Chilli's Article for May 2004 - Self Inflicted Death in Chinchillas

This subject is close to my heart and it saddens me to write about it. It is something that is affecting my species to quite a large degree, so here is where I let my friend Roger take over. For once I will allow him to write for Chilli's Voice but only because it is such an important subject. Here he is.

I am Roger Whear, founder and director of CCL. Recently I have had quite a few telephone calls regarding chinchilla death. Each occasion had the same background, these chinchillas had lost their partners, either by separation or death.

The first was a young male chinchilla of one to two years of age. He was separated from his mate whilst he awaited a castration operation. The owner procrastinated, worrying about the safety aspects of the surgery which is why she kept the chinchilla from it's mate for so long.  Would putting him back into the cage with his partner cause him to become ill?

Quite soon the owner noticed her male chinchilla becoming lethargic, messy about it's ablutions with urine and droppings matted into his fur and showing little interest in sand bathing. At this stage he was eating little or no food or drink. Shortly after this he was found dead, stretched out at the bottom of his cage. Both owner and her daughter were overcome with grief and cried to me when they explained his death.

I know that many of you will be thinking, why did she let it go on so long? Well the lady did take the chinchilla to her vet and was given anti-biotics. The vet did not explain anything about the psyche of the chinchilla and the fact that being separated from his mate was the cause of his illness. Sadly it seems that even now, may veterinary practitioners still have a lot to learn about chinchillas. When chinchillas reaches a certain level of physical or emotional pain, they resign themselves to death - a slow suicide. If this happened to them in the wild, they would soon become dinner for their prey. I do believe that this suicidal attitude remains part of their character although they are now in captive environments.

The mistake this unfortunate owner made came from a lack of confidence in a routine castration operation. There was no need to keep the newly castrated chinchilla from his mate for so long. Shortly after the operation a re introduction could have been made. (Chilli will at a later date explain transitional introduction of new pets to established ones )If this male chinchilla had been able to go back to his mate, he would not have pined to death.

The lady's worries regarding the castration operation were relatively unfounded. Eminent veterinary surgeons whom I trust implicitly have told me that the castration of small animals is a very basic operation nowadays with little risk to a healthy chinchilla. Pre testing can be done on the chinchilla for any worried owners, but the majority will sail through the operation with no adverse effects. there is certainly no need to keep the castrated male from it's beloved mate or family. The chinchilla's dedication to one another is unsurpassed and can lead to a life time together (akin to swans in this way who mate for life)

The second caller had an eight year old male chinchilla. His partner, a female of one year his junior died of a physical ailment. The male pined. Another partner was introduced but emphatically refused. He was taken to a vet, nothing could be done. In a few days he died, he had just given up the will to live since the demise of his partner. In this case the owner was not at fault, she had tried everything to encourage her remaining chinchilla but it was not to be. A classic example of the bond between two mates.

I, myself have experienced death of the partners of two of my chinchillas. Cara died, aged fifteen years leaving Chiz-Wiz ( now fifteen years of age himself ) Ace lost his daughter, Lucky at the age of four and a half to the dreaded dental problem.

Ace ( now eleven ) lived alone for six months. However his accommodation was sandwiched between two other cages containing Chiz-Wiz with Caratooz and Cece with Pablo. They could smell one another but not touch but it was still company. I spent more and more time with Ace and noticed that his situation was not affecting his general well-being, he was still eating and drinking etc. He began to bond with me to a greater degree than before and would sit on my lap most evenings, moving up to my shoulder. All this was fine but did not cater for his loneliness during the night whilst I was asleep. So I took in a rescue female, Lily-Filly, beige and red eyed like Ace. Lily took her time to bond with him ( about one week ) as she was extremely nervous and skittery ( I later discovered that she was almost blind which would not have helped her cope with her new environment )

Ace guides her and acts as her eyes and they are now inseparable, a joy to see. Ace is still very fond of me but his affection is more towards Lily now which is the way it should be.

Chiz-Wiz was a different matter. Within a day of the death of his mate Cara I introduced him to his 'toy girl' Caratooz. The acceptance was immediate and remains strong to this date. Presently all three of my couples are happy and contented, cuddled up together every day. Now I will hand you back to Chilli Champion.

I concur with Roger. We chinchillas are very intelligent animals and this is sometimes to our detriment. Our minds need to be kept active as this enhances our mental stability. We need company, exercise, roomy accommodations and most of all - love. We are not fragile animals that need to be kept in glass houses. Indeed with proper care we can be very robust pets. Whilst we are prey for some animals in the wild, we do have some very good defence mechanisms. Our fur is very dense and long and many animals seeking to eat us will end up with a mouthful of fur as we make our getaway. Peeing on our predators is another favourite. With a little gyration of our hips, an extremely accurate stream of urine can land precisely in our predator's eyes.

There you go, we chinchillas are not fragile wimps, we just need company!!!

Chilli Champion