I have two chinchillas and think they are loads of fun. They have to
have a dust bath every couple of days which can get messy, but does
not have to. I get a high quality feed (Maxuri) from the local feed
store and mix it with Calf Manna (also at the feed store). They are
very social (although I got them young and spent lots of time with
them) and will chirp when you go to their cage. They love raisins
(one a day) and really get into routine. I feed and water all the
gerbies and then get each one out separately (I have two boys in
separate cages) and pet them, give them their raisin and let them
hop/run around for a while. While they are out, they poop everywhere
like the gerbils do, but it is easy to clean up. They are a bit
expensive originally ($100 and up) but can live up to 15 years. There
are lots of websites out there and breeders that offer high quality
ones and other colors besides the standard grey. I would probably shy
away from chain petstores except for getting the cage there. If you
want more info, email me privately, so the whole list doesn't have to
read all about this :)
Cindy
--
Kokopellis Kritters
Red Desert Rodent's
**The Anasazi Clan**
