True - though non toxic to kids doesn't always mean non toxic to dogs... But for the same reason, since pets and kids often coexist, it's probably reasonable to assume they should be non toxic to pets in a similar way....
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Dogs, at least. And probably cats, but I'd be more cautious with them. And keep it away from chinchillas.
aug 27, 2025, 10:59 am • 1 0 • view
Why chinchillas? (I would have had a pet chinchilla but I couldn't find a place to keep it in the house where it would have a large enough enclosure and not having an enclosure was not recommended)
aug 27, 2025, 12:56 pm • 0 0 • view
Chinchillas evolved at high altitudes, so they are very heat-intolerant, *and* their lungs are super sensitive to impurities.
aug 27, 2025, 12:57 pm • 1 0 • view
Got it. I can see the heat intolerance with all that fur, but they feel SO GOOD
aug 27, 2025, 12:58 pm • 0 0 • view
Yeah, they can't sweat, so will die of heat over about 84°F. Also, they can't get *wet*, because their fur is so thick it won't dry out properly, and it'll get moldy.
aug 27, 2025, 1:00 pm • 1 0 • view
Also: they don't require a large enclosure. They like to climb a bit and run around, but we had a single-storey enclosure, and they were happy. When we moved to Beaverton into a huge house, we got a very large enclosure (about the size of a good parrot cage).
aug 27, 2025, 12:59 pm • 1 0 • view
I thought they needed the VERY large parrot cage size and I didn't have a place (or ability) to have one of those at the time I was looking into pets. I ended up with gerbils. At least Ireland doesn't often get that warm.....
aug 27, 2025, 1:03 pm • 0 0 • view
Our first enclosure was about 1m by .5m by .5m, and they were fine with that. We gave them a spinny wheel, and a couple of houses to hide in, and a wooden pedestal halfway up, and that was for 3 (although soon 2) chinchillas. Oh, also parrot chew blocks.
aug 27, 2025, 1:10 pm • 1 0 • view
If they're in a small enclosure, I *do* recommend letting them out for enrichment. We had a fence that could be set up at about a 1m diameter, and put some toys in there, and they'd run around a bit, but basically just... chill.
aug 27, 2025, 1:10 pm • 1 0 • view
Like kittens, their days are full of brief bouts of running back and forth, and then just sitting and chilling. As I said before, they *loved* sitting in their enclosure and watching us watch TV. They'd just sit at the food dish, grabbing a pellet to chew, while watching us.
aug 27, 2025, 1:10 pm • 1 0 • view
Also, Tom Friendly and Polly *played*: she'd poke through the cage, and he'd run away at high speed. Then he'd run back, and they'd repeat this for an hour or two at a time.
aug 27, 2025, 1:10 pm • 1 0 • view
Maybe I will sometime so... I did SO love them when I got to hold them at a thing in the UK. If YOU get some again, I will camp out near the enclosure and just sigh
aug 27, 2025, 1:16 pm • 0 0 • view