What to feed a chinchilla: what is allowed, what is not, nutrition after birth and feeding babies. What does a chinchilla eat: the most suitable foods

Update: October 2017

One of the most important criteria proper care for the animal - this is a balanced diet. It is ignorance or non-compliance with what is and is not possible, and how to feed a chinchilla correctly, that is responsible for the gastrointestinal problems characteristic of the species. intestinal diseases. And they are the cause of 50% of pet deaths.

By the nature of their diet, domestic animals are not much different from wild ones: they are phytophages, that is, herbivorous mammals. Although, in wildlife Representatives of the species do not disdain animal food, in particular insects. In general, the animal’s diet is very similar to the menu of ordinary rabbits (see).

Animals living in the wild are not picky eaters: they prefer to eat the bark of trees and shrubs, seeds and fruits of plants, legumes, cereals, herbs and even cacti.

Wild mammals eat very little, but nevertheless their diet is high-calorie and balanced, rich in fats, carbohydrates, healthy proteins and many vitamins and minerals. minerals. This also applies to how you should feed your chinchilla at home. The diet should be: balanced, high in calories, contain vitamins and minerals.

Typically, these animals become accustomed to the food they have received since birth, so when purchasing a pet, check with previous owner, what he preferred to feed the chinchilla. Feed him the usual food for some time, gradually switching to a new type of food. Abrupt change diet will negatively affect your pet's health.

Dishes

The choice of utensils for food is of considerable importance. Bowls for rodents come in hanging and floor-standing types. The best option– This is a floor-standing ceramic bowl. It must be heavy so that the animal does not knock it over and use it as a toy, chasing it around the cage.

Do you need water?

Many believe that a rodent does not need water, since it gets the required amount of liquid from food: greens and fruits. This point of view is fundamentally wrong. In all processes that occur in the body of a living being, water plays a primary role. Using snow for a mammal to drink, as some mistakenly think, is also irrational. If only because the animal’s body will spend a lot of resources on the warming process cold water, which can also give him a cold.

During the season of herbs and vegetables, the need for water decreases, and in winter it increases. This process is also affected by air temperature and humidity in the room. The need for water increases especially strongly in females expecting offspring. Sometimes they drink twice as much fluid as they did before pregnancy. In older individuals, the need for water, on the contrary, decreases. Many rodents aged 7 years and above sometimes actually get enough fluid from succulent food. But this does not mean that the drinking bowl can be removed as unnecessary.

Old animals drink too, just less. There should always be a drinking bowl with fresh water in the animal’s cage. clean water. Preferably bottled or filtered. The optimal water temperature is from 15 to 18C˚. Wash the drinking bowl and pour it into clean water Needed daily, before each feeding. Except baking soda, no detergents It is not recommended to use it for washing the drinking bowl.

What can you feed a chinchilla?

Roughage

These include hay, nettle brooms, which are collected during flowering plants, young shoots and seeds of pine, branches and bark of oak, willow, linden, aspen, cherry, apple, and other fruit trees. The twigs are not only useful for digestion, but also help to wear down the rodent’s teeth.

Concentrates

This includes not only those purchased at a pet store ready-made food, but also bread, cereals, bran, seeds and grains.

Ready-made balanced food is a fairly convenient nutrition option for your pet; it can be regular or granular. In the first, grains and other components are present in whole, and in the second in the form of compressed granules - small green or brown sticks. The composition of such granules includes bran, limestone, grass and fish flour, yeast, salt, barley, oats and a complex of vitamins and minerals. In addition to ready-made food (70% of general diet), the pet must be fed with a grain mixture and cereals (30%).

Granules are more economical than conventional packaging: the animal will not be able to extract especially tasty components from the food, ignoring the rest. When choosing ready-made food, pay attention to the presence of treats in the composition - raisins, dried fruits, nuts. There should be as few of them as possible. Most of them are usually not to the taste of the rodent, so it is better to select treats individually.

From time to time you can feed your pet chinchilla with balanced food for rabbits and guinea pigs. But food for other rodents is contraindicated for her.

You can make your own grain mixture from several grains, seeds and legumes. The main and grain mixture in the diet of a mammal should be mixed in a 1:1 ratio. The following grain crops will be useful:

1. Millet - it is especially desirable to have red varieties in the menu with high content carotene, unfortunately, animals are not particularly fond of them.
2. Barley - due to its excessive hardness, can only be given to adults and in ground form, otherwise it is difficult to chew.
3. Oats (+ oatmeal, rolled oats) - can make up up to 75% of the entire grain mixture, very healthy cereal containing healthy proteins and fats, has a positive effect on digestive tract animal.
4. Corn – rich in carotene and vitamin A, but should be given carefully to avoid bloating. Animals love to gnaw sweetish young cobs whole, but at the maturity stage it is better to feed corn in ground form.
5. Wheat (+ wheat bran) – contains mass useful substances, including vitamin B.

From cereals you can cook crumbly porridges without sugar, salt and other additives. Such dishes are very healthy for baby chinchillas.

Can make up no more than 5% of the diet, intended for feeding pregnant and lactating females, these include:

• Low fat or powdered milk.
• Cottage cheese.
• Curdled milk and kefir.
• Meat and bone meal.

Treats

Sold in pet stores - special biscuits and cookies for rodents, crackers, sweet sticks, etc. In addition, nuts, berries and fruits. This all applies to what you can feed a chinchilla, but no more than 2 - 3 times a week. Despite the fact that such products do not contain harmful substances, their abuse can lead to obesity or, in the case of fruits and berries, to serious intestinal upset.

Vitamins and minerals

A British chinchilla's cage should always contain mineral salt rings or a mineral salt stone. They are necessary for harmonious development and normal digestion animal. Vitamins are usually given to young animals, pregnant or lactating females, and individuals recovering from a serious illness. In other cases best source vitamins and minerals remain in a properly balanced diet. Vitamins can only be prescribed veterinarian taking into account the characteristics of a particular animal.

What not to feed a chinchilla

– it is not recommended to give cabbage, except kohlrabi, potatoes, citrus fruits, mushrooms, beets. Plant tops should be introduced into the menu with caution; they can cause bloating. The herbs are not washed before feeding, but slightly dried. Under no circumstances should you give wet food. It is also forbidden to give rye, eggs, cheese, chips, buns, poisonous herbs - sweet clover, henbane, lily of the valley, spurge, bindweed, lilac, buckthorn, elderberry, wild rosemary, maple.

Feeding a pregnant chinchilla

The feeding of a female expecting cubs is not much different from the diet of other individuals. First of all, experts recommend increasing the protein content. The female may begin to drink more, consume a little more feed. But you should not feed the expectant mother, this can lead to obesity. It is important that the rodent’s menu includes the following products:

• Sprouted grain – it has high concentration vitamin E, which is responsible for the reproductive function of the body. A lack of this vitamin is quite capable of leading to infertility or pathologies in the development of cubs. Wheat, barley and oats are best suited for germination.
• Herbs such as nettle, alfalfa, vetch, flax seeds, calendula flowers, rose hips, cereals, strawberry leaves - they all improve lactation.
• Food of animal origin (you can give the female milk pellets as an additional source of protein; they are available in pet stores).
• Calcium – 1/4 of a calcium gluconate tablet once a day – if calcium is not added to the food, the cubs will receive it from the mother’s teeth and bones, which will have a bad effect on the health of the female.
• 2 - 3 weeks before giving birth, an apple is introduced into the diet - 1/8 of the fruit once a day.
• It is recommended to give the female 2–3 balls of beebread (a waste product of bees) daily.

Herbs such as thyme, lemon balm and mint should be excluded from the diet of a pregnant or lactating female.

Feeding newborn chinchillas

Newborn chinchillas will not need to be fed until they are approximately 8 to 10 weeks old. They feed first on the female’s colostrum for the first 3 to 5 days, and then on her milk. After this, the female independently accustoms the cubs to the food familiar to the species.

If for some reason you have to feed the babies yourself (the mother died during childbirth, there are more than three puppies in the litter), it is recommended to choose lactose-free milk formulas for children from birth (Similac, Nutrilon, Agusha, Hipp-1, NAN and etc.). They can be purchased at any pharmacy. To prepare mixtures, you should strictly follow the instructions on the packaging. You can also use baby cream or milk powder, for example, for kittens - Kitti Milk, or for puppies - Puppy Milk. They are diluted in a ratio of 1:6 with hot water and cool. Since animals have a delicate digestive system, a few drops of espumizan should be added to the feeding mixture. If babies have diarrhea, you need to put a drop of Hilak-Forte into your mouth before each feeding, and additionally add a decoction of medicinal chamomile.

Feeding is carried out using a 2 ml syringe, possibly insulin, without a needle. For safety reasons, it is better not to use a pipette; the cub can chew it. At first, the “chinchillas” are fed every 30–60 minutes, after 1.5 weeks – once every 2 hours, then even less often. 3 weeks after birth, children can be offered a special granule for young animals and skimmed milk in the drinking bowl.

Immediately after birth, the drinking bowl should be hung lower so that the puppies can reach it. Pets should have free access to hay immediately after birth; they begin to eat it already 2–3 days after birth. Normal weight gain for a baby is 2–4 grams per day. If artificial feeding passed correctly, then by 2 months the puppies should weigh no less than 200 grams.
The nutrition of female chinchillas after childbirth remains the same as it was during pregnancy. The female also needs a large number of protein, including from animal feed. The feeder and drinker should be placed closer to the nest with the offspring, so that it is easier for the nursing mother to reach them.

If you decide to have a pet and the choice falls on a chinchilla, then in addition to the cage and other household items, it is important to pay attention to the animal’s food. It is prohibited to feed anything that you eat yourself to an animal..

It is important not to forget: the stomach of a furry creature is different from a human one. It is designed to absorb nutrients from the meager variety of wild food. The health and life expectancy of your pet depends on proper nutrition.

In the wild, the animal gets to eat whatever it finds. Its diet in the wild includes plants from the legume and cereal families.

The animal enjoys eating shoots, shrubs, tree bark and cacti. Such a fluffy baby will not refuse to eat greens, nuts and fruits.

How to feed at home?

The main rule: do not forget that chinchilla is a small animal and eats very little. Therefore, it is important to maintain a balance of essential vitamins and substances in her food. How many times a day should you give food? It's worth feeding such an animal no more than once a day, preferably during waking hours. This rodent is a nocturnal animal. This is important to consider when feeding. Between 18:00 and 20:00 it’s a good idea to fill your pet’s bowl with food.

For an adult animal, 20-30 g of granulated food is enough. Observation will help determine the amount of food: if the bowl is not empty before the next meal, it is worth reducing a couple of grams. Each pet is individual and will need a different amount of food to feel full. Don't forget to fill a separate feeder with hay. The animal eats the amount it needs, and uses the rest as bedding. It is important to replenish the drinking bowl with fresh water daily. Don't neglect treats and supplements.

What is possible: list

Dry granulated food is considered to be the most suitable food for chinchillas. A 400-gram pack for an adult animal is enough for a month. After opening the package, you should pour its contents into a container that is hermetically sealed. This way the provisions will better retain their properties. This food is useful because it is similar to the food a rodent eats in nature and contains grains, herbs and vegetables. On the positive side of this drug is its hardness. With its help, the animal grinds down its teeth, which are constantly growing.

It is important to purchase food from one manufacturer. If the food is changed regularly, the animal is not immune from digestive disorders.

It is important to place hay in your pet's cage. For convenience, they use a special sennitsa, which is easy to find in a pet store. The amount of dried herb should not exceed one gram of granulate. You can prepare such bait yourself, but it is better to use the services of a pet store. The fact is that most herbs are not suitable for chinchilla consumption. The animal can become poisoned and get a digestive tract disorder.

Not a single rodent will refuse to eat complementary food, which is worth buying in a pet store in the form of granules. Supplementary food differs from support food in color and softness. Granular supplements are enriched with minerals, amino acids and vitamins.

Complementary foods help strengthen immune system and the heart of your fur baby, as well as improve blood circulation. However, it is not difficult to collect additional food yourself. It will require cereals, roots, berries and leaves. It is important to add all components exclusively in dried form.

What they like to eat: treats

Just like a human, a chinchilla will enjoy a treat. Don’t think that goodies are harmful, because they also have benefits. It’s easy to prepare a supplement that is beneficial for your pet’s body yourself.. It will benefit:

• corn. It is rich in magnesium, calcium and potassium. A few grains a day will have a positive effect on the animal’s well-being;
• viburnum. Two berries a week and the chinchilla’s digestion will improve;
• calamus root. Helps prevent cramps. One centimeter of root per week will have a beneficial effect;
• carrot. The condition of the fur and heart will be improved by one circle of fruit. Treats should be given no more than three times a week;
• rose hip. He will contribute general strengthening pet's body. Dosage - 4 pieces per month;
• plantain. The functioning of the gastrointestinal tract is regulated, and you just need to feed the chinchilla two leaves per decade.

Your pet will also like lingonberries and cranberries, hawthorn and currants, apples, blueberries and chokeberry . It is worth feeding the rodent with herbal delicacies: alfalfa and parsley, sorrel and mint, chamomile and nettle, calendula and oregano. As for trees, it is better to use willow and apple trees, ash, mulberry and birch, aspen and elm for treats. Oak and pear are contraindicated. These plants have strengthening properties, and the animal does not go to the toilet quickly.

Vitamins and their benefits for pets

Vitamin complexes are not only intended for young, sick, lactating, pregnant and weakened animals. The intake of vitamins in food will protect your pet from possible illnesses. These supplements are sold in pet stores and come in liquid, powder or solid form.

Tablets and powders are extremely difficult to feed to a fluffy dog. That's why It is better to choose fortified complementary foods in liquid form. So it can be easily mixed into water and the rodent’s diet will be significantly enriched.

Make sure that there are always salt and mineral stones in the chinchilla's cage. They will have a beneficial effect on the animal’s body and help it take care of its constantly growing teeth.

Dry yeast can replenish protein reserves. They will also help enrich the chinchilla’s body with B vitamins. It is important to add them to the food a little at a time.

Menu of a pregnant female

The diet of an animal expecting cubs does not differ significantly from the diet of others. Veterinarians insist on increasing the protein content in food. If the female begins to drink and eat much more, then this is normal. After all, another living creature is forming and developing inside it, which also needs to be fed. Main: It is forbidden to overfeed the expectant mother, otherwise obesity and health problems cannot be avoided. Also, the animal’s menu should be supplemented:

• sprouted grain. Reproductive function will return to normal due to the vitamin E content in complementary foods;
• food of animal origin. You'll have to go to the pet store to get it;
• calcium Once a day, a quarter of a tablet will help to the expectant mother replenish the supply of this microelement, since the baby “takes” it from the female;
• apple Every day, 3 weeks before giving birth, it is worth introducing an eighth of the fruit into the diet of a pregnant animal;
• beebread. A couple of balls a day will have a beneficial effect on the health of both;
• alfalfa and strawberry leaves, flax seeds and rose hips, calendula flowers and oatmeal. They will bring the rodent's lactation to the required state.

It is important to exclude mint, thyme and lemon balm from the diet of a pregnant female..

What's not allowed?

The fluffy rodent has sensitive digestion. Therefore, the following products are prohibited from being given to him:

These products will not bring any benefit to your pet. They are saturated with fat and extremely high in calories. So the food mentioned will not have a beneficial effect on the development and growth of the pet, and will even cause obesity. Even if the chinchilla likes such products, giving them is strictly prohibited.

Diet example

A person will not like to eat the same food every day. Not everyone can eat buckwheat for a week, for example. So why pet submit to the same torment? A chinchilla needs a complete and varied diet. It will not only be tasty for the animal, but also healthy. Don't forget that The pet is fed once a day in the evening when the animal is awake.

On the first day, you should give your pet 15 g of granules. 5 g of rose hips and the same amount of a mixture of corn and sunflower seeds will help supplement the required daily amount of food.

The second day is 20 g of granulated food and 10 g of dried apple.

The diet for the next day consists of 10 g of food in granules, 1/2 kernel walnut and 10 g of a mixture of oatmeal and flax seeds.

There are a lot of menu variations. Use approved ingredients and pleasantly surprise your pet every day.

Useful video

A balanced diet is the key to chinchilla health. It also depends on appearance fur, and the life expectancy of the animal. Don't neglect this part of caring for your pet.

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What to feed your chinchilla?

In our last publication, we talked about the benefits of keeping such an animal as http://onlinepaydayloansusca.com/ chinchilla at home - read about it. We also touched upon the question of where the rodent should live and how best to arrange a cage for it. Today we will consider the topic, how to feed payday loans to a chinchilla. As they say, comfort is comfort, and without proper diet nutrition, this pet is unlikely to be able to live long and happy life to your delight. So, how and what to feed your pet chinchilla correctly...

Features of the chinchilla's diet

Your chinchilla is a herbivore, which means she is a vegetarian. Therefore, you should not offer her meat. The diet of this herbivorous rodent may include various herbaceous plants, legumes, cereals, seeds of such plants, moss, lichen, shrubs, tree bark and, at the request of the chinchilla itself, small insects. In principle, if we consider the gastronomic preferences of this fluffy creature, then chinchillas are not picky when it comes to choosing food. However, you can independently try to determine what your rodent likes most and periodically pamper him with such a treat.

By the way, some chinchilla breeders claim that if you have ever dealt with direct payday lenders rabbits, then you can easily cope with caring for a chinchilla, since in principle these two types of animals have a lot in common with each other.

What to feed a chinchilla

Today at any pet store you can purchase ready-made special food for chinchillas. They are the simplest answer to the question of what to feed your pet. If you have the time, desire and opportunity, you can try to create a menu for your chinchilla yourself. It may include fruits, plant seeds, and even bread crusts, tree branches, hay, dried fruits and nuts. By the way, many chinchillas adore barberry and rose hips.

True, if you prepare food for your chinchilla yourself, you should follow some rules so that your pet does not have stomach problems and does not cry in pain. So, for example,

if you want to give the chinchilla stems fresh plant, then it is better to wither or dry them a little, and only then give them as a treat, since fresh shoots can cause bloating in the chinchilla. It is not recommended to give to chinchillas raw beets and potatoes. And, it is recommended to wash all other vegetables and fruits well before offering them to your pet.

Hay for chinchilla

We have already written that your pet’s diet must include hay. It is better if it is hay made from forbs ( different types herbs), this way you will take care of a variety of nutritional value such an addition to the main diet. You can prepare it yourself or purchase it at a pet store. By the way, if you choose the first option - harvesting it yourself - collect the grass away from busy highways so that such grass is not saturated with exhaust gases. Dry it thoroughly and make sure that during storage the hay does not become wet and begin to mold.

You cannot feed your chinchilla hay that has a musty smell and has begun to mold. The animal may become poisoned and die.

Water for chinchilla

Despite the fact that the animal drinks little and not often (in nature, chinchillas don’t drink at all - it’s hard to believe, but such data can be found), in its cage there must always be fresh, clean, boiled water, which you will regularly change. Don't forget to wash the water bottle itself every day. However, without the use of cleaning agents or chemicals.

Also, you should know what to give your chinchilla. tap water that flows from the tap in your home is not recommended. If the water is chlorinated, the animal may die. Therefore, it is better to use either filtered and purified boiled water, or give artesian or mineral, but without gas.

Additional food for chinchillas

In order for your rodent to have the opportunity to grind down his front incisors, and you do not have to go to the veterinarian with problems associated with the chinchilla’s teeth, be sure to put several dry branches of payday advance trees in his cage. These can be branches of apple, acacia, pear, birch, willow, hazelnut or linden. payday loans online But it’s better not to give branches of coniferous trees - they contain high content resin The same can be said about branches of citrus fruits, cherries, plums, oak and walnuts. It is not recommended to give them to chinchillas.

If the rodent does not want to chew branches, you can put special stones made of chalk or pumice in the chinchilla’s cage. Just make sure that they are truly natural and without additives. By the way, The chalk itself will also be useful to your chinchilla as a mineral supplement.

What foods should not be given to a chinchilla?

You should not give meat to rodents

And, although you adore your payday loans animal and want to pamper it, we do not recommend that you give your chinchilla food from your table, treat it with cookies, sweets... Even if the animal likes such human delicacies, this does not mean at all that they will be useful for the chinchilla. As a result of consuming such fatty and high-calorie foods, she may become obese, and this will not only negatively affect her ability to reproduce, but will also shorten the life of your pet, since excess weight It definitely won’t improve your chinchilla’s health. That's why, It’s better to find another way to express your love and don’t give your chinchilla cookies, chocolate, sweets, spicy, salty, smoked foods...

Vitamins and microelements for chinchillas

Your pet will be healthy, active and cheerful if, along with food from its diet, it receives all the vitamins and microelements necessary for its growth and development. Well, since on the day you purchased the chinchilla you swore to take care of it, we invite you to dwell in more detail on what vitamins and microelements are vital and necessary for your rodent and why he needs them.

Proteins in chinchilla foods

Fats in chinchilla foods

Fats in the diet regulate water balance in cells, are responsible for the supply of salts and amino acids to them, act as a solvent for vitamins K and A, and are a source of energy. But, despite these benefits of fats, an excess of them in the diet is harmful to health. That's why, It’s still not worth overusing chinchilla nuts, sunflower seeds and seeds of other oilseeds.

Carbohydrates in chinchilla foods

Carbohydrates are also one of the main sources of energy in the animal's body, and they are also part of cells and help the body utilize fats. The most carbohydrates are found in beans, oats, corn, lentils and soybeans.

Vitamins in foods for chinchillas

• Vitamin A– if your chinchilla does not receive enough vitamin A, it may begin to have problems with vision and respiratory system, gastrointestinal tract and skin. Therefore, make sure that your chinchilla eats rose hips, raw red carrots, pumpkin, bananas, spinach, lettuce, milk and corn.
• B vitamins– they regulate metabolic processes in the animal’s body, ensure normal growth, development, regeneration skin, and hemorrhage. B vitamins are found in legumes, cereals, milk, lettuce and spinach.
• Vitamin C– responsible for maintaining and strengthening health, helping the body fight viruses and microbes. The most vitamin C is found in berries, fruits, and vegetables, rose hips and sorrel.
• Vitamin E– responsible for healthy skin and muscle strength, has a positive effect on work reproductive system. Sources of vitamin E for chinchillas are wheat germ, spinach, soybeans, almonds, corn, and walnuts.
• Calcium acts as building material for bones and teeth, regulates work of cardio-vascular system, plays an important role in the body’s ability to resist infections. A chinchilla can replenish its calcium reserves by consuming nuts, apples, seeds, wheat, raisins, soybeans, beans and dried apricots.
• Potassium– necessary for normal functioning soft tissues, is present in 50% of all fluids in the rodent body. Your chinchilla can replenish its potassium reserves by eating pine nuts, raisins, carrots, sunflower seeds and dandelion leaves.
• Zinc– if you care about the health of your rodent, then you must ensure that the animal does not lack zinc. In addition, this element is responsible for the ability to distinguish taste and the ability to smell. A lot of zinc is found in sprouted wheat, pumpkin and sunflower seeds, and legumes. But berries, fruits and vegetables, unfortunately, contain very little zinc.
• Iron- As in human body, and in the chinchilla’s body it payday loans online is contained in small quantities, but is responsible for many functions, including providing the body’s cells with oxygen and supporting the immune system. A lot of iron can be found in peas, beans, soybeans, breadcrumbs made from wholemeal flour, as well as in green leafy vegetables and instant payday loans rose hips.
• Magnesium– the role of this element is also very important, it influences energy processes and participates in immune processes. Sources of magnesium for chinchillas include oatmeal, beans, nuts, soy and buckwheat. In winter, you can also give your chinchilla dried fruits, prunes, raisins and dried apricots.
• Folic acid– if you are planning to breed chinchillas at home, or your female chinchilla is already expecting offspring, or maybe your rodent has experienced serious stress and illness and is just beginning to recover from it, you definitely need to make sure that its The diet necessarily contained wheat, vegetables, dried fruits and oatmeal, which contain folic acid necessary for the restoration of the body...

How often to feed a chinchilla

Chinchillas eat very carefully

Most chinchilla breeders are inclined to believe that It’s still better to feed your pet more than once a day, but to divide the daily portion of food - this is approximately 2 tablespoons of dry ready-made food, divided into 2 times. That is, you pour 1 tablespoon of food into the chinchilla's bowl in the morning, and pour 1 tablespoon in the evening, before bed. It is recommended to remove any leftover food, if any, rather than supplement it with a fresh portion.

By the way, it is better not to overfeed the animal, despite a good appetite chinchillas (healthy individuals are almost always ready to chew something), you should not indulge such weaknesses of the rodent, as this can lead to obesity, and in general spoil the character of the chinchilla. Quite often one comes across such statements from chinchilla owners that if they are overfed, the rodent begins to rage and creates chaos in the cage.

A small, fluffy animal can win the heart of every person. Moreover, the sellers persuade the future owner by telling how unpretentious, omnivorous, and affectionate the chinchilla is. What is there cannot be taken away. This is a charming creature, sweet and gentle. However, you need to think about what to feed your chinchilla long before you bring the fluffy one home.

For this animal, food is the most important pleasure in life. He is ready to give anything for food. But you can’t feed him everything. However, looking at how much energy this creature has, the owner himself is ready to switch to chinchilla food.

Some dietary features

When talking about what to feed your chinchilla, you need to remember that there are a number of rules that must be followed. First of all, the bowl should always contain a grain mixture or ready-made food for these rodents in the amount of 2-3 tablespoons. If your pet scatters food and chooses only individual seeds, then you should reduce the portions. Do not forget that there should always be fresh water in the bowl, as well as soft hay.

A typical chinchilla eats 100 g of hay and drinks 100 g of water per week. This is a large and agile animal, whose needs are appropriate. If you are wondering what to feed your chinchilla, immediately make it your responsibility to prepare a sufficient amount of fragrant hay. The chinchilla loves to steal it. Prepare some twigs near the cage and start cleaning. Surely the animal will not resist the temptation to steal a twig from the common pile and, running to the side, sit down to gnaw on it.

Treats for your pet

When talking about what you can feed your chinchilla besides food, you must also talk about various tasty additives to the diet. As always, a little bit of good stuff. But these animals have a surprisingly well-developed sense of proportion. They themselves will not eat more than they are supposed to. Chinchillas love ripe bananas; it is also useful to treat your pets with corn and flax seeds. In the summer, you can bring your pet plantain, nettle and dandelion leaves every day.

Dried fruits are very good for dessert. It could be an apple, carrot or pear (pre-dried). Once or twice a week you can give one raisin. Chinchilla is a vegetarian, remember this when choosing a treat. The entire diet consists only of natural products.

Daily routine and feeding regimen

When talking about what to feed a chinchilla, it is necessary to remember the periods of its maximum activity. This is a nocturnal animal, so when evening comes, you can put a bowl of food in the cage. This will solve two problems at once: as soon as the animal sees that the bowl is already in the cage, it will run to the place itself, and no additional effort will be required. However, it is rare to see a chinchilla greedily attack food. Usually she will eat one grain and run to jump around the cage, then return to the cup and again in a circle.

Don't forget that for wellness A stable diet is important for chinchillas. If you want to enter it new food, then this process should take at least a week. It is necessary to keep a mineral and salt stone in the cage at all times. The animal will gnaw on them as needed. Now we will take a closer look at what to feed a chinchilla at home.

Food is rough and juicy

This is the main source of microelements and vitamins. Juicy feeds include fresh herbs and tree branches, vegetables and fruits. Organic matter, important for your pet's growth and development, will be a great addition. IN autumn period The chinchilla will happily gobble up root vegetables, this could be carrots, celery, parsley. Apples are very useful fruits for these rodents, and dried fruits are prunes, apples, rose hips, and barberries. It is very good if you have the opportunity to collect meadow herbs, this can be alfalfa, garden lettuce, spinach, chicory and raspberry. It is better not to give other plants, since the reaction is very difficult to predict. You should not give any cabbage; any variety of it causes bloating.

In order for furry animals to grind their teeth and at the same time feast on delicacies, it is better to use twigs of apple and pear trees, willow and acacia, birch and oak. It is these foods that help provide the body tannins and biologically active compounds which improve metabolism.

Food is dry and rough

Speaking about what to feed a chinchilla at home, it should be noted that it will need hay in any case, no matter how balanced the diet looks. It is best if you prepare it yourself. To do this, you will have to spend quite a bit of time getting out into nature, walking through meadows and cutting tender grass. Upon returning home, it should be laid out in the shade and dried well. Hay good quality It has green color and a pleasant aroma. Brown, damp, moldy hay cannot even be used for bedding. The animal can taste it on the tooth.

If you can’t collect hay, you can order it in the village or buy it at a pet store. Your pet will be very happy with this addition to his diet.

Nutrient mixtures

They are sold in every pet store. When talking about what you can feed your chinchilla, these foods can be put at the forefront. It is in store packages that contain a balanced mixture necessary for the full functioning and development of the animal’s body. At the same time, pay attention to the composition - the richer and more varied it is, the better. But it is not recommended to use any one type of grain.

The mixture should contain 20% proteins and 5% fats. Feed must be enriched with vitamins and microelements. Therefore, it is very convenient to buy mixtures that are prepared in production - it is much easier to take into account all the characteristics of your pet’s body than to feed a chinchilla at home various products and hope that the result will be a balanced diet. The granulated grain mixture is very convenient to serve - the animal will not choose one of the varieties of seeds that it likes most, but will eat the whole thing.

If the nutritional formula is not available at the pet store

This may happen, but don't panic - your pet won't go hungry. Now we will look at what you can feed your chinchilla at home. You will need to make your own mixture, which will contain 20% oats, 20% wheat, 10% buckwheat, 10% barley, 7% peas, 55% crushed corn, 8% flax seed, wheat bran - 10%, dried nettle or alfalfa. In addition, the mixture must be enriched with special vitamin preparations. This can be Poltamix L or Poltamix F. Additionally, the mixture is enriched with ground calcium and methonine. The result is an excellent nutritional mixture.

However, there is one difficulty: unlike nutritional granules, in which all the components are thoroughly mixed, here each grain is separated from the other. Your pet does not know that its diet should be balanced, which means it will choose only what it likes. As a result, the chinchilla will quickly shake out the grains it likes from the feeder and beg for food again. This upsets the necessary balance.

What not to give to furry animals

Not everything that you have in your kitchen will suit your animal. Let's talk in more detail about what you can and cannot feed your chinchilla. First of all, you need to exclude all baked goods. Please note that the animals are very fast and can sneak into the kitchen and steal cookies or candy. Chinchillas should not be given white cabbage, cauliflower, red beets, persimmons, and peppers. These foods cause intestinal diseases and disorders. There are poisonous herbs that should not be allowed into your pet's cage. These are bindweed and buttercup, spurge and crow's eye, sweet clover, lily of the valley, henbane and much more. Don't forget that excess fresh vegetables and fruits can harm tender digestive system chinchillas. It is better to give dried fruits in small quantities.

Let's sum it up

Chinchilla is a funny and cute animal with its own character and preferences. However, you need to carefully monitor its diet, this is the only way your pet can live a long and happy life. Do not give your furry anything from your table, especially spicy, salty, baked and sweet. This is a pure vegetarian, and therefore you need to feed it exclusively natural products. If your pet suddenly gets poisoned, gets sick and starts refusing to eat, contact your veterinarian immediately.

» Chinchillas

Choosing the right diet for chinchillas- a responsible task. The health of the animal, the shine of its fur and its life expectancy completely depend on food.

Food for a rodent is very diverse, but there are characteristics in how to feed your pet, especially at home.

Chinchilla is a herbivore. The basis of the animal’s diet is considered to be food of plant origin.

In the wild, their main food is cereals and legumes, cacti, shrubs, tree bark, small fruits, shoots, mosses and other vegetation.

In conditions home care Humans are responsible for the animal's diet. Food should be varied and balanced to provide all the body’s needs with the necessary components, vitamins, and nutrients.

Chinchillas care about the quality of their food. They eat in small quantities, so animal owners should be careful when choosing food.

Moreover, luxurious fur and irrepressible energy require a lot of expenditure. nutrients. Chinchillas are picky eaters. They will choose the most delicious morsels from the food offered.

But for full development the animal needs to receive various microelements and vitamins, so you need to try to ensure that the animal fully consumes its portion.

If your pet starts throwing food out of the feeder, it is necessary to reduce the amount of food given out. You can give your pet food in small portions and reduce treats in the diet.

When choosing food for a rodent, it is worth considering that they, like all herbivores, have sensitive digestion.

Firstly, they have long intestines. Secondly, herbivorous animals process hard-to-digest plant fiber. From it they receive the necessary nutrients.

It is better to underfeed a chinchilla a little than to overfeed it treats. The food offered must be:

• quality;
• fresh;
• without traces or smell of rot, mold, mustiness.

Green food should be collected away from busy places, roadsides, and factories. Greens, vegetables and fruits should be thoroughly washed and dried before feeding to the rodent. The food offered must be dry.

Young animals and those individuals that are winter season did not receive green food, they must gradually become accustomed to it. Initially, you need to offer your pet such food in small portions, gradually increasing the dose.

In this case, it is necessary to carefully monitor the chinchilla’s well-being.

It is advisable to feed the animal once a day, after lunch or in the late afternoon. This is explained by the fact that the pet is awake in the evening and night hours. Food should be given at the same time.

This way the animals get used to the set feeding time, which has a positive effect on the digestibility of food. If all the food is eaten in the morning, then additional feeding is possible.

Before giving your pet a new portion of food, be sure to throw away any uneaten leftovers and rinse the bowls with running water without adding detergents or cleaning agents.

The daily portion of the pet's main food is 1 teaspoon, hay - 20–30 g, delicacy of your choice - 1 piece. There should always be boiled or filtered clean water in the animal's drinking bowl.

What can you feed a rodent at home?

The animal living in your home eats rough dry and succulent food, nutritional mixtures, and needs vitamin supplements and treats.

The food is rough and juicy

Juicy feeds include fruits, vegetables, herbs and branches of bushes and trees. They are saturated with useful microelements, vitamins, and organic substances.

Branches, snags, and twigs of various shrubs and tree species are available throughout the year. By eating hard pieces of wood, the animals will wear down their constantly growing incisors.

Vegetables for chinchillas include tomatoes, celery, cucumbers, carrots, pumpkin, lettuce, and zucchini.

From fruits they prefer pears, apples, melons, berries, bananas, grapes, from dried fruits - apples, plums, raisins, hawthorn, dried apricots, cherries, barberries and rose hips. It is advisable to cut large fruits into small pieces.

Greens worth giving clover, carrot tops, peas, dandelion.

Treats must be offered systematically. For example, 1-2 times a week one berry, 2-3 times a week other treats - fruits, dried fruits.

Vegetables should be fed in moderation - small piece 1-2 times a week along with the main food. Due to sensitive digestion, chinchillas should not eat vegetables and fruits in large quantities.

After introducing a new type of food, you should carefully monitor the reaction of the animal’s body. Possible indigestion, then succulent food should be discarded. If the pet feels good, then the food is suitable for him.

Food is dry and rough

Such food includes hay. It is the most important component of the animal’s diet and saturates the body with essential fiber.

Dried herb helps food move through the intestines, preventing it from stagnating and causing fermentation. Hay is also a rich source of microelements, vitamins, fiber, and protein.

Chewing grass food helps animals wear down their teeth in a timely and even manner, and this, in turn, prevents the development of dental hooks on the back incisors.

The hay must be of good quality, fresh, not wet or musty. Properly prepared food smells pleasant, without foreign debris, sticks or other inclusions. It can be purchased at pet stores or assembled yourself.

It is better when the chinchilla is offered food forb hay- different types of herbs. Preparations from leguminous plants (alfalfa, clover) contain essential vitamins and minerals. They are mowed during the flowering period of legumes.

Cereal feed nutritional composition slightly inferior to the first one, because it contains less minerals and protein.

TO cereal crops , which chinchillas love, include meadow fescue, Sudanese, timothy, wheatgrass, meadow bluegrass, and cocksfoot. Grasses that are mowed before the first flowering have a lot of nutritional value.

You need to give your chinchilla from 20–30 to 70–80 g of fresh hay per day.

These herbs are poisonous and under no circumstances should the following be included in grass food for animals:

• fern;
• horsetail;
• rushwort;
• black nightshade;
• dope;
• white hellebore;
• cornflower;
• raven eye

Do I need to give nutritional formula?

For proper development a rodent needs the elements contained in nutritional mixtures. Chinchillas should be given various mixtures in order to saturate their body with as many vitamins, microelements, proteins, fats, and amino acids as possible.

These types of food can be purchased at a pet store or made yourself. Most often they are sold in granular form. They contain all the necessary healthy ingredients in the correct proportions.

TO nutritional mixtures include grain feed, seeds, legumes, bread, bran, cereals.

The following grain crops are suitable for rodents:

• oats- contains a large amount of protein and fat, but does not cause obesity. Most often, oats make up up to 75% of the mixture;
• corn- should be given in small portions, as it can cause bloating;
• barley- it should be offered in ground form, preferably for adults. This grain product is very hard;
• wheat- it contains a lot of carbohydrates, proteins, and little fat.

In feeding chinchillas should give up rye- it is difficult for animals to digest.

What foods should chinchillas not eat?

Due to chinchillas' sensitive digestion they should not be given the following foods:

• food from the common table (salty, spicy, fatty, hot, smoked);
• meat and meat products;
• bakery products and baked goods (bread, pastries);
• flour (pasta, noodles);
• potatoes, fresh White cabbage, lettuce leaves;
• sweets (cookies, chocolate, sugar, sweets, other confectionery);
• eggs;
• roasted nuts, seeds, grains;
• mushrooms;
• fermented milk products;
• fast food, chips, popcorn;
• stale and spoiled products.

The list does not contain absolutely any useful substances for the proper growth and development of the rodent. The listed foods are high in calories and fat, which can result in your pet becoming obese.

This will negatively affect the animal's mobility, its ability to reproduce, life expectancy.

Even junk food If your pet likes it, this does not mean that it should be offered.

Perhaps the animal will not die from just eating it, but systematic consumption of such delicacies will lead to serious problems with chinchilla health.

Vitamin supplements to complement your diet

With an unbalanced diet for chinchillas, young individuals, pregnant and lactating rodents, sick and weakened must be given vitamin complexes . They can be in liquid form, in the form of tablets and powders.

Liquid fortified food can be given along with water, so it will be easy to enrich your pet’s diet. It is difficult to offer powders and tablets to pets.

Preferably in the animal's cage hang mineral and salt stone, which the animal will eat as needed.

You can immediately buy fortified food. The ingredients most often include carrots, pumpkin, nettle hay, rowan, and rose hips. To replenish protein and B vitamins, add a little dry yeast (2–5 g) to the feed.

Train your chinchilla to proper nutrition not difficult, but definitely necessary. Just getting everything useful microelements, vitamins and others useful compounds the animal will be healthy, full of energy and live a long life.