An Rejected Chinchilla Kit.
The Story Of Hope
Hope at one week old and Hope still cuddling in to her soft toy foster mum at 12 weeks
Hope in her sand bath
(note priming lines, she is going through a moult)
THE STORY OF HOPE
A good few years ago I was due to go for a long weekend break. The morning before departure I awoke with a feeling that something was wrong. I immediatly went out to check my sheds. How glad I am I trusted my instinct. There at the end was a poor little newbie, nose poking out of the cage, very cold and rejected by her first time mother. I gently took her indoors to warm her and feed her.
After trying numerous times throughout the day to get the mother to accept her, I had no choice but to bring her back indoors,feed her and then tuck her up in a showcage with a hot water bottle, (I now have heatpads and a heated hospital cage for this) a sweater and cuddly soft toy to act as mum. However, what to do about the weekend holiday?
No choice really! Next morning car loaded up with bags and provisions, at the front on the floor near the heater was the baby chinchilla in her cage. After numerous stops at the service stations for hot water, stops every half hour to feed the baby chinchilla and of course ourselves,we finally arrived at our destination.
During the holiday break I had to come back every half hour to feed the kit (this is what a baby chin is referred as) and also gave feeding through the night every hour. After we came back from the holiday, I decided this little one was going to make it and named her Hope.
Hope is still with me today, has had many babies herself and is a wonderful mother to her kits. The moral of the story? never give up hope with newbie chinchillas, it is WELL worth the effort to try to save them.I have pics of Hope, some of her kits and also hope's mother in the Kingdom Chinchilla photograph album.
Thank you for reading her story.
Hope has now also fostered many kits who have been neglected by their mothers. We have started an album for Hope in which we will now show every kit she has and every foster kit she raises.
