Chinchilla Pellets: Most people decide the choice of pellets for their chinchilla by either looking for a famous brand or looking for the freshness of the pellets itself(manufacturing date). But there are many other factors to look for if you are choosing a pellet for your chinchillas. Let us have a look at some of the essential factors:
Different brands producing chinchilla use a different mix of ingredients, So we must make sure to have a look at them while selecting the pellets for your chinchilla. Pellets with high-quality ingredients provide more nutrition, which is essential for your chinchillas. You must look for at least 20% fiber and 12-15% protein in the pellets we are buying for our chinchilla. Added vitamin c is yet another bonus as it is also essential for chinchilla tube. Try to stay away from anything that contains seeds, nuts, oil, rice bran, ground Corn, and other similar ingredients.
Avoid artificial chemicals
We must also stay clear from all the artificial chemicals, food colors, and other added additives in the pellets. Some of the primary ingredients to look for are:- <strong>sucrose and corn syrup. Also, chemical additives like sodium nitrite, nitrate, or metabisulfite are a significant threat to your chinchillas. So, it is best to stay clear on all those additives while choosing pellets for your chinchilla.
Timothy Vs Alfalfa
Deciding on Timothy and alfalfa-based ingredients in the pellets is yet another crucial decision to make.
While alfalfa bases pellets are going to be rich in calcium and fat due to the presence of alfalfa, the Timothy based pellets contain a balance of all nutrients.
So, if you are looking for pellets for young or nursing chinchillas, then you should go ahead with pellets based on alfalfa while for a matured chinchillas timothy based pellets are going to be a suitable choice.
You must also consider that serving an alfalfa-based pellet to mature chinchillas can lead to the formation of bladder stones.
As their body doesn’t need the extra calcium, it binds in their bladder, forming the stones which are very painful for them.
While the stones can be removed with surgery, it definitely is not a pleasant experience for your chinchillas.
How many pellets should I feed my chinchillas?
As per the recommendation, we must feed 6 grams of dry food for every 100 grams of weight. It merely means anywhere between 1/8th cup to 1/4 cup of pellets would be a great point to start with.
But can we overfeed pellets to our chinchillas? No, you definitely can’t even if you provide chinchillas with an unlimited amount of hay and pellets they won’t overeat and fall sick.
Although giving them with a mix of vegetables and fruits is equally essential for achieving a balanced diet.
Then why such a quantity restriction? It is best to serve fresh pellets every day to our chinchillas. Pellets in a bowl might get dirt and other unwanted things accumulated around it.
Also, chinchillas like to toss their food around or even pee and poop in their food bowls sometimes so you don’t want to leave it like that. Do you?
How long do chinchillas pellets last?
If you feed pellets to your chinchillas regularly, then a 5-pound bag for two chinchillas would typically last for a month or so.
In general, I like to grab a big bag as pellets don’t go bad over time, and a big bag is way cheaper in the long run.
It might not be right for you if you are getting alfalfa one, but for the timothy pellets getting the big bag is the best choice you can make.
How do I get my chinchillas to eat pellets?
Introducing pellets to your chinchillas is really simple. You can take a good quality food bowl and put around 1/8 cups of pellets in it and place it in your chinchillas cage.
Watch from a distance if they smell it out, or trying some bits and pieces of it or not. If you find they just smelled and left the food, you can try mixing it with some treats and try again so that they can eat it and get the taste of it.
Do it slowly, and you will definitely end up introducing it in their daily diet
If you are already serving another brand of pellets to your chinchillas and want to introduce a new one you should try mixing a small quantity of new one with the old one and serve the same to your chinchillas.
If your chinchilla-like the taste, you can gradually increase the quantity and fully replace it in due course of time.
