Chinchilla wheel

Chinchilla is a very mobile animal. Cell tightness and lack of movement can have a disastrous effect on his health. For such a pet, a running wheel is a prerequisite for living in a cage. A mini trainer can be purchased at a pet store. But some owners of animals prefer to make a wheel with their own hands.

The homeland of short-tailed and long-tailed chinchillas is South America. These animals live in the mountains of the Andes, at an altitude of 500 to 5000 meters above sea level. They use cracks in the rocks as a dwelling, and where there are none, they dig holes. Chinchillas can live up to 20 years, but are often prey to predators. The irrepressible energy of the animals helps them survive in the harsh conditions of the Andes.

Domestic chinchillas are as fussy as their mountain cousins. The paws of animals are capable of making long jumps, the animals need active running. Blood stagnation caused by a passive lifestyle in a cramped cell can lead to muscle atrophy of the hind limbs. Therefore, the wheel is not only an entertainment element, but also solves the serious problem of preventing various ailments.

The chinchilla treadmill has a number of requirements. They relate to the safety of the animal and refer to both factory and homemade products.

• The running surface should be smooth, level, but not slippery.
• The treadmill should be securely fixed to walls or the floor to avoid overturning.
• If the foot hits the mesh or slat surface, it can injure the animal.
• The treadmill should not be too heavy, since the weight of an adult rodent does not exceed 500-600 g, it will be difficult for him to spin a powerful simulator with small paws.
• The volume of the wheel is selected according to the size of the pet, that is, one and a half times the size of the animal itself.
• When making the simulator yourself, you should not get carried away with paints and varnishes, you need to remember that the rodent will taste everything.

Pet stores sell treadmills for rodents. The sizes of devices should range from 28 to 45 centimeters. But in reality there are small wheels designed for hamsters; such simulators are suitable for chinchillas only in childhood. Occasionally, you can find larger specimens made of metal. Their cost is much higher than small plastic models.

If the owners of plush animals cannot find suitable wheels, they order them from the masters or make simulators with their own hands. By type, running wheels are divided into plastic, metal and wooden. Considering each group separately, the user himself determines which material he has more confidence in.

Plastic products are difficult to find for an adult chinchilla, since their diameter does not exceed 32 centimeters. But the material itself has many advantages:

• it is lightweight, durable, does not absorb moisture and odors (in the event that the animal confuses it with a toilet);
• rodents do not taste plastic, which helps the wheel retain its original appearance for a long time;
• the plastic product is easy to care for, it can be easily washed and disinfected;
• such wheels belong to the cheapest price category.

Of all types of structures, it is metal products that are recognized as dangerous. If the wheel has a mesh surface, the animal can catch its claw on one of the cells. While the wheel is moving, it is fraught with injuries. Sometimes, instead of a mesh surface, you can find a lamellar one. This type of simulator is even more doubtful, there is a danger of the foot getting between the plates.

In other respects, metal simulators have many advantages:

• they are strong and durable;
• your pet will not gnaw them;
• the wheel does not absorb moisture and odors;
• the simulator can be easily disassembled for disinfection and the possibility of maintaining it.

Wood is an environmentally friendly material, tactile and energetically close to animals by its natural properties. The ideal structure has no sharp edges and mesh surface, it is safe and comfortable. But wood is inferior to metal and plastic according to the following criteria:

• it easily absorbs moisture and odors;
• difficult to care for;
• chinchillas happily gnaw on a wooden surface.

The size of the wheel must match the size of the pet. A comfortable size is an indispensable condition for a simulator, because a chinchilla runs several tens of kilometers per day. Daily jogging in a tense unnatural state will lead to deformation of the spine and disorders of the musculoskeletal system. An adult chinchilla will need a wheel with a diameter of 40-45 cm, for a small animal - 35-40 cm.

If the question of the need for a wooden wheel for a chinchilla is no longer there, you can start making it taking into account the specified parameters. Before starting work, the necessary materials are prepared:

• plywood for the manufacture of the wheel base and its rim;
• measuring instruments;
• screws, large bolt;
• jigsaw for working with plywood;
• drill;
• lath 1-3 cm wide.

Use a drill to drill a small hole in the plywood sheet to become the center of the wheel's circumference. For an adult chinchilla, the size of the simulator should be 40 cm.Taking into account this parameter, a circle is drawn around the hole.

While running, the animal's body should be at the bottom of the structure, and not be distributed in a tight circle, turning up. A product that is too compact will cause the rodent to stumble and turn, a poor movement can lead to injury.

The measured circle must be carefully cut with a jigsaw and the end part must be cleaned with coarse sandpaper to an ideal smooth condition. In the final version, the circle will be connected to the rim by a plank surface. At this stage, a rim should be cut out of the plywood. It should repeat the diameter of the circle and be several centimeters wide. The cut out part also needs to be sanded.

The treadmill is assembled from pieces of rail. It is cut into pieces of 15 or 17 centimeters (treadmill width). The outer ends, with which the animal can contact, are also processed with a sandpaper. With the help of self-tapping screws, the fragments of the laths connect the circle and the rim to each other. Gradually, step by step, the rodent's treadmill is formed.

The construction is ready. The next step is to create a rotation node. It requires a long bolt (15 cm), the diameter of which should match the hole drilled in the center of the circle. The bolt is inserted from the inside of the wheel and goes to the outside, where a washer is screwed onto it. For smooth sliding, a rubber bearing is put on the bolt.

From the outside of the simulator, a holder bar is attached to the bolt, which is cut out of plywood. Its design parameters depend on the tastes of the master, the main thing is that the wheel does not cling to the floor while driving. The holder connects the product to the platform. It is better to fix it tightly to the floor so that the animal does not turn it over.

A freshly made wheel has a pleasant woody smell. The scent can attract the chinchilla, and she will begin to gnaw on the structure. It is for this reason that the product should not be painted or varnished, so that the animal does not get poisoned with paints and varnishes.

Most often, special efforts are not required, the pet quickly evaluates the gift, and so quickly that it completely forgets about the owner. If the animal still does not understand what was put in the cage, it can be prompted in certain ways. Wait a little at first. A comfortably positioned and fixed wheel should interest the chinchilla. If the animal still does not understand what to do with the new toy, the wheel should be scrolled up and down a little, but so as not to frighten the pet.

The rodent can be invited to the treadmill with a treat. Climbing on it, he will feel the movement and can figure out what to do next. If he does not climb, he should be helped, hoisted on the wheel. Then shake slightly, covering the entrance with your hand so that it does not slip out. Sometimes the fresh scent of wood prompts the rodent to take a completely different action, and he perceives a new toy in his own way. In this case, time and patience will help, you need to leave the chinchilla alone until everything happens naturally.

After reading user reviews, you understand that chinchilla lovers often have to face the opposite problem. They ask questions how to instill in the animal the skills of intelligent use of the simulator. The animal runs around in it for days. Sleeps, eats and relieves next to a new toy. It is especially depressing for the owners that the animal no longer asks for hands and, it seems, does not need people at all.Experienced "chinchilla breeders" calm down, offer to let the rodent play enough for a couple of weeks, promise that in the future everything will go on as usual.

See the next video for a master class on making a wheel for a chinchilla.