Suitable Toys
Toys sold for rabbits and small rodents can make suitable toys for chinchillas. Parrot toys can also be suitable as long as they do not contain plastic or rope parts. This is because chinchillas will gnaw at the plastic and swallow it, but they cannot digest it.
Strands of stringy rope that they can chew off such toys can also get caught up in their guts. It is for these reasons that plastic and string/rope should be avoided.
Toys - Suitable
Branches
Chinchillas love scuttling up and sliding down branches. You can add branches to your chinchilla's cage as well as shelves to keep them entertained. If you do collect branches to put in your chinchilla's cage, don't collect them from beside a road, as the pollutants from car fumes will have contaminated the branches which your chinchilla will undoubtedly chew. You can also give the branches a quick scrub before you add them to the cage.
| Safe | Disputed | Avoid |
|---|---|---|
| Apple. | Birch. | Orange (cutrus wood). |
| Pear. | Ash. | Lemon (citrus wood). |
| Hazelnut. | Aspen. | Lime (citrus wood). |
| Yucca. | Oak. | Cherry. |
| Cottonwood. | Juniper. | Wild Cherry. |
| Beech. | Plum. | |
| Pine (dried, no phenol oils). | Pine (fresh branches). | |
| Manzanita (pet shop). | Walnut. | |
| Cholla Cactus (pet shop). | Cedar. |
Other Toys
Chinchillas like chewing on cardboard and rough paper to wear down their constantly
growing teeth, but be mindful of the glue used. Wood, hay, pumice stone, cuttlefish and other safe materials are also good. Below are a small selection of other suitable toys for chinchillas:
Willow Rings & Balls
As sold in pet shops and garden centres. The willow should not be treated.
Tubes
Long cardboard tubes free from carpet shops. You can use long ones for playtime when the chinchillas our out or score the tubes into more manageable lengths with a Stanley knife.
Chubes
Safe vegetable matter tubes from pet shop.
Chew Block
These are often calcium enriched.
Cuttlebone
A good source of calcium, but something additional containing vitamin A will be better for teeth.
Small Rodent Chews
Lava bites, hamster chews, cholla cactus...
Woven Mats
Untreated straw & sea grass.
Wooden Rabbit toys
Bark tunnels, etc.
Hanging parrot toys
Wooden, no rope & no exposed chain.
Large exercise wheels
If you want to buy an exercise wheel for your chinchilla then it has to have a diameter of 12" across or greater. The ones that pet shops sell for rats and smaller rodents simply aren't big enough. Overly small exercise wheels cause chinchillas back problems as trying to run inside these cramped wheels gives them a strained back curvature.
Also, if you are going to get your chinchilla an exercise wheel you will need to get one with a closed surround, not bare rungs with spaces between them. With the latter type, chinchillas in mid-run can get their paws or tail caught up and do themselves some nasty injuries, like losing their tail or a leg. There are several safe wheels on the market. Two of the most highly acclaimed are the Leo Braun wheel and the Flying Saucer wheel, but both of these are expensive and would need to be exported from the USA. Cheaper, plastic alternatives are more readily available, but you chinchilla will be likely to chew the plastic.
| This is an image of a chinchilla running on a Flying Saucer Wheel. If you would like to use a wheel like this you will also need to brace the mesh of your cage with something - a sheet of steel or a plank of wood or another layer of wire to reinforce the side of your cage. If you don't then the mesh your cage is made from will start to tear along the bottom bar of the wheel support. Apart from that, I find them a really good design, but they can be difficult to obtain if you live outside the USA, and import taxes are not cheap. Sometimes people import them in bulk and then sell some of them on. Ask around on forums to keep up to date with that. Occasionally exercise wheels like these come up on Ebay. |  |
|---|
Toys - Avoid
Small Exercise Wheels
Dangerous spokes & cramped running conditions causes bad back curvature.
Stringy Rope
Will be chewed at and swallowed, string fibres can become caught up in the chinchilla's gut.
Exercise Balls
Difficult to stop once moving, causes rapid overheating which can lead to fits and / or death.
Plastic Toys
Chinchillas can not digest plastic. Excessive eating of plastic causes problems in chinchilla's delicate gut.