Sometimes the female can become aggressive and attack the male. Injury is possible, so mating chinchillas should be supervised for their safety. Birth usually occurs in the morning and the babies, known as kits, are born a few minutes apart. The kits are born with their eyes open, covered in fur, and weigh around 2 ounces. They are active and can run and play from birth. On average you should expect your Chinchilla to give birth to 2 kits during a pregnancy on average, which is a slight relief as a large litter would require lots more work and space to care for them correctly.
With this being said, chinchillas can regularly give birth to anywhere from kits at a time and have even been known to give birth to as many as 6 kits in a single litter. In the same way, baby dogs are called puppies and baby cats are called kittens, baby Chinchillas are also referred to with a specialised name. They are also commonly referred to as baby chinchillas, young or juveniles. Baby kits are super adorable. Chinchillas that are in the right circumstances for breeding generally have between litters per year.
As mentioned previously the litter usually consists of around 2 baby kits per litter and with all-year-round breeding, you should expect up to 6 new-borns each year. Healthy Chinchilla kits are born with their eyes wide open, are covered in fur, and take to everyday life pretty quickly. Having a smaller litter gives the mother Chinchilla a much better chance of being able to look after her young sufficiently during the early stages.
On average a mother is pregnant for days but can range between days. This is a rather long pregnancy if you compare to say a mouse who generally has a gestation period of around 20 days. The gestation period for Chinchillas can vary slightly breed by breed. For example, a Lanigera breed can be between days whilst a Brevicaudata breed has a longer pregnancy between days. Chinchilla births on the grand scale of things happen pretty darn quickly. The majority of births will happen during the night or early hours of the morning.
You may find that the mother will show signs of labour being imminent the day before. She will often show signs of aggression towards other male Chinchillas and is likely to go off her food. During the onset of labour, you may experience the mother Chinchilla, groaning, stretching, and making sounds of pain.
Her genitals, nose, and mouth will be wet. The most strenuous part of labour will generally only be around 30 mins, however, multiple births can take up to a few hours. If you are in a situation where you find the labour is exceeding this time, it is fair to assume something is not quite right and it is wise to seek professional veterinary advice. Another question we get a lot is…when can baby chinchillas have their first dust bath?
Unfortunately, not all baby kits survive in the litter which can be particularly distressing for any owner. Complications with chinchillas pregnancies are common for a few reasons:. A miscarriage, otherwise known as a spontaneous abortion, can occur at any time during pregnancy.
A Chinchilla mother that has not been fed the right foods which are high in vitamins, minerals, and nutrients may be at a higher risk of miscarriage. Good management is needed in order to keep the problem from reoccurring.
Fur chewing is another problem and the cause is not yet clear. Particular management areas to be checked or watched closely are stress, temperature and air quality. Observation is an important management tool in a successful ranching operation. Good sanitation is an absolute necessity in successful chinchilla ranching. Next to cleanliness, proper ventilation is essential to producing good litters and good fur.
Chinchillas prefer a constant temperature but can tolerate extremes and still survive. Hot weather is not conducive to good fur production.
Many ranchers install both air conditioning and heating in their facilities for herds that are to be pelted. Animal identification is an important area in record keeping if good genetics are to be practiced. Electric tattooing, etching pens, ear clamps and micro computer chips can be used to identify animals and their genetics. Both pair mating and colony mating are in practice today. Experts recommend waiting till around 12 weeks of age before rehoming the babies, to be certain they are in the best of health.
It is important to point out that female chinchillas can fall pregnant again within hours of giving birth. The risk here is that her partner may impregnate her again almost instantly, leading to a second pregnancy. As carrying young is so physically demanding for a chinchilla this is normally best avoided. If a second litter is desired then it is best to give the female some time off to recover before trying the pair again.
To this end, once you feel confident that your female chinchilla is pregnant it is normally best to remove the male entirely, thus preventing the risk of repeated pregnancies in quick succession. Skip to content Main Navigation. Blog How to Breed Chinchillas Firstly, the fine print: animal rescue centres are awash with unwanted pets, some of them a result of unwanted breeding. Birth Chinchillas may give birth at any time of the day, but early mornings are the most common time.
Importing to UK.
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