Chinchilla Proofing Your House

bunnicula · 08-05-2005, 06:28 PM

How do you keep your chinchillas and your home (baseboards, door frames, etc.) safe from harm during playtime?

SIChins · 08-05-2005, 06:39 PM

In the main living area, we don't let them behind anything where there are wires, for a free run, we block off the hallway or let them run in the bathroom area. I have heard of people using wire covers to protect chins, I think Chinworld sells them, but from what I have heard, their mailing times have been VERY slow. There is also bitter apple to use on things like baseboards, to keep chins from chewing

bunnicula · 08-05-2005, 07:10 PM

What do you use to block off the hallway? Have you tried the bitter apple spray? I seem to remember someone on here having mixed success with it...

SIChins · 08-05-2005, 08:14 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bunnicula

What do you use to block off the hallway? Have you tried the bitter apple spray? I seem to remember someone on here having mixed success with it...

I have a fisher price baby gate that blocks off one end of the hall, and the other end has doors on all of the rooms, so we just close them. I haven't had to try the bitter apple spray yet, if I see a chin attempting to chew, I just distract them. I sit right on the floor with them when they are out though. I think if I didn't do that, my house would be sawdust by now

bunnicula · 08-05-2005, 08:24 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by SIChins

I have a fisher price baby gate that blocks off one end of the hall, and the other end has doors on all of the rooms, so we just close them. I haven't had to try the bitter apple spray yet, if I see a chin attempting to chew, I just distract them. I sit right on the floor with them when they are out though. I think if I didn't do that, my house would be sawdust by now

Yeah, I'm starting to think that distracting them is the only way. I'm going to try that method with Buddy tomorrow night.

Solarsis · 08-05-2005, 11:42 PM

The bitter apple spray did not work at all with TInsel or Jigsaw so I gave that up. you can get wire covers at hardware stores. They usually have them in black or white.

In our old apartment, we useda board to block off the hallway,...but thats' the same board that ended up injuring TInsel's foot so I don't recommend that. After that whole amputation ordeal, I had a friend suggest a piece of coroplast instead. It has to be pretty tall though as both chins we had in Kamloops eventually learned how to jump above the board.

Now that we live here, the girls get free run of the livign room and the kitchen. We just close doors to the other rooms and watch them carefully.

bunnicula · 08-05-2005, 11:49 PM

But don't they chew on everything?

Solarsis · 08-05-2005, 11:56 PM

actually they don't really

Jiggy is too busy trying to jump on things to get really high up and Calypso just kind of scoots around a small part of the floor, sniffing around and getting spooked. She is usually out for 10 minutes max

I think we trained Jiggy quite early on that chewing outide the cage was a no no. If I see her looking like she's going to chew something I can say no in a stern voice and she turns around to find something else to do.

We have a few taste marks here and there but has not had major chewing issues. Any marks can easily disapear with a new coat of white paint.

kreenish · 08-06-2005, 01:07 PM

Paint is indeed a wonderful thing to cover those little "I'm just tasting this." marks. The only real way to keep major chew marks off is to be with the chinchillas while they play outside. The bitter apple stuff has had very limited success here. Wingnut used to purposely chew on the bottom of the door just so I would throw a slipper in his direction. Then he would take the slipper and drag it under the bed. When I ran out of slippers to throw, I'd have to go pull out the slippers and start all over again. Ah, chinchilla games....

SunShine05 · 08-06-2005, 03:24 PM

i have a question ummm i have an upstairs and that is where my pets room and my family bedrooms are and there is theis open hallway could i just bolck the stairs and shut the doors and they could runaround in there?