Several reports describe infections of chinchillas with Taenia sp. nana may have both a direct and intermediate life cycle in the chinchillas and can cause heavy intestinal infestations ( Olsen, 1950). nana animals in the postweaning period exhibited listlessness and poor body conditioning, while adult and unweaned animals appeared normal. Stampa and Hobson (1966) reported infection of chinchillas with H. pisiformis, Echinococcus granulosus, and Hymenolepis nana. Gorham and Farrell (1955) reported that the chinchilla could serve as an intermediate host for Taenia serialis, T. Reynolds, in The Laboratory Rabbit, Guinea Pig, Hamster, and Other Rodents, 2012 CestodesĬhinchillas may be infected with a variety of cestodes. Today, chinchillas are successfully bred in captivity for their fur, for the pet trade, and for biomedical research. Demand for chinchillas as research animals initially turned to these fur farms, and over time some began supplying chinchillas for research ( Martin, 2012a).
Early attempts at captive breeding for fur production enjoyed limited success however, with improvements in colony management, chinchilla fur farms became established. Most captive chinchillas are descended from 11 animals that were captured in the early 1920s ( Richardson, 2003). Both species are listed as critically endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature because of a drastic population decline due to illegal hunting for the fur trade and reduction of habitat quality ( IUCN, 2013). They live in colonies in extensive burrow systems ( Busso et al., 2012). Chinchillas are native to South America, specifically the dry climate of the Andean mountains of Chile, Bolivia, and Peru. 9.1–9.3), which is the species most commonly used in biomedical research ( ITIS, 2013). There are two species of chinchilla, the short-tailed chinchilla, Chinchilla chinchilla, and the long-tailed chinchilla, Chinchilla lanigera ( Figs. Chinchillas become sexually mature at 7 to 9 months of age.Ĭhinchillas are rodents belonging to the Chinchillidae family in the suborder Hystricognatha and are related to guinea pigs and degus. Young, of which there are one to six (average two), are precocial. Chinchillas have the longest gestation period of any commonly kept rodent species (110 days). 1 Chinchillas are naturally nocturnal, but they can adapt to a more diurnal lifestyle.Ĭhinchillas are unique-looking animals with a short body, large head, delicate limbs, large hairless ears, and a bushy tail. Relative to other rodent species, the life span of the chinchilla is long, sometimes nearing 20 years of age. Because the captive chinchillas found in the United States originated from a very small number of animals, a genetic component is suspected in many of the commonly seen disease processes.Īdult chinchillas usually weigh between 400 and 800 g, females being slightly larger than males. Today, there are a number of different coat color variations that have been developed as a result of the fur, show, and pet chinchilla trades. Wild-type chinchillas have a silver-gray coat with black ticking. 1 Because of overhunting for its beautiful coat, the chinchilla is believed to be nearly extinct in the wild. 1,2 Most of the chinchillas kept in the United States are descendants of a small group of animals imported into California in the 1920s.
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Mitchell, in Manual of Exotic Pet Practice, 2009 Unique Anatomy and PhysiologyĬhinchillas are native to the semiarid mountainous areas of South America, particularly the countries of Peru, Argentina, Bolivia, and Chile.
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