Posts tagged cage
Happy April!

For the month of March,  ten (10) chinchillas were surrendered and nine (9) chinchillas were adopted. We have an unusual number of single chins who do not get along with others. So if you or someone you know is looking to spoil just one, then we have plenty to choose from.

We've found that most of the time when people first learn about what wonderful pets chins are, they tend to want MORE. This is great, from a herd perspective, but precautions must be in order to prevent unwanted, unethical, or unnecessary breeding. 

Another option would be to keep singles who don't like to share space, single. The Ferret Nation and Critter nation brand cages are our favorite choice. If you have space limitations, these dividable cages can stack three high!

Some people feel that more than one pet can be overwhelming in the amount of care needed. In actuality if you have a group of compatible animals sharing a cage, the amount of "work" is still basically the same as a single. You clean one cage, fill the food bowl, refresh the water, play, etc with a group as you would one. It's really kind of neat to see how they interact and the amount of extra time spent on multiples is negligible.  

Have I convinced you yet? We have lots of pairs and mini-herds that are waiting for their new families too.  *wink, hint*

Happy February!

For the month of January, ten (10) chinchillas were surrendered, and six (6) chinchillas were adopted. Four (4) chinchillas have come off of maternity watch without kits and are now available as a bonded group. At this time we have approximately twenty (20) chinchillas who are waiting for their new homes.  

One of our visitors commented that it must be difficult to re-home pairs and groups of chinchillas. On the contrary!  We have found those who research first the decision to adopt an exotic pet understand the unique needs of chinchillas and the fact that they desire the comfort of their own kind when we are not available to interact with them. That is, assuming the chin in question is not overly aggressive or neurotic. 

With caged pets, it's just as easy to care for multiples as it is to care for a single...within reason. But the largest consideration is the size and layout of their environment. A well provided home offers approximately 2x2x2 square feet of cage space per chinchilla. Overlap on space can occur withsmall groups, but in general these are the dimensions you'll want to shoot for. Having plenty of ledges, shelves, hiding places and other forms of environmental stimulation is absolutely necessary to keep your pets happy and mentally healthy. Too many times we've received (or seen) horrible cages that look more like jail cells than homes. Which is why we offer complete cage setups in our "pre-owned cages" page of our store. 

Folks often ask how much it costs to get/own/maintain a chinchilla. After the initial sticker shock of the pet, cage and accessories, regular monthly upkeep is minimal, depending on where you purchase your supplies. ;) *cough* If you haven't already, come check out our co-op style store. 

Werechillas...

The full moon is waning, thank God! We definitely see a difference in behaviors with the full moon, not only in the chins, but in people as well. Either that or sheer volume of inquiries dictates that we receive calls and emails that are sometimes rather... interesting.

Chinnie behavior during a full moon brings out high energy and sometimes subtle aggression. Just like siblings who occasionally have tiffs, chins have their differences too. One way we manage squabbles is with a-- no kidding-- timeout cage. The chaser is placed into a small carrier within the regular cage. This keeps everyone safe, but still in communion. We find that a night in time out is enough to regain the previous harmony. 

For this reason, it is also important that groups, especially males, have a place they can retreat to. Those silly little ceramic "dusters" with the ears is a perfect solution to allow a respite. 

As for human behavior, I'm going to bring this post to a screeching halt to add my latest pet peeve: We are a home-based rescue and as such are open by appointment. We are NOT a pet store.  We do not "sell" chinchillas. Our job is to ensure that each chin(s)  goes to a home that is fully equipped to offer them a better environment than the one we currently do. 

With that being said, we have, and will deny adoption to those who do not read our adoption contract and are not completely prepared to receive them. Non emergency phone calls before 9am or after 8:00 pm will NOT be warmly received as I question the competence of anyone who will make this kind of judgement error. 

If you don't already have a suitable habitat, we offer complete cage setups available for purchase that are much, much cheaper (not to mention chin-ready) than anything available in a pet store. 

Catharsis. I'm better now. Thanks. :)

Whimsy's Interior Design

Oftentimes when chinchillas are surrendered, they come in cages that are too small, chewed up, rusted through or otherwise entirely inadequate to house a curious chin. For this reason Whimsy's gathers and fixes cages to make available to people looking to house a newly adopted chin or to upgrade their preexisting cage. With all the cool items we have available in our store, decorating cages is one of the most enjoyable jobs here. Take a look at one of our start to finish cages. Thank you to Flowerbud and Mandolin for their untiring work putting together this stop motion video. 

Mandi Vollmercage, store, environment
Happy September!

For the month of August, six (6) chinchillas were brought in and a whopping sixteen (16) were adopted!  That breaks our previous high adoption record of fifteen (15). Once again we're back to having plenty of spare room and several empty cages. 

If you've been following us on Facebook, you'll see nearly up to the minute details of our daily news. One fun thing we've been posting has been the quickly climbing goal to reach $3000 for an emergency standby generator. As of the time of this post, we have already brought in $360 toward our goal! Thanks to all our new and old friends we have come to know through this endeavor. Your support is, and continues to be, amazing! Cyber hugs to you all.

Our positive reputation has spread with word of mouth recommendations for adoptions, surrenders, advice, and items from our store. And speaking of items....

We had another brainstorm of an idea. Our new "Chill Out Hang Out" came as a result of a request for a daybed-like accessory (thanks for the motivation, Laura!). Bucky was the first to try our beta version.

Whimsy had been toying with a chiller topped hidey house with varying degrees of success, but the stone cold, chiller ledge is a winner for sure! These sturdy cage additions come with TWO (2) stone chillers; one to place in the ledge, and one to keep handy in your freezer, ready to swap outin seconds. Check out the cage accessories page for more details. :)