How I got into this! It never ceases to amaze me how many people have never even heard of a Chinchilla! Thirteen years ago I saw the pet segment of Martha Stewart's show. It wasn't even specifically about Chinchillas, but there were a few running around on a table with a variety of other animals. Seeing them stirred my interest again and I immediately started doing some research on them. When I found that they were bred in many mutation colors, I was hooked. My interest in the color genetics of Paint Horses led to my interest in the genetics of the mutation colors of chins.
A little about my chins: All my chins are bred in pairs or trios. They are not in runs and the females do not wear collars. My cages are tall and wide, as much for me as the chins! I like to be able to see them and enjoy them rather than squinting to see into the back of a dark, small run cage. The cages are equipped with wood shelves which serve a dual purpose, providing places to run and jump around, and more things to chew on! I have no wire shelves, ramps or cage bottoms. I have purchased my chins from several different sources. Some of them are "show quality" and some are not. All of them are healthy, beautiful, have sweet temperaments, and are handled regularly. After breeding show horses for over 30 years we have found that not everyone is looking for a show quality animal. Many people are just looking for a nice pet to enjoy. I believe this is true with chinchillas too. And I think chinchillas are one of the nicest pets you can have! Over the years I have probably owned pretty much every pet out there and I think chins are the greatest! OK, I live in California and ferrets, sugar gliders and some other exotics are not legal, so I can't speak about them! I do know chins do not have the smelly poop or scent glands that some of the other exotics have, so for me that is a huge plus!!
Care: Chinchillas are probably one of the easiest animals to care for and once you have made the initial purchase of the animal(s) and caging, they are quite inexpensive to keep. They also live a very long time. I will not spend considerable time and space here to just repeat what is on many, many web pages. There is a wealth of information on the web so rather than go into all of the background, care instructions and information about chinchillas, I will just refer you to one of the best sources for information:
Sales: I have recently downsized my chin herd but I am still raising a small number. I am focusing on whites and ebonies. I do have a few other colors occasionally and of course I always have grey. Most young chins are priced $100-200. Occasionally a chin gets into a scuffle with a cagemate or sibling or their parents are a little too rough with them and their ears will become notched or folded or even quite disfigured. Their ears are paper thin and it doesn’t take much to cause an imperfection. These chins are perfectly fine otherwise and still make good pets or breeders. They start at $25. Give me a call for availability.
Shipping: I do not ship with airlines. Besides being very expensive (usually far more than the cost of the chin) it is too stressful as the handlers most likely are not animal people and just treat the carrier like your luggage! I can occasionally ship chins with friends who are traveling to horseshows so if you are not within driving distance let me know and I will see what I can do.
Thanks for your interest in my chinchillas.
If I can answer any questions you have, please e-mail or call me.
