Pet Goddess

Chinchillas require a lot of roughage. Their diet should be of good, high quality grass hay, along with pellets formulated for chinchillas. You can find the hay and the pellets at your local feed or pet store.

Pet chinchillas are more delicate than many pets and do require their own type of foods. The chinchilla has a very sensitive digestive system that, in the wilderness, requires a high fiber diet of different types of grasses, fruits, leaves, bark, roots and stems, available bugs and grubs. And, in captivity, these needs remain very close to the same.

Pet chinchillas need fresh food every day. A good quality heavy earthenware food bowl is important to keep the food dry and clean, and prevent the chinchilla from tipping the food on to the floor of the cage. Daily fresh water is best provided via a water bottle. Water bottles for small pets can be found at your local pet store.

Your pet chinchilla also needs fresh vegetables and fresh hay everyday to provide him with the fiber, vitamins and minerals he needs for good health. Greens, such as carrot tops and lettuce make good extras to round out his diet. Just be sure that pellets make up the bulk of the diet, as too much greens can make him very ill.

He will also need a gnawing block and safe twigs to chew on to help wear down his teeth.It is always easier to encourage your pet chinchilla to eat a good diet from birth. In other words, if the pet gets the needed types of food at a young age, then the likelihood of it feeding selectively or in a finicky manner later in life will be greatly reduced.

Chinchilla pets are ever growing in popularity. Once a person sees a chinchilla that a friend has for a pet, they often want one of their own. These delightful, little creatures are very hard and just too cute to resist, so enjoy your new furry little friend.

Posted December 11, 2009 Comments(0)

Chinchillas can make wonderful pets for the right person. And yes, they can also make great pets for kids. The more the chinchilla is handled from birth, the more playful a pet it will make for your child and family as this helps ensure the Chinchilla will be tame and bond with its owners.

These animals are very active little creatures. Chinchillas tend to be more active at night. Since they are often so active and playful, pet chinchillas need a roomy cage for exercise, as well as a daily scheduled playtime. Chinchillas like tall, roomy spaces to live in. The general rule is the larger, the better for your pet. So, the more platforms they have to jump onto, the happier they will be.

Your pet will also need time outside of the cage to run. This is important for a chinchilla’s well being. Even if they do have a wheel provided in which to run, or a large cage, it does not compare to the enjoyment they get from running free. As they are fast, you must be careful.

Pet chinchillas kept singly will usually do fine, as do same sex pairs especially if they are litter mates. If you wish to breed your chinchillas, once the babies have been born you will want to separate the male from the female, at least until the kits are weaned. A female can become pregnant at a young age or soon after the birth of a litter.

Pet chinchillas are not only adorable, but are very soft, silky creatures and can be very lovable pets. Regardless of what some people may believe , chinchillas absolutely do make wonderful family additions. They are completely capable of bonding and feeling affection for an individual or even an entire family.

Chinchillas are quickly becoming more popular as pets. These quirky little creatures are fun to watch, but do have a few unique needs that need to be met. They can be given lots of attention or very little, and seem to do equally well. If you are looking for an interesting and unique little fur ball of a pet, consider a chinchilla.

Posted December 9, 2009 Comments(0)

The Chinchilla is a very small rabbit-sized rodent, with big mouse-like ears, and a long tail. Chinchillas are considered to be exotic animals, and they have become popular as pets. A chinchilla is a very odd-looking creature, with ears of a mouse and a tail like that of a
squirrel. Its face resembles that of a mouse or hamster. Basically, it looks as though someone bred a mouse and a hamster together.

Chinchillas have been around for many years, going as far back as the 1500s from a tribe in Peru called the Chinchas tribe. This tribe would wear their fur as clothing and ate the chinchillas as a food source. These little creatures almost became extinct because many people were hunting them. Chinchillas became valuable and hunted for the value of their fur.

Many years ago, chinchillas lived in rock crevices or burrows made by them. This would keep them protected from scavengers, and also from people. Many need to be in cool places, one reason being that chinchillas can die from heat stroke.

Chinchillas are small so they are very prone to certain animals of prey, such as cats, dogs and hawks. Many hawks will eat them in the wild; this is why they live in burrows. Chinchillas will share burrows with each other, and will also look out and protect one another in the wild as well.

Chinchilla babies, called kits, being born fully haired and able to see, are unique creatures. Most babies born from other animals do not have their eyes open when they are born.

There are two types of chinchillas, one is a long-tailed chinchilla, and the other is a short-tailed chinchilla. The short-tailed chinchillas also have a thicker neck and shoulders, and shorter ears. Chinchillas have a natural variety of colors, for instance gray still live in the wild, among other colors, such as beige, white and ebony.

Chinchillas at one time were a dying breed of animal, many years ago. People hunted them and killed them for food and for their fur. However, now the chinchilla is vast in numbers. A chinchillas is no longer just used for the fur industry; they are being kept as pets!
Chinchilla pets have grown in popularity in the last several years. Now thanks to some wildlife researchers, Chinchillas are back in new fashion as pets on the market. Now someone can have the pleasure of these unique-looking animals as pets.

So if you are still not sure what a chinchilla is, well then just look around at your local pet store. Remember they look like a cross between a hamster and a mouse, but bigger. And now, when you see one you may want to take it home with you.

Posted December 7, 2009 Comments(0)

One of the things that people seem to dislike the most concerning guinea pigs is the odor that inherently comes along with them. This is why many guinea pigs lose good homes, and end up in shelters, or worse, end up as snake food. While common guinea pig odor is bad news, the good news is that there are solutions for the odors.

Start by buying the right bedding for your guinea pig. What you need is bacteria-resistant bedding. Read labels carefully, and select the highest quality bedding that you can find. It may cost more, but it makes life much more bearable for you in the long run.

Next, provide the proper surface for the bedding. Odors soak into woods, and therefore, plastic is much more preferable. Plastic, unlike wood, can easily be scrubbed, and you should do so weekly, and change the bedding weekly. Many pet stores also sell cage fresheners for both rabbits and guinea pigs. Note that if you cannot find cage freshener
specifically for guinea pigs, the freshener designed for rabbits will also work.

Use a vegetable grater, and grate peelings from oranges, lemons, and limes. Mix these shavings with your normal bedding, and you will find that this is an inexpensive way to cut down on odors. Some people spray Lysol around the cage, but this can be dangerous to the guinea pig and is not advised. Instead, you can purchase air freshening sprays that are designed for pet cages, and you can even purchase Guinea Pig Odor Spray as well, which reportedly works quite well, and is available from most pet stores.

Good circulation is essential. The odors associated with guinea pigs don’t always come from the animals. It may be caused by hay that has become mildewed. This happens frequently, and this is why many guinea pig owners put fresh hay in the pen on a daily basis, instead of
weekly. Changing the hay this often isn’t necessary, however, if there is proper air circulation.

Proper air circulation and filtering can be achieved with the help of a portable air purifier. These tend to cut down on other problems as well, such as pollen and dirt in the air, in addition to bacteria. Not only will this help to solve odor problems, it will also make the room healthier for you and your guinea pigs. These types of air purifiers can be purchased online, or from discount stores.

The trick to effectively using an air purifier is to buy the appropriate system for the size of the room that you need to use it in. Newer models of air purifiers don’t use filters, which saves money in the long run, although those that do use filters are typically cheaper initially. You have to determine whether you want to save a little money now, or a lot of money down the road.

As you can see, there really are solutions to guinea pig odors, and those options don’t include getting rid of the guinea pig. If you use one or all of these methods of odor control, you and your guinea pig can co-exist happily in the same home.

Posted December 5, 2009 Comments(0)

Your Guinea Pig’s Special Language

Believe it or not, guinea pigs do have their own language. They tell us a great deal with their behaviors, but if you can understand your guinea pig’s actual language, you will be better able to care for him and keep him happy. Understanding exactly what he is saying ‘word for word’ is not theoretically possible. However, you can understand what certain sounds mean.

Your guinea pig may make murmuring sounds, gurgle, or even grunt. This means that he is comfortable and content. A grunt may also be a friendly greeting. You may have to pay close attention to the sounds to be able to distinguish between a grunt and a growl.

There is a definite difference, but you will need to hear both sounds to distinguish between the two. Growling, of course, would usually mean that your pet is angry, but this isn’t the case with guinea pigs. A growling guinea pig is either scared, or he is trying to offer peace
to a human, or another animal. Growling, grunting, or rattling are also the sounds that mating males make.

So, if your guinea pig doesn’t growl when he is angry, how does he express anger? He does this with hissing noises, rattling noises, or with teeth chattering. All of these are a sign of aggression, but he could also be trying to impress another animal, thinking that his sounds bring about respect and fear.

Squeaking is something that your guinea pig will do often. This sound can mean many different things, but if you listen closely, you will notice that there is a difference in squeaks. The difference is often in the pitch or length of the squeaks. Squeaks can indicate
loneliness, pain, or fear, but may also be heard when your guinea pig is begging for food, or when he knows that you are preparing his food.

A squeak may be nothing more than a pout. This happens when another guinea pig has something that the squeaking guinea pig wants. This may be food, or a certain nap spot. A high pitched squeak usually involves food, but it could also be an indication that the guinea pig has suddenly hurt himself.

A cooing guinea pig is a pleasant sound, as it well should be. It means that your guinea pig is calm and content. A guinea pig may also coo to another to offer comfort or support. Chirping, which resembles a bird chirping, is another common sound.

Unfortunately, nobody really understands what chirping means, although most will agree that it does not mean that the guinea pig is happy. The consensus is that chirping indicates that the guinea pig is confused, even lost perhaps.

There is no specific guide that you can use to communicate with your guinea pig. For the most part, you really do have to watch and listen and before long, you will know what all of his sounds and pitches mean.

Posted December 3, 2009 Comments(0)

Different Guinea Pig Breeds

Many people don’t realize that there are more than twenty breeds of guinea pigs. Most people believe that one guinea pig is just like the next, but this isn’t true. In fact, each breed of guinea pig looks completely different from the others. The most common breeds are the Abyssinian, the Peruvian, the Silkie, the Crested Guinea Pig, the Teddy Guinea Pig, the Texel, and the Coronet.

The Abyssinian is the most common guinea pig, and he has a coat of fur that consists of numerous swirls, which are called rosettes. A pure-bred Abyssinian will have at least eight of these swirls, and they appear in a symmetrical pattern. The Abyssinian often looks like he just rolled out of bed.

The Peruvian has a coat of fur that is both smooth and straight. The Peruvians hair will grow to be several inches long, and will naturally fall to the sides, with a part in the middle. These guinea pigs require a great deal of grooming to keep their hair from matting.

The Silkie is also referred to as a Sheltie. His fur is very long and silky, but it does not fall with a natural part in the middle. The Silkie’s hair falls backward, from his head.

The Crested Guinea Pig is a short-haired animal, but he does have one rosette on his forehead. In this breed, there is also a White Crested Guinea Pig, which is also referred to as the American Crested Guinea Pig. As his name indicates, his rosette is white in color.
Other Crested Guinea Pigs are commonly known as English Crested Guinea Pigs.

The Teddy Guinea Pig is another short-haired animal, but he does not have a rosette, and his hair has a kinky texture, much like a poodle’s hair. He looks much like a well-loved teddy bear.

The Texel is not a common guinea pig. His hair is long and curly, giving him a very distinctive appearance. Like other long-haired guinea pigs, this particular breed requires a lot of grooming to keep his hair in good shape.

The Coronet Guinea Pig is another long-haired animal, but he does have a rosette, which is located in the center of his forehead. He also requires a great deal of grooming.

Aside from these breeds, there are other guinea pigs. Another well-loved breed is the hairless guinea pig, which is completely bald. Other guinea pigs include the Merino and the Alpaca. So, as you can see, there really are many different breeds of guinea pigs, and each one is unique.

Posted December 1, 2009 Comments(0)