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Beige chinchilla

Beige is a colour mutation of the domestic chinchilla, a dominant gene producing a warm champagne coat with pink ears, often with a lighter belly, and typically ruby or pink-toned eyes.

Homozygous beiges are paler than heterozygous ones.

The animal is a chinchilla, a crepuscular rodent from the high Andes with the densest fur of any land mammal — around fifty hairs grow from each follicle, compared with one in a human. That fur is the reason the species was hunted almost to extinction, and the reason its captive care is unusual: it cannot get wet, and the animal cannot shed heat.

Origin
A colour mutation of the domestic chinchilla
Size
400–600 g; females larger
Lifespan
15–20 years
Coat
Champagne to beige, extremely dense; pink ears
Temperament
Crepuscular, agile, nervous of handling
Housing
Cool — below 25°C — tall cage, daily dust bath

Related: Black velvet chinchilla

3 beige chinchilla photos, newest first

  • Dusty, a beige chinchilla

    Dusty

    Dusty takes his bath extremely seriously and redecorates the entire room every time.

    FrostyOtter · 6 days ago

  • Halibut 12, a beige chinchilla

    Halibut 12

    Halibut 12 looked at the moon and reports that somebody has taken a slice out of it. The bowls are for when he is proved right.

    FrostyOtter · 1 week ago

  • Halibut 12, a beige chinchilla

    Halibut 12

    Caught Halibut 12 mid-yawn, as usual.

    SunnyHeron · 2 weeks ago

Living with a beige chinchilla

Heat kills chinchillas. Above roughly 25°C they cannot shed heat through that fur and are at real risk of heat stroke; a cool room, never direct sun, and a stone or tile to lie on.

They bathe in volcanic dust, not water. A dust bath several times a week keeps the coat healthy — never wash a chinchilla, because a wet dense coat does not dry and fungal infection follows.

They need height, deep shelves and constant chewing material; teeth grow continuously and dental disease is the commonest serious problem.

Fifteen to twenty years is a long commitment for a small pet. Feed hay-based pellets and hay; avoid fruit and treats.

General guidance, not veterinary advice. Individual critters vary, and anything about a specific animal is a question for a vet who has seen it.

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