pet stores just don't usually do any sort of quarantine or basic preventative vet care so it's hard to know if you're getting a healthy animal. Add to that the stress of transport (according to store employees I've spoken to, animals often die in transit, having been treated much like freight) living on display, often in cages that are too small and/or overcrowded, and you have a very stressed little animal who is probably more susceptible to disease. We make every effort to keep our animals happy by treating them just like our own, with appropriately large cages that include hiding spots, toys, a healthy, carefully selected diet, vet attention, and human interaction. A freak death can happen to anyone, of course, but the risk is lower when an animal's stress level is lower.

Good luck to you and your ratty. Do let us know what you decide.

Out of Control Teeth

Q: I got a hamster about a month ago. She has one tooth that is really long and curls back around her top gumline. She has chew toys but I do not think she uses them or because of the tooth may not be able to chew with that one tooth. I don't know if it can be trimmed because of how close it is to the gumline. What should I do?

A: Thanks for contacting us and for being so concerned about your hamster's condition. It is called a malocclusion and it has to be taken care of by your vet.

While rodents love chew toys and should always have access to them to keep their mouths busy, it's a myth that these are the main thing that keep their teeth from growing out of control. In normal rodent mouths, the teeth line up in a way that makes them grind against each other so that they keep themselves sharp and filed down. If one tooth is tilted out of place, it won't be ground down properly and it will grow so large that it can dig into her mouth or chin and cause terrible pain or even starvation if it prevents her from opening her mouth properly.

I'm not sure where you are located, but we have a list of wonderful small animal vets on our website (http://www.raleighrodentrescue.org/). Dr. Kay Bishop is our favorite, at New Hope Animal Hospital, in Durham, but I had a rat with this problem and Dixie Trail Animal Hospital in Raleigh (our other fave) was very helpful. They put her under anesthesia and dremmeled the tooth down so it was a normal length. My rat didn't mind a bit and was happy to be able to eat properly again. :) Thanks for taking good care of your hamster. If you got her from a pet store, you may want to let them know about it so they don't go breeding more animals with tooth problems, but please, don't return her to the store! They will likely just put her down instead of providing proper care. If for some reason you can't keep her, contact us instead. With your vet's help she can live a long and happy life, so don't worry. :)

Note: If the pet store, or someone you know offers to save you money by cutting the teeth off themselves, using clippers or something similar, please turn them down. The risk of the tooth splintering is simply too high and this injury is likely to result in death from starvation as your pet suffers unbearable pain. No amount of money is worth torturing an animal.

Spreading the Word

Q: Our humane group is hosting a table at a local pet event. We'd love to have your volunteers come with us to help promote the adoption of pet rodents. Could you join us!

A: Thank you so much for inviting us! Never hesitate to contact us about events. We're happy to do our best to be there, but please understand that a lot of times we can't due to our own adoption events and other things that cram up our calendar. Distance can be an issue (we're in Raleigh, NC) since we don't have funding for travel or hotels so it's entirely up to our volunteers to cover any costs. Again, it never hurts to ask, though!

It's wonderful of you to think of us and I'm happy to suggest a few pamphlets and printables you may want to display.

• AAVS offers cruelty free shopping guides for free or nearly so, or you can print it as a .pdf: http://www.aavs.org/shoppingGuide.php


• The Rat Fan Club has printables on rats as pets and rat care. Here's a good basic one: http://ratfanclub.org/report1.html


• AFRMA has coloring pages for kids (I like to use #2 or #7 since they seem the most rat-like or informational, but you can find a ton there! http://www.afrma.org/kidskorner.htm Take a look at the top of the page. There is a great printable info sheet for kids that can be printed on the back side of the coloring pages to get more information into their hands.

Hope this helps! Thanks so much for spreading the word about adopting small animals instead of buying!

Recipe: Homemade Rat Mix

I get a lot of requests for this recipe. It's the mix I feed my own rats and fosters. I like that I can be certain everything in my rats' mix is human grade and that I can tweak it for each individual as needed. I prefer to feed a mix instead of plain lab block since it allows my rats to pick and choose what they need from an assortment of healthy foods. Since a rat's nutritional needs vary through different life stages, they can adjust what they need as their bodies mandate, something studies have shown rats do quite well when given the option to do so. I've noticed, for example, that older rats will tend to choose foods lower in fat and protein than younger rats do, leaving behind more nuts and seeds than their more youthful counterparts.

This isn't to say there aren't good commercial block diets, though I recommend steering clear of laboratory diets. These are formulated not for the health and longevity of the rat, who will likely be put to death before his or her first year is up, but as a diet that will not interfere with the experiment at hand by being completely without variety. Also, being an organization that exists to promote the welfare and rights of rodents, we prefer to avoid supporting laboratory suppliers, since the companies that produce these lab diets also often produce rats and other animals for laboratory use. We understand that animal testing may not be able to disappear overnight (though I, personally, wish product testing would), but we also feel that we should spend our dollars in the most positive way possible instead of funding the mass breeding and sale of animals. Hence, our foster homes that do choose a pelleted diet choose Oxbow Regal Rat, a block formulated for pet rats, rather than a lab diet such as Harlan Teklad. For a commercially prepared mix, when it's not possible or convenient to mix our own, we like Reggie Rat or Vitakraft (though the latter has more colorants than we consider ideal.)

Paxil and Ether’s Yummystuff for Happy Rats

2 cups Wysong Vegan Dog Food or other lower protein dog food
(around 20% protein max.)

¼ cup nuts or seeds (sunflower seeds, almonds, pumpkin seeds) for boys
½ cup of the above for girls
avoid peanuts…may cause coat problems

1c wheat puffs cereal
1c rice puffs cereal
1 c enriched cereal (cheerios, for example)
Just make sure it contains copper, important for brain function.

1c enriched pasta

Mix it all together in a plastic bag and serve.

Every other day or so they get fresh veggies, fruit, and/or ½ jar baby food (mixed veggies, sweet potato, green beans, or some kind of fruit and grain mixture like apples and oats) You can make it yourself if you want out of leftovers and stuff if you have a food processor. It seems to freeze and thaw well. In the summer I let them have a little bit frozen like “ice cream”

Soy yogurt and/or soy milk in an extra water bottle helps prevent tumors. Just don’t overdo since it’s high in protein. Enriched rice milk is a good treat, too.

Paxil and Ether also get a teensy bit of ferretvite as a treat from time to time.

(Paxil and Ether passed on a few years ago and are greatly missed. My current girls, Kitty, Spider, and Fuz enjoy the recipe that was created for their predecessors to this day. :))

Starting a Rescue Group

Q: I have been thinking about starting a rat rescue in my area in the future and could really use some advice on how to go about getting started. If you have any suggestions or advice, it would be greatly appreciated!



A: Your question is one I get rather frequently. Some people go for it, some don't, others try it out and find it's not for them (you have to be willing to do *all* of the work yourself in the beginning), but some really succeed and do a ton of good work for animals. Our sister group,
Carolina Pet Rescue kinda sprouted out of 3R and now they're bigger than we are. :)


First thing I have to suggest is to work for another rescue or shelter for at least a year if at all possible. You may have done this already and if so, skip to the next paragraph. I know that rat rescues can be hard to find, but dogs and cats need help too (and rabbit rescues are usually desperate for help). Getting an administrative volunteer position just to test the waters is a good idea. See how they run their group, what it feels like to be a foster as well as what it feels like
to be in the "office" (not usually an actual building--most rescues don't have that kind of money) organizing which animal goes where. It's really important to do both jobs since they can unfortunately end up with a lot of friction between them. You have to know what it feels like on both sides. When I started 3R, I modeled it after a rescue I really respected and admired (Independent Animal Rescue) where I had worked for a year or two, doing intake database work, helping with adoption applications, stuff like that.


The most important thing is developing good relationships with area vets, shelters, other rescues, and animal control. These are your best pals when it comes to rescue. Introduce yourself politely when you attend animal education and fun events in the area. Make appointments to visit the small animal vets (if you don't know them all already). You'll
practically live in their waiting room from now on. Ask any medical questions you have and ask for a quick tour of the facility. One thing you may want to ask, not to be morbid--but because you should really not be surprised by anything when the time comes, is what methods of
euthanasia they employ for rats and whether or not you will be allowed to be with them during the process. It's not a happy thought, but it's a lot easier to find out now than when you're holding an animal who is sick and in pain. You also might want to ask if they have much
experience spaying and neutering rats. Don't ask for discounts--if they possibly can, they will give you a discount, but asking is callous and devalues the work they do. If they don't offer now, maybe they will once they know your rescue better and/or get enough referrals from your
rescue to make it financially possible to offer a lower rate. Vet equipment and medications cost them a lot of money that they really can't just give away if they want to have enough money left to feed their own animals. :) Then there's the cost of keeping a sterile environment for surgery (you'd be amazed how many people it takes to keep a vet office sparkling!) This is something I've gone on and on about before and you probably already know all of this, but I
wanted to mention it just in case.


The other key to starting up a rescue is to avoid
gotta-have-rats-gotta-have-em-now syndrome. You could work day and night, split yourself into a hundred separate people, develop the power to fly and still not be able to help the majority of rodents out there. Know your limits and don't dive in too fast. Start with just a couple of cages and work on getting those rats adopted before getting more. It's easy to want to hop on Craigs' List and contact every person dumping their rats and hand out your address so they can drop them off, but that is going to turn bad very quickly. When you rescue, you don't have to work very hard to find rats in need. They are everywhere and the people dumping them *will* find you. I'm not saying you should never help out a free to a good home ad-ed animal get a chance at a better life, only that it's really important to start small. One reason for this is that in order to
keep going you *need* to have some successes among all the crazy bad things you will likely see and hear. In the beginning it's easy to feel galvanized and energetic, but you'll thank me later when you're happily still rescuing in six years instead of being in desperate need for a
bail out because you just can't take it mentally anymore. It may sound silly to some people, but I honestly think rescuers have to have all the strength of a cop or fire fighter to do what we do over the long term. Making sure you adopt out one animal before taking in another will not only keep your workload reasonable, those adoptions will also be the successes that keep you sane on the bad days. Good luck and thanks for having the heart to want to help!