Guinea pig – um – squirrel? No! Chinchillas make amazing pets and have some eccentric behaviors to match their eccentric appearance. Here’s a look some common “chin” behaviors.

1. Twilight Fan

For chinchillas, day is night and night is day – as in, their normal sleep cycle has them sleeping most of the day and awake from dusk until dawn. In the wild, chinchillas live in burrows or in rock crevices, places that offer safe havens for them to take cover so they can get some stress-free sleep. In your home, a pet chinchilla will appreciate an enclosed sleep area, such as a tunnel or hammock, which keeps way prying eyes!

2. Eyes Wide Open

To say that chinchillas are light sleepers is an understatement. Not only are they likely to startle at the slightest noise, they are inclined to sleep with their eyes open, especially in a new environment. (Sleeping with eyes open … (more…)