Pet Goddess

So, you‘ve now chosen to buy a chinchilla and to experience the delightful, amusing uniqueness they will bring to your home as pets. Now, you are going to need to make a home within your home for them; a cage, for them and their things. There are many different types, shapes and sizes of small pet cages available on the Internet as well as at your local pet store.

Any cage, from around 30″ to 48″ inches in height and length, should be big enough and provide your pet with plenty of living, as well as playing, room. Of course the difference in size will need to correlate with the number of these furry little creatures that you have chosen to share your home and life with.

While multiple levels are a plus, a solid floor is a must; wire mesh is much too hazardous for their delicate, mouse-like, little feet. It is also wise to choose a cage with bars rather than mesh-like sides because, as you will quickly, and to your amusement, find out, a happy, healthy chinchilla will frequently run all around the cage very fast, banking off the sides in play. And, again, mesh can cause a delicate foot to become caught and, most especially if at this rowdy play, cause serious injury!

You can also add some ramps for your chinchilla to climb on, or even some tree limbs. Just be sure that anything brought in from the outside, like a tree limb, is “cleaned” before putting it into the cage; you do not want to take the chance of introducing bugs or parasites to the home of an animal who’s system is as delicate as a chinchillas’ can be.

Stripping any rough bark off and steaming the limb will greatly reduce this risk. Another “limb-like” option is a large piece of well worn drift wood; again, being sure to sterilize it first. (lovely, naturally-formed drift wood can be found along river banks and large lakes as well as on the shore of a beach). Also, some pet stores carry the larger, synthetic, pieces like this. These additions are not only fun and functional for your pet but also add a natural beauty to the cage, easily creating a unique “coversation piece”.

Many cages come with a removable tray that slides out of the bottom for easy cleaning. A very effective as well as inexpensive source you can use for easy cleaning, disinfecting and deodorizing the cage can be created by mixing a small amount of bleach with hot water; ¾ cup of bleach per gallon of water works very well. DO NOT use the bleach full strength. It is highly corrosive and will damage any plastic it’s used on. It can also damage the surface of metal as well.

This mixture can be used for the rest of the cage too. Be sure, though, to rinse very, very thoroughly; any residue or even strong smell of the bleach can, at the very least, cause your pet to become ill. If possible, taking the entire cage, and the other items used within it, outside to clean, especially when you are using bleach, is a good idea. It will more than allow for proper ventilation for you and you can use a garden hose for a very last and long final rinse for your chinchillas benefit. Use only hot soapy water for all the feeding and drinking containers.

Posted December 19, 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)

A Habitat for Your Gecko

The bottom of the cage should have some kind of paper toweling so that it can be changed easily in order to keep the cage clean.

You might want to try cedar shavings or dirt as well, or sand, to give it the feel of a more natural habitat.

One really important point about raising reptiles is to keep the area sufficiently warm. Geckos thrive best when the daytime temperature is in the eighties, up to eighty-eight degrees.

Nighttime temperatures can get to the middle sixties without causing any health problems. If your house is normally cooler than that, a lamp with a forty-watt bulb over the top of the cage should create enough heat to keep the gecko warm.

There are also hot rocks that you can buy and put in the cage to keep your gecko warm and give him areas to crawl and play.

Keep the cage out of direct sunlight (because it will get too warm) and have a screen cover for the top if you have small children or cats in your household, and to keep in the crickets for the gecko’s dinner.

Leopard geckos come in a variety of colors, and you can keep several in the same cage as long as there is only one male in the group (most geckos that are sold are female).

They eat mealworms and crickets, and correct care and feeding should be discussed at length with the seller. A well taken care of gecko can live as long as twenty years.

Many large pet stores will help you put together (and spend a lot of money on!) a lizard starter kit, but why not just start with the basics we have outlined above, and add on as you go and get to know your pet’s needs better.

Raising a reptile can be a fascinating hobby whether you are eight or fifty-eighty years old. Leopard geckos are among the easiest to raise, are easily tamed, not expensive, and are always beautiful and interesting pets. If you are thinking of a lizard, consider a gecko for your next pet.

704 words

Posted March 18, 2008 Comments(0)

You may have admired the unusual looking lizards at your local wildlife center, or perhaps a neighbor may have an iguana in their back room.

The non-stop ads for a certain car insurance company have also boosted people’s interest in having a small lizard or two as a pet

If you are just starting out with reptiles, a good choice for an easy to raise lizard is the leopard gecko.

The leopard gecko has two very big advantages. First, it does not get very big. Second, a leopard gecko has been kept and bred in captivity since the 1920s, and is among the healthiest lizards and easiest to keep.

A juvenile gecko is quite active, but as they mature they become rather quiet and tame, and can be held and will take food from your fingers.

The adult gecko does not get larger than nine or ten inches, and can be handled by older children. Even younger children can hold them, but make sure they are supervised to handle the gecko gently and to avoid picking them up by the tail, or holding the tail tightly.

As with other lizards in the reptile family, their tails can break off easily. It is not desirable, but it is not a major disaster either. The tail will re-grow, though it will never look exactly the same as the original tail

Leopard geckos are easily kept in an aquarium or other plastic cage, as long as each gecko has at least ten inches square of floor space. The cage should be a minimum of twelve inches high.

Have a shallow bowl for water that doesn’t spill as the lizards crawl into or over it. The food bowl for the gecko can be something about the size and shape of the lid for a gallon jar, a larger flat area.

You will be using crickets or other insects as food, and it is better if the food remains in the food bowl. You can buy live crickets at most pet store very inexpensively, though it is not a sight for the squeamish.

Continued in Owning a Reptile as a Pet Part 2

Posted March 15, 2008 Comments(0)