What to Feed a Baby Chinchilla: Chinchilla hay is very important in a chinchilla’s diet because is the main source of fibre. Even when you have chosen a high quality of pellets you should also provide the hay every day as it helps for the proper functioning of the digestive system. In addition, hay helps to grind and wear their teeth down keep them in good length and preventing tooth disorders. It is very important and vital a chin never goes without his hay. By rotating a variety of hays you will encourage your chin’s interest in consuming it while adds great value to his diet.
If you’re a new chinchilla parent, you may be wondering what to feed your baby chinchilla. In this blog post, we’ll discuss the best foods to feed your chinchilla and provide some tips on how to make sure your chinchilla is getting the nutrients they need.
When it comes to feeding a baby chinchilla, there are a few things you need to keep in mind. First, baby chinchillas should only be fed hay, fresh vegetables, and fresh fruits. They should not be fed pellets, as pellets are not appropriate for baby chinchillas. Secondly, you need to make sure that your baby chinchilla is always getting plenty of water. Chinchillas need a lot of water to stay healthy, so be sure to provide your baby chinchilla with a water bottle that they can access anytime they want.
What Do You Feed Baby Chinchillas
A chinchilla’s diet is very important for their overall health and well-being. So, what do you need to know about feeding a baby chinchilla? First of all, it’s important to know that chinchillas are herbivores, which means that their diet should consis t mostly of plants. hay, vegetables, and a small amount of fruit. You can find specially made chinchilla food mixes at your local pet store, which will contain all of the necessary nutrients that your chinchilla needs.
When it comes to feeding a baby chinchilla, you will need to start slowly. Introduce new foods gradually, and always keep an eye on how your chinchilla is reacting. If you notice any adverse effects, stop feeding that particular food immediately. As far as portion sizes go, a good rule of thumb is to offer your chinchilla 1-2 tablespoons of food per day. This can be increased as your chinchilla gets older. Hay should always be available to your chinchilla, as it is an essential part of their diet.
Baby chinchillas will need a softer variety of hay, such as alfalfa hay, while adult chinchillas can eat a more coarse variety, such as Timothy hay. Vegetables and fruit can be given to your chinchilla daily, but should be given in small amounts. A good mix of vegetables and fruit will provide your chinchilla with the vitamins and minerals they need. Avoid giving your chinchilla avocado, as it is toxic to them.
Be confident that your baby chinchilla get into good eating habits. It’s tempting to feed some excess food to young chinchillas, but it can result in obesity and health problems later in life. They will need more fiber than protein as they grow older, and their growth rate slows down. This guide will explain to you what is the best diet plan for your baby chinchillas. So, read it till the end to learn all about it.
What do baby chinchillas eat?
People who are new to keeping chinchillas get surprised to know what they eat. Excess sweet veggies like carrots or iceberg lettuce will lead to health problems. Instead of this, your chinchilla mostly survive on eating dry grass. By providing hay as a major part of their diet, the idea is to replicate what they would eat in the wild otherwise.
Offering fresh grass to pet chinchillas the staple is not possible. Hay (dry grass) is a replacement for grass. Your chinchillas can munch on it all day. Including dry grass, chinchillas find pleasure in eating fresh fruits and vegetables and fancy pellets. These foods must be given to them in small quantities, as too many vegetables can upset their stomach. Pellets are not compulsory for chinchillas once they reach adulthood. These are crucial for baby and young chinchillas, as pellets are rich in some vitamins and minerals that are needed more at an early age than in later age.
They also contain lots of calories. Thus, as chinchilla get older, the proportion of pellets must be decreased from their diet. Do not worry if your chinchilla refuse eating pellets. Drinking water is also vital for chinchillas. They must be able to drink fresh water quickly, provide them clean water in a bowl, or attach a bottle to their cage.
First Six Months:
The first six months of your chinchilla life is crucial for their longterm health. In this primary stage of their growth, a chinchilla undergoes some physical changes continuously. Their diet plan must consider their growth. But what can we feed baby chinchilla? Can they eat veggies, pellets, or do they have special dietary requirements?
Fresh hay and water are essential foods in those early days. Baby chinchillas require high protein, thus offer them pellets and dry alfalfa grass. Your baby chinchillas will stop drinking mother’s milk once they are three weeks old. You can consider adding a small serving of fresh veggies at this stage. You must ensure that your baby chinchillas are getting enough nourishment, so they develop healthy bones and muscles as they grow older.
Chinchilla diet basics
The three main foods of chinchillas diet are pellets, hay, and fresh vegetables. If we get to draw a chart of chinchilla diet, then hay would be written as the most important part followed by vegetables and pellets.
That is because the digestive passage of chinchilla is designed to absorb fiber found in dry grass. There are kinds of hay available, each carrying a different quality:
- Grass hay ( meadow hay or timothy hay): This is excellent hay feed to chinchilla by their owners. This hay is fresh grass, which is dried out after cutting. That means that non-domesticated chinchilla eat this grass.
- Oat grass: This grass is made by oat grass, which is cropped before it grows. Once the oat cultivates, this hay then does not carry any nutrients for chinchillas. However, it can be used to make their bed.
- Alfalfa grass: This is quite different than usual hay; it is more legume than grass. Alfalfa hay is usually offered to young chinchillas. It carries more protein and calcium than any other hay, so it helps to gain weight and develop bones and muscles.
Pellets are said to be an essential part of the diet of chinchillas. However, many researchers state that pellets are not necessary for adult chinchillas, as the growth rate is slacked, and their bodies do not need excess minerals. If your chinchilla seem overweight, then you should remove pellets from their diet. Adult chinchilla can survive eating hay and vegetables only. However, pellets are necessary for young and baby chinchillas to grow.
Treats should be offered to them occasionally only, specifically fruits. chinchillas love the sweet taste, so they enjoy berries, raisins, beetroot, and carrots. But, their body is not made to process complex carbohydrates. chinchillas can enjoy a spoon of fresh fruit for every 2lbs of their body weight. Once more, chinchillas who are overweight should not be given fresh fruit and treat for some time. chinchilla do not compulsorily need these foods to grow. They will get all the essential vitamins they need from hay and vegetables only.
Baby chinchilla food guide
Your chinchillas need more food to eat, as they are continually growing. Baby chinchillas need food to stay warm after their fur sheds for the first time. The diet of baby chinchillas regularly adjusts as they grow. At around two weeks, they will eat solid grass. But, this will be offered to them, including their mother’s milk. At the time of reaching four weeks, baby chinchillas start eating hay and pellets. Let baby chinchillas eat alfalfa hay. The protein and calcium found in this hay will help them grow strong muscles and bones.
But, mix some standard timothy hay in it too. That will make the transformation easier when your chinchillas become adults. Keep this in mind that the kind of pellets your chinchillas are eating are specially made for young chinchillas. That will supply everything your chinchillas need to grow. Keep it appropriate, whatever you are giving to eat to your piggies. chinchillas are sensitive to change, especially younger ones. So do not keep changing their food until and unless it is needed.
Baby chinchilla food list
The first thing to do before you bring your chinchilla home is to make a shopping list. For chinchillas, healthy food is essential, so it is better to estimate what is best before they arrive.
You are supposed to purchase hay in advance. Alfalfa hay is considered most essential but brings some traditional meadow hay too. Do not let your chinchilla attach to the taste of alfalfa hay because they are not going to eat only this for life. You will require some kind of pellets. Buy the perfect pellets for your chinchillas. You will see lots of varieties according to the age of chinchillas. Do not purchase a huge bag of pellets. However, you will be informed that baby chinchillas eat lots of pellets. Pellets can get fungal growth very quickly, so smaller bags of pellets are correct.
Can baby chinchilla eat hay?
Alfalfa hay is best possible for baby Chinchilla. In the first month of their birth, Chinchillas will gain proteins by this hay. Pellets also carry alfalfa, so your Chinchillas will be in good health. Even if alfalfa hay is correct for baby Chinchilla, they should not be eating this exclusively. There should be a ratio of 3:2, which is mixing alfalfa hay with traditional timothy hay. This will help you to ease the transition of your Chinchillas to timothy hay as they grow up.
Other than this, be sure that the cage of your Chinchillas is full of hay. They will sleep on hay, and generally, they will be surrounded by this. It also means that they will eliminate a lot of waste in their hay. As the brains and bladders of baby Chinchillas are not mature enough. They will take some time to be litter trained. You need to be careful though as molds can be formed by urine on hay, and it is harmful to baby Chinchillas. Keep cleaning their cage regularly.
Hay must appear as a source of enjoyment to your baby Chinchillas. Put your Chinchillas quickly in the habit of eating hay. Include this habit while they play or do exercise as well.
Can baby Chinchillas eat vegetables
As baby Chinchilla having a soft digestive passage, many people beleive that they should not eat fresh foods like fruits and vegetables. However, The fact is that fresh food and vegetables are good for them if served in moderation. Because of the lack of information, the statement that baby Chinchillas eating fresh food is harmful has appeared. It is true that offering fresh vegetables, which is not correct for the age of Chinchillas results in danger. Chinchillas take a while to adapt changes in diet.
However, make sure to avoid watery veggies like cucumber, zucchini, etc when you have just started serving vegetables. Begin with bell peppers, cilantro, lettuce, and slowly transition to other veggies. Baby Chinchillas can munch on vegetables when they reach 4 weeks old, and their stomach gets stable enough to digest vegetables in small amounts. Fresh vegetables will also control the size of their teeth as their teeth keep growing. Their teeth will get shaped when they eat solid foods.
Can baby Chinchillas eat pellets
Pellets are recommended to be included in your baby Chinchillas diet schedule. Your Chinchilla will rise joyfully and fit. But the amount and the kind of pellets should be correct. Be careful as some pet stores suggest that baby Chinchilla can eat lots of pellets; theoretically, it is right. Young Chinchilla pets can handle the calories they get because of their continually growing body. However, your Chinchillas are learning negative habits from this at the same time.
Regularly eating pellets may get your Chinchillas accustomed to it, and if you try to stop them eating pellets when they reach adulthood, they will feel upset. Hence, learning how to rely on hay at an early age is better for your Chinchilla health. Keep this in mind to buy the best possible right kind of pellets containing 22% of the fiber, 14% of proteins, and not more than 1% of calcium. Anything high in calcium can be bad for their health.
Avoid attracting pellets that contain a mixture of cereals. However, they will enjoy the taste of nuts and seeds in it. As baby Chinchilla are immature, they will enjoy eating food that lacks nutrients but are tasty and refuses to notice other foods.
Can baby Chinchilla drink from a water bottle
Baby Chinchillas can consume water from a bottle as her mother will teach them how to do so on an early stage. Until baby Chinchillas turn 3 weeks old, they get hydration from their mothers. As they grow, baby Chinchillas need to drink more water as they eat lots of solid food. So drinking water becomes essential for them to be healthy. However, not all Chinchillas are able to drink from bottle at such an early age.
Knowing how baby Chinchillas enjoy drinking water is essential. Many of them enjoy drinking water from a bottle. And many drinks from a bowl. In whatever way your pets are enjoying drinking water, just encourage them to drink more. Baby Chinchillas are always playing and impatient, so if you offer them to drink from a bowl, it should not be light in weight, and it must have a little depth. It happens that they start playing in and from water, which can grow mold on hay, and Chinchillas may also suffer from low body temperature as they get wet and their body loses heat.
Can baby Chinchillas drink milk
Chinchillas are weaned when they are three weeks old. Until then, mother Chinchillas will feed them milk and teach them to transition to solid food. Mothers should not be kept far from their baby Chinchillas until they start eating solid food. If the owner of a local pet shop gives you smaller than four weeks old Chinchillas, do not get them home. If the mother Chinchilla pets is not feeding their babies and you need to provide them with milk then avoid cow milk because it contains lots of calcium. You can offer them goat milk or kitten milk, which is acceptable. However, kitten milk carries fewer calories than Chinchillas milk. In response to this, mix sugarless cream in it and offer them multiple times in a day. Also, don’t rely only on milk for their nutritional needs. After turning two weeks old, baby Chinchillas will require some solid food and water. Ignoring these supplies will leave Chinchillas malnourished.
Baby Chinchillas healthy diet
Baby Chinchillas will feel energetic at times, but they will require constant short naps. Due to the lack of a proper diet, you may find your Chinchillas lazier than normal. Observing a Chinchillas poop discharge is a way to know about their health conditions and especially their digestive system.
Baby Chinchillas remove two kinds of wastes:
- Pellet waste that always remains there in their cage.
- Cecotropes, that is a nutritious soft poop that Chinchillas will eat.
A healthy poop discharge of Chinchillas will be light brown, and when you pick it up for cleaning, it will break down. It shows that your Chinchillas are consuming a lot of protein when their poop appears dark in color. Baby Chinchillas who suffer from loose motions need urgent medical treatments. This illness can be dangerous over time.
Baby Chinchillas eating too fast
It is normal for baby Chinchillas to eat too fast or too slow. Sometimes it can lead to hiccups, but these are nothing to be worried about, as in most cases, hiccups disappear within a short span of time.
Baby Chinchillas feel insecure about their food which is the actual reason why they eat fast. Only after being kept on a tight schedule, they will know when they will get the food which calms them down and fixes this issue. Eating food fast is also done by Chinchillas who live together in a large cage with lots of other Chinchillas. Chinchillas will be worried that another will eat their food so they try to munch on it rather quickly.
Baby Chinchillas not eating
It becomes essential to know why your Chinchillas are not eating. When any Chinchillas of any age refuse to eat, that becomes a headache. And if the Chinchillas are young and do not eat, then the trouble doubles. When adult Chinchillas eat less food then you are not much stressed because they do not require high calories.
They might prefer eating fewer pellets and more hay. However, if young one refuses to eat, it might be a trouble. You must keep this in check that your pets can accept change in their diet. It is not right that they hold on to one of their favorites when you change their diet program. If so, then it must be taken care of.
Undoubtedly, baby Chinchillas require more food to eat, but if you’re filling their stomach with too much food of their choice, you are setting a bad example. Turning to adults, they will disagree with eating anything that they do not prefer. Sometimes baby Chinchillas might not eat normally when they are separated from their mother. You need to make sure that your Chinchillas are not stressed as they are being held far from their siblings and mothers.
Sometimes neutering/spaying of young Chinchillas can also bring changes in behavior. It may happen that they do not feel hungry for some time, but it should be managed quickly. You may need to reach out to your vet if such a situation arises.
Alternative food for baby Chinchillas
You must provide some drinks if your Chinchillas are not eating. This statement seems easy to say but hard to apply. Consult a professional vet to be sure about the nourishment need of your Chinchillas.
If you can’t find the milk that is only for Chinchillas, you can provide them with a goat or kitten milk. Your Chinchillas will need more milk if they refuse to eat hay or pellets.
- 1-2 weeks old- 10-15 ml
- 2-3 weeks old- 15-30 ml
- 3-8 weeks old- 30 ml+
You can feed milk to your Chinchillas with the help of a syringe. But, some baby Chinchillas will refuse to drink milk from it. You can get a bottle for small pets as well. However, it is just a temporary solution, and you must find out why your pets are not eating and solve the issue.
Feeding baby chinchilla is similar to providing nourishment to older chinchilla. Young chinchilla need lots of food and prefer more pellets to eat. Putting your chinchilla in good habits of eating healthy food is very important. What they learn at a young age will directly impact their diet as they grow older.
