We are moving house and it is a six hour journey, how should we take the chinchilla?

Question

Should we leave our chinchilla in the cage when we move, he would still be in the car with us or should we buy a carrier.... however these seem really small and i have looked for bigger ones.

Answer 1

I would look for a big carrier! Fold up the cage and keep plently of food and water and fresh veggies with you.He might stress out a lot so make sure you stop plenty and pet him and calm him down. Good Luck!

Answer 2

I use a small wire rabbit cage, but a small cat carrier works fine, they seem to travel well if they feel secure, and it will keep them safe if you have to stop quickly (buckle him in just to be on the safe side). I would also put an ice pack under the carrier to keep him cool and have a spare for when it gets warm. Keep him out of the direct sunlight and off the floor of the car which can get hot and cause the carrier to get to warm no matter how cool the car is. Unless you have a drip-less water bottle I would leave it out and offer it to him at intervals during the ride. Mine usually just sleep on trips.  Good luck on your move.

Answer 3

I would get a carrier, but not too big so he won't hurt himself if the car stops short or something. Make sure he has plenty of water, some fuzzy blankets on the bottom, and his favorite toy. I would also consider putting a blanket over the carrier so he'll feel less stressed by his surroundings.  

Answer 4

aaaaawwwww I have always wanted a chinchilla!! I would just hold him the whole way lol! But for you, I would get a fairly big carrier and put some padding on the bottom and put lots of treats in there for him and of course lots of food and water. This will be really stressful for the little guy so make sure to stop a lot and just pet him and give him and calm him down. Or if you are going to have passengers they can always hold him lol

Answer 5

I think a carrier might be a little safer since it's designed for traveling. Which ever you decide to go with, be sure that your chinchilla has water, food, and can't see out the car. It will panic, but it will panic less if it can't see. It is also less likely to get sick if it can't see. Keep an eye on it while traveling, you know your pet and can recognize how its doing. Good luck!

Answer 6

I took about  two hours of a journey and all my chinchilla did  was sleep and i had him in a box with the flaps down with all he needed

inside it

Answer 7

I just moved 1,000 miles from Kentucky to Houston with my 2 chinchillas.  I bought a medium size cat carrier that has a slot in the top for you to slip the lap belt of a seatbelt through to hold the carrier in place.  

I put down some of the straw mats on the floor of it so that the chinchillas would have something to dig their feet into if I had to hit the brakes very hard.  I also had the cage tilted backward toward the back of the vehicle to where the front end was about and inch and a half higher than the back.  This was also to help them during braking.  

I attached their water tank to the front of the carrier since it was similar to a cage wall.  I placed a couple small chew blocks in the carrier as well as some of the timothy hay cubes.  They seemed to do well with it.  

To keep them from getting too hot, I placed a piece of cardboard along the side of the carrier to block the sun from shining directly on them.  Also, I would recommend that if you have to stop for food, get it to go so the chinchillas aren't roasting in the car.  I left the windows cracked about an inch while I went in to get food or to fill up with gas.

I hope this helps.  Good luck with the move.