Whether you are looking for a chinchilla to call your own or simply want to learn more, The Chinnery is here for you. We are members of Empress Chinchillas and MBCA. We strive for healthy and happy animals. Welcome to the herd!
The Chinnery is based in Lakeland, FL. We are conveniently located right off of I-4 in Central Florida between Orlando and Tampa. We are active members of both Empress Chinchillas and MCBA, and we strive to produce healthy and happy animals. The Chinnery is a home based hobby breeder of standard, mutation colors, and Angora chinchillas. We focus on quality. Breeding with the health and security of our animals is of the utmost importance. Here at The Chinnery, we have just a very small herd chinchillas. We are responsible breeders, and we work very hard to keep our chinchillas in the best conditions. Our goals are to educate animal lovers about these wonderful animals and to improve the quality of our own herd. We do show our chinchillas and primarily breed them as a hobby, but occasionally we do have a pet quality chinchilla or two for sale! If you are interested in purchasing or adopting a chinchilla, let us help you find the right one for you. If you don't see and available chinchilla on our site, give us a call to see if we can help you find what you are looking for!
At The Chinnery, we love our chinchillas - even the ornery ones! The beautiful chinchilla, native to the Andes mountains of South America, is a crepuscular rodent slightly more robust than a squirrel but smaller than a rabbit. Chinchillas are naturally skittish, but with time and attention can bond with their owners. At The Chinnery, we handle our animals regularly. We free freed them a quality chinchilla pellet, provide them fresh water, and offer lots of loose timothy hay. We house our chinchillas in ample cages with ledges, hammocks, and chew toys for enrichment. A great benefit of owning a chinchilla is that they have almost no smell if their cage is kept clean. We clean our chinchilla cages weekly and line them with fresh pine shavings. Chinchillas are quite inexpensive to feed and can live up to 15 years or more! Our chinchillas come from many high quality lines, and pedigrees are kept in order. The Chinnery seeks to educate pet owners about best practices in caring for these beautiful animals. If you ever have a question about caring for your pet chinchilla, don't hesitate to contact us. We are not vets and cannot offer medical advice, but we are happy to help you with questions about basic care!
Please contact us if you cannot find an answer to your question.
Chinchillas make great pets. They are fairly low-maintenance and inexpensive to keep. And, unlike other small animals, they are practically odorless. They are also an adorable and very chill pet! However, chinchillas may not be for everyone. We would discourage anyone with very small children from purchasing or adopting a chin as they are easily injured and cannot be handled roughly. It is very rare for them to bite, but keep in mind that any animal could bite or scratch if feeling threatened. We cannot guarantee that a chinchilla will never bite you or that a chinchilla will tolerate being handled. It is important to note that chinchillas are very sensitive to heat and you must be willing and able to keep your chinchillas environment below 72 F. Also keep in mind that a chinchilla is not a super cuddly pet like a cat or a dog. They are fun and like to interact with you, but they may not enjoy being handled for long periods of time. Bonding with your chinchilla requires patience.
Your chinchilla will need:
* A temperature controlled environment as chinchillas must be kept cool. We keep our chinchillas at 70 F and have a small portable air conditioner handy for emergencies.
* A cage large enough to provide room to move about. Chinchillas are rock hoppers in the wild, and they enjoy ledges and other cage accessories made of safe woods such as pine. It is not necessary to purchase a wheel for your chinchillas. Wheels are never safe for kits. We highly recommend the Critter Nation or Prevue cages.
*Aspen or Pine shavings to use as bedding. Another option is to line your cage with fleece.
*A water bottle and food dish that attaches to the side of the cage.
*A quality pellet diet (Oxbow, Hubble, or Mazuri are all good options) and timothy hay. Orchard or meadow hay may be offered as well for variety.
*Safe wooden ledges or chew toys. Chinchillas are rodents and serious chewers! These are more then just toys for your chins. They are necessary for their health and well being.
* A dust bath is essential. We use Chilldust in our chinchilla room, but there are lots of good options available online and at your local pet store.
Chinchillas should be free fed a quality pellet and offered timothy hay on a regular basis. Chinchillas have very sensitive digestive systems and should NEVER be offered fruits, vegetables or human snacks. This is very important as a poor diet can lead to bloating which is potentially fatal to a chinchilla. Acceptable treats include a plain cheerio or shredded wheat, rosehips, calendula, and hibiscus. Fresh water is a must at all times. Here at The Chinnery, we free feed Mazuri Chinchilla Pellets and timothy hay.
The price of a chinchilla from any reputable breeder varies according to the color and fur type. Chinchillas from a breeder may cost slightly more, but you will know that your new pet comes from good healthy stock and has been well cared for. Educated breeders keep detailed records and screen animals for genetic diseases. Prices for a standard gray chinchilla kit begin at $200 while mutation colors usually cost between $300-$400. Prices for angora chinchilla kits start at $500. Older chinchillas, rescues, or retired breeders are sometimes available, and these do cost less depending on the age and pedigree of the animal.
Chinchillas are fine by themselves as long as you are able to spend time a little time with them each day. Like most animals, they crave social interaction and enrichment. They can become bored and/or depressed if left alone in a cage for long periods of time. They are naturally social animals and do enjoy your company or that of another chinchilla. Many pet owners find that they do well in pairs. If you are interested in a pair, it's great to purchase or adopt siblings as they are already bonded. However, if two chinchillas is too much fluff for you, a single chinchilla can do perfectly fine. Lot's of people have single pet chinchillas that lead the best pet lives ever! You should always do what is best for you and your family.
We ask for non-refundable deposit of $50 to reserve and hold any chinchilla. This will, of course, be applied to the cost of your chin with the balance due at pick up. Chinchillas must be at least 200 grams and eight weeks old to leave The Chinnery. Since we are not a pet store and only breed our chinchillas as a hobby, we may not have any available at a given time. You are always welcome to drop us a line to see if we do! All chinchillas leaving our home are healthy, and you assume ownership upon receipt. To pick up your chinchilla, you must bring a carrier (a dog/cat carrier will be fine), the remaining balance due, and arrive in a car with air conditioning. We will work with you to arrange pick up when your chinchilla is ready to leave. We cannot hold him/her indefinitely, however, so make sure to communicate with us if you cannot make your appointment.
Occasionally we receive calls from people asking to surrender a chinchilla that they have purchased from us or another breeder, pet store, etc. We are not set up as a rescue, and we lack the resources needed to be one. We have very limited cage space available and could never guarantee the health of an animal that we did not breed. We kindly ask that you contact a rescue that is prepared to care for the surrendered chinchilla long term and provide medical care if needed.
If you need more information or would like to reserve a chinchilla, please don't hesitate to contact us. Here at The Chinnery in Central Florida, we love chinchillas! Se habla espanol :)
How do I keep my chinchilla clean? Surely you know that chinchillas should never get wet. They need to take a dust bath a couple of times a week. Lots of good dusts are available, but we recommend placing about 1/4 cup of ChillDust in a chinchilla bath house and leaving it in the cage for about 10 minutes. Your chinchilla will roll around like crazy until he or she is all clean. Click play on this video to check out our mama chin, Bubbles, teaching her babies how to bathe. So cute!