Natural Habitat
Chinchillas are native to the Andes
of Peru, Bolivia, Chile and Argentina, most are actually found in areas so cold
they are above the snow line. This is why they developed such lush, thick
fur.
In the wild, chinchillas live in crevices,
between rocks and in caves. They are very social animals and live in
colonies of up to 100 chinchillas. This gives them added protection from
natural predators as well as helping to have a community to raise their young
and keep the population diverse enough to continue on its own.
Chinchillas are amazing
climbers/jumpers. Their powerful legs allow them to jump from rock to
rock, while their stiff, firm tail helps them to keep their balance. In
the wild, chinchillas are not the colors you will see in captivity. They are a light grey color, which helps them to blend in to their natural
habitat in order for them to be more easily concealed.
Their dense coats not only keep
them warm from the harsh cold temperatures, but also is so thick that it helps
them to avoid getting common parasites, such as fleas. Their fur also
serves another purpose - chinchillas can "slip" their fur when scared and in need
of escape. This fur gets released into the eyes and mouths of predators to
give chinchillas time to escape their enemies.
Because chinchillas are from very
dry arid habitats, they do not drink much water. In the wild, their water
consumption is done mostly by drinking morning dew that has condensed on rocks.
They also keep their coats clean by rolling in sand and dust (much like they do
in captivity).
Due to their nocturnal nature,
their eyesight is not wonderful. They rely mostly on their long whiskers
and their own innate sense of their surroundings to get around.
Chinchillas are now listed as endangered and protected from hunting by law;
however, their habitat continues to be destroyed. Grazing animals, collection of
wood and mining harm this endangered animals last known habitat.
History
In captivity, chinchillas did not
start out as pets. They were originally brought into captivity and
domesticated to breed for the fur industry because of their lush pelts.
The result of this is that there are very few chinchillas left in the wild
today. The Chilean government, seeing the chinchilla on its way to becoming
extinct began passing laws to outlaw the killing of these beautiful rodents.
Their beginnings in the United
States is credited to a man named Mathias F. Chapman, who obtained the original
export permits of chinchillas from the Chilean government in 1923.
Together with a party of 23 men, Chapman managed to capture 11 wild chinchillas
that were suitable for breeding, over a period of 11 years, only three of
these were females.
There have been a lot of changes
in chinchilla care and husbandry in the past almost decade that they have been
in captivity, most of it through trial and error. Please read our
Chin Care pages for more information on today's chinchilla care.
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