Herbivore (folivore)

Wild- Leaves, seeds, grains, nuts, eggs, insects

Professional Care- Timothy hay

Wild- 10 years 

Professional Care- 15 - 20 years

Chinchillas live communally, and up to 100 chinchillas can be found living together. They are primarily nocturnal, but will bask in the evening and morning sun. 

Female chinchillas are the dominant sex and are very aggressive toward one another and toward males. Despite this aggressiveness, serious fighting in the wild is rare. Chinchillas express threats through growling, chattering their teeth, and urinating. 

A mother chinchilla must lick her babies dry soon after birth so they do not get frostbite. Chinchillas take dust baths to clean themselves. 

There are an estimated 5,500 chinchillas remaining in the wild. The population has remained relatively stable, but are still endangered. Long-tailed chinchillas have been threatened by the colonization of Chile. The threats to chinchillas include: poaching, the pet trade, hunting, agriculture, and mining. Despite current protection measures, populations continue to decline slowly. 

Historically, the Long-tailed chinchilla was intensely hunted for its fur during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. This resulted in a dramatic reduction in population size and a significant reduction in range. While commercial hunting has stopped because of legal protection, illegal trade likely still occurs. 

Legal conservation efforts include particular conservation actions taken by organizations which make government policy to protect all species on earth. The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List Status is a critical indicator of the health of the world’s biodiversity. Chinchillas are listed as “Endangered,” which means they face a high risk of extinction in the wild.