If a chinchilla rodent lives in your house, you need to understand that nuts must certainly be present in its diet. It is important to choose the right balanced diet for your pet; this will be the key to its healthy and harmonious development. Many pet owners ask questions: can chinchillas eat walnuts, peanuts or almonds? Let's answer these questions to understand what nuts a chinchilla can eat.
Can chinchillas have walnuts?
Walnut kernels are used in cooking, are healthy for humans and are found in almost every home. The thought involuntarily comes to mind that chinchillas can also use them.
The opinions of professionals here are divided: for some, walnuts are an unnecessary delicacy, for others, they are a necessary source of pleasure.
A rodent only needs 1 quarter of a kernel once a week. The reason is the significant fat content in these fruits.
Hazelnut
This product is very useful for these cute furbabies. Since it contains a fairly high content of folic acid and vitamin E. These components are necessary to maintain the full functioning of the animal’s body, as well as strengthen muscle tissue and bones.
You should not completely deny your pet hazelnuts. Once every two weeks, give the animal about 1/4 of the kernel, this will be beneficial and will not harm.
Almonds for a snack
The high percentage of fat content and energy value of almond grains is not much inferior to pine nuts. Although some owners indulge their pets with this delicacy, veterinarians advise against it. Eating almonds by an animal leads to digestive disorders and is difficult to treat.
According to another version of experts, almonds strengthen the body’s defenses and resistance to infections. If the pet is completely healthy, he is allowed to eat a little treat - ¼ of a kernel approximately once every 10-12 days.
If an animal is exhausted after illness, almonds will restore its strength. It will also serve as an additive to the diet of pregnant and lactating females.
Sweetish cashews
Cashews provide the animal’s body with energy, so it can also act as a treat once every 2 weeks. Also, the high nutritional value of the kernels contributes to the enrichment of systems and organs with useful substances.
Therefore, you can and should pamper your pets with such “goodies”, but carefully following the instructions of specialists. Please note that some brands of chinchilla food already contain nuts, do not forget to take this amount into account.
We also recommend that you read the articles on the influence of herbs and seeds on the health of your pet in the articles “Herbs and plants in chinchilla nutrition” and “Which seeds can be given to chinchillas and which cannot.”
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Seeds instead of nuts
You can replace harmful nuts with healthier seeds - pumpkin, sunflower, etc. Chinchillas will happily gnaw on such a treat: after all, in the wild, seeds constitute the main diet of rodents.
However, domesticated animals lose their living skills in the wild. Many products seem useful to them.
Roasted seeds are considered harmful: the chinchilla’s body is not equipped to digest them. There is no such food in the wild. They will be replaced by raw seeds. But in small quantities.
The fatty acids in the raw seeds make the fur shiny and thick. They have less nutrients than nuts.
Melon seeds (melon, watermelon, squash, pumpkin)
Rodents and birds love them very much. From 5 to 7 seeds, fresh and dried, are enough per day. Pumpkin seeds serve as an anthelmintic.
Apple
They do not have a special taste, and the animal does not overeat them. 4-5 seeds per day are enough. An important plus is that they contain substances that fight cancer.
Herbal
Pet chinchillas need sesame and flax seeds. They contain a lot of fat, and the amount should be limited so as not to upset digestion.
Chinchillas should not eat cherry, plum or sweet cherry pits. They contain poisonous hydrocyanic acid. Chestnut fruits will not bring any benefit either.
Features of feeding
The chinchilla is a herbivore, so the basis of its diet is plant foods. This is a very picky animal that chooses the most delicious pieces from the food offered. That is why the owner must ensure that the chinchilla eats its entire portion. The feeder is spacious and comfortable. If excess food remains in it, then the amount of feed is reduced.
Chinchillas have a weak digestive system, so it is strictly forbidden to overfeed them, give them low-quality products and treat them from the table. Food must be fresh, without signs of mustiness, rot or mold. Grass, which must be included in the diet, is collected in ecologically clean areas, far from industrial enterprises and roads. Greens, vegetables, fruits are thoroughly washed and dried and only then offered to the animal.
If the chinchilla ate exclusively mixed feed, then you need to accustom it to greens gradually, starting with small portions. If the animal feels well, you can safely introduce juicy food into the diet.
On the day, a chinchilla needs the following list of products:
- compound feed – 1–3 tsp;
- green food - 5 g;
- hay - 30 g;
- additional food (twigs of trees and shrubs) - 6 g;
- water.
This animal has no sense of proportion. It can eat treats in any quantity. Foods such as nuts, dried fruits, vegetables and fruits should be given to chinchillas in strictly defined doses.
Animal food should have the following composition:
What can you feed a rodent at home?
Food is dry and rough
Due to the sensitive digestion of chinchillas, they should not be given the following foods:
- food from the common table (salty, spicy, fatty, hot, smoked);
- meat and meat products;
- bakery products and baked goods (bread, pastries);
- flour (pasta, noodles);
- potatoes, fresh white cabbage, lettuce;
- sweets (cookies, chocolate, sugar, sweets, other confectionery);
- eggs;
- roasted nuts, seeds, grains;
- mushrooms;
- fermented milk products;
- fast food, chips, popcorn;
- stale and spoiled products.
The list does not contain absolutely any useful substances for the proper growth and development of the rodent. The listed foods are high in calories and fat, which can result in your pet becoming obese.
This will negatively affect the animal’s mobility, its ability to reproduce, and life expectancy.
Even if your pet likes junk food, this does not mean that it should be offered.
Perhaps the animal will not die from just eating it, but systematically eating such delicacies will lead to serious health problems for the chinchilla.
We invite you to read: Review of the Rock Pigeon breed and its flight speed: photos and videos
Authorized Products
The list of foods that can be given to chinchillas is quite large. Animals can be fed fruits:
- Bananas,
- Apples,
- Pears,
- Figs
- Vegetables:
- Pumpkin,
- Milk corn,
- Bell pepper,
- Kohlrabi,
- Zucchini,
- Zucchini,
- Kohlrabi,
- Patissons,
- Ripe red tomatoes.
- Lettuce leaves,
- spinach leaves,
- Clover,
- Alfalfa,
- sorrel leaves,
- Dandelion leaves and stems,
- Celery,
- Chicory,
- Cornflowers,
- Vika,
- Common nettle,
- Sagebrush,
- Raspberry leaves and stems
- Strawberry leaves and stems
- Plant tops,
- Twigs with leaves of apple, pear,
- Birch and linden branches,
- Hazelnut sprigs.
- Corn (corn grains are part of the feed mixture and are given in ground form),
- Barley (given in ground form),
- Wheat (grains and bran),
- Oats (grains, bran, flakes),
- Millet,
- Buckwheat,
- Rice.
Feeding mode
When thinking about the issue of feeding a chinchilla, it is necessary to remember that the activity phase of this animal occurs mainly at night. Therefore, with the arrival of dusk, you can fill the bowl with food. The animal will see the bowl and run up to eat. But you don’t need to expect that your pet will attack the food, basically he will eat a few grains and run around the cage to jump, after a while he will return to the cup and so on all night.
Stability is also important to ensure the animal’s good mood and well-being. It is not recommended to frequently change food to another manufacturer, as this may have a bad effect on your pet’s well-being. If you still need to change the food, you need to do it gradually, dragging out the process for the whole week. A mineral stone must be present in the cell during this process at all times. The pet will chew through it as needed.
Read! Chinchilla in the house: pros and cons
Next, let's take a closer look at the types of feed.
Herb seeds
In nature, rodents feed on grasses, eating their seeds. This means that they also need this natural food at home.
Flax seed can be given in small doses to improve digestion. Plantain together with seeds has a good effect on the organs of the gastrointestinal tract. Nursing females will benefit from fennel seed; it promotes lactation. Any herbaceous plants recommended for inclusion in a pet's diet can be given with ripened seeds.
Causes of bowel dysfunction
There are many reasons that can cause bowel problems in chinchillas.
The most common of them are:
- Lack of hay - this element is a necessary part of the daily diet of rodents, since it participates in the normalization of the entire functioning of the digestive system and promotes the movement of food. But the lack of succulent feed, as well as concentrates in the feeder, can lead to constipation. Nutrition must be balanced.
- A foreign object in the stomach is most often wool, and therefore thorough and regular cleaning of the cage is a mandatory procedure to maintain the health of the animal.
- Taking antibiotics - during the treatment of various diseases, medications are often prescribed that have side effects. The most common of them include disturbance of the animal’s stool.
- Limited space - lack of movement has a negative impact on the general condition of chinchillas, in particular, leading to constipation. Therefore, when keeping an animal in a small cage, you should let it out on its own as often as possible, adhering to all safety rules, of course.
- Postpartum state - the first days after the birth of the offspring, the body spends all its energy on restoration and adaptation, which can lead to disruptions in the functioning of the digestive system.
In addition, constipation can result from various diseases of the stomach and liver, as well as infectious diseases.
It is also necessary to ensure that there is a sufficient amount of clean water in the sippy cup. Lack of moisture is one of the main causes of constipation in all animals.
Peanuts in the diet
This type of nut can be given to pets, but you need to understand that it puts too much strain on the liver. When offering peanuts to your pet, follow these recommendations:
- Give a nut no more than once a week.
- Give only one nut at a time.
- The product should not undergo heat treatment; any spices are contraindicated.
This product is useful in the following ways:
- Improved digestion.
- Stimulation of the reproductive system.
Contraindications and harm
Among the most common contraindications to the use of seeds, various allergic reactions and inadequate immediate reactions are in first place.
If you suddenly see that after eating seeds, your rabbit has foam at the mouth, it becomes difficult for him to breathe (he coughs, starts sneezing, wheezing, etc.) or massive swelling appears on his body - then know that he seeds are contraindicated.
In general, it is quite difficult to identify general groups of contraindications for all types of seeds. For example, a contraindication to consuming sunflower seeds is animal obesity, while for pumpkin seeds this is, on the contrary, an indication.
Sunflower should also not be eaten by rabbits whose age has passed 5–7 years, who have atherosclerosis or have/had high cholesterol levels.
Pumpkin kernels are not recommended to be given to rabbits that have digestive disorders, have recently suffered acute infectious diseases, or during the period of a full-blown clinical picture of any disease.
Pumpkin seeds should also not be eaten by those furry animals that have problems with the functioning of their senses: hearing, vision and smell, as this can negatively affect them.
Important! If any of the symptoms listed in this section appear, we recommend that you immediately seek help from a professional veterinarian. Among other possible harms from eating seeds, one should also expect the development of: appendicitis, irritable bowel syndrome, diarrhea (roasted sunflower), constipation (pumpkin), vomiting, various changes in the lipid spectrum of the blood, obesity (sunflower), loss of hair and claws, and the appearance of irritation on the skin.
Familiar treats
The most accessible are walnuts, so we will begin to consider this issue with them. Veterinarians differ in their answer to the question: Do chinchillas need walnuts?
Some experts believe that nut kernels are an excess in the diet, while others argue that nuts must certainly be present. It is worth watching your pet when introducing this type of nut into its diet.
Important. Do not forget that the kernels contain a large amount of fat, so you need to give a small piece of the kernel once a week.
What other health problems can consuming raw seeds lead to?
Allergies can also be caused by eating seeds of poor quality. Treating them with dyes, chemicals and preservatives to preserve the presentation of the product can contribute to the development of an allergic reaction. Molds can also cause a reaction: this is a strong allergen, they can be present in seeds that were stored incorrectly.
“You can eat pumpkin and sunflower seeds raw; they do not contain anything poisonous. But the whole point is where such seeds were stored. Raw seeds are more susceptible to various mold processes, and pathogenic microflora also develop faster in them. And, in fact, because of this, it is dangerous to consume raw seeds. If it’s an absolutely fresh product, then go ahead, but if you don’t know where, how and how long they were stored, then it’s better not to eat them,” says Solomatina.
“Clicking” seeds is not very beneficial for tooth enamel. Although peeled seeds are safer for teeth, they do not have much value for the body. When exposed to air, the fats contained in them quickly oxidize and lose their beneficial qualities. The nutritionist advises buying seeds only in the peel and peeling them yourself, and drying them a little before use, but not frying them.
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Vitamin supplements to complement your diet
If the diet of chinchillas is unbalanced, young chinchillas, pregnant and lactating rodents, sick and weakened animals must be given vitamin complexes. They can be in liquid form, in the form of tablets and powders.
Liquid fortified food can be given along with water, so it will be easy to enrich your pet’s diet. It is difficult to offer powders and tablets to pets.
It is advisable to hang a mineral and salt stone in the animal’s cage, which the animal will eat as needed.
You can immediately buy fortified food. The ingredients most often include carrots, pumpkin, nettle hay, rowan, and rose hips. To replenish protein and B vitamins, add a little dry yeast (2–5 g) to the feed.
Teaching a chinchilla to eat properly is not difficult, but it is absolutely necessary. Only by receiving all the useful microelements, vitamins and other beneficial compounds will the animal be healthy, full of energy and live a long life.
