Right Here Goes, Lots Of Questions!

[StephyT]

Firstly I would like to apologise for the very many boring questions i'm about to ask.....but I guess we all need to start somewhere 

Firstly, i'm interested in housing. I've seen mostly outdoor aviaries and a few indoor cages. What are the pros and cons of each? Is either better for the chipmunk or is it just a matter of personal preference? As with most animals bigger is always better but whats the minimum size recommended for a chipmunk/s? I know they will never be 'cuddly' pets but I think I might like them indoors so I can interact with them more. What are they like to keep; Do they smell? Are they messy? Any cage recommendations?

I'm also curious if they better to keep singularly or in pairs/groups? I've seen some have them in male/female pairs, and others have a couple of females with a male. I'd be worried the females would keep getting pregnant if living with a male, though I could be wrong? Not quite sure what they 'get up to' in terms of mating routines etc and not sure i'd want any babies popping out, at least not untill I have my head around the genetic side of things and how to care for the babies etc. I'm particularly intrested in the cinnamon & the dilutes. Are there any other colours (other than the agouti of course) of are those 3 the most common? I say 'common' but the cinnamon ones seem to be few and far between.

Where is best to obtain a chipmunk/s? I'd never buy from a shop, but there doesn't seem to be alot of breeders about either? Not sure how big the chipmunk gene pool is in the UK but is there any sort of registration service to map individuals so you can see which lines they come from etc? I'd also be interested if anyone has any info on the genetic side of thing for the different colours etc.

I'm an absolute geek when it comes to animal food, nutrition is something i'm constantly looking at and i'm always keen to feed the best available as obviously, a good diet is key. There isn't much info on the web about chippies diets (unsuprisingly), but from what little there is it would seem they are fed a mix of seeds, grains, nuts and fruit. Is it better to buy premade mixes, if so which brands are good to use? Or (which I would prefer) does anyone make up their own chipmunk mix? Much like the shunamite diet for rats only formulated to suit the needs of chippies? I prefer to make my own mixes for rodents as i'm never very keen on commercial animal food. Of course using a premade mix as a base is always an option to then add my own stuff to. But whichever is best for the munks really. If someone could tell me what there nutritional requirements are, what sort of foods they need would be great. I know i've read they also need fresh fruit, is this on a daily basis and what sort of things can you give? Do you give veg as well or just fruit?

I can't think of any other questions for now.....sorry for such a long 'essay', but am greatful for any info you want to throw at me

[tarcus/Kevin]

  So many questions so little time
FOOD REQUIREMENTS:- I personally use a basic mix by Johnston and Jeff
http://www.moreforpets.ltd.uk/johnston-jeff-chipmunk-wild-squirrel-125kg-p-615.html
I supplement this with added nuts of all varieties such as you can find on most supermarket shelves and health food stores(Walnuts Brazils etc.) I also give them any soft fruit which is in season. They also enjoy Toast,pastry,cheese,eggs,pepsi,in fact most anything I take into the aviary which brings me on to.....
HOUSING:- I started many years ago with a purpose built cage which was 5ft high and 3ft square built into the corner of the living room in the house i was in at the time. It was easy to maintain regarding the cleaning but as I was naive about chips in those early days I did discover they liked plaster and concrete as they tried to eat their way out through the walls.
I progressed from there to an outside aviary which I must admit I now prefer.
On the plus side for indoor chips you can have much more contact on a daily basis as you can release them into the room where they will willingly interact with any members of the family present or indeed any friends or relatives.
On the downside for indoor chips you are usually confined in the same room as the chips when they are out playing as any opening is immediately investigated and they will invade the rest of the house, there is also the small matter of getting them back into their cage when you need them to go and their desire is not too.(but this is not so much of a problem when they are tamed to the hand.
I moved onto outdoor aviaries simply because i wanted them to have a more natural lifestyle, it also allowed me to be more expansive with their habitat.
I currently have 6 inmates in a 15ft long 6 ft wide 6 ft high enclosure which is essentially a mesh cube held up with wooden supports.
The plus side for outdoor aviaries is the amount of space you can allocate for each chipmunk to allow them room for self expression and storage space for their winter cache of nuts and seeds which can in some cases reduce friction during the autumn/winter months. It also allows the carer to interact with them on their terms. I have a wooden bench to sit on within the aviary and have many varied things on which they can play on and in.
The downside for outdoor aviaries is that you must be willing to wrap up warm during the colder days which means they have a chance to bury their nuts seeds etc. inside pockets hoods whatever and at times they will try to smuggle themselves out in loose clothing.
As for smells I don't think the chips mind how we smell to be honest 
As for their own smell if they are indoors they can at times produce strong ammonia as they will often go to the toilet in one place but this habit is good as it can be used for training them to go where you want them too which can be a small corner toilet such as used in indoor rabbit,chinchilla cages.
Outdoor chips will of course react in the same way for toileting and will choose where they will go(usually in a corner shelf on which they can back up to)

I have found over the years that chipmunks have the same basic love of family as we humans have which is that some will always be great friends while others should only meet during wedding and funeral gatherings which should be completed without alcohol as quickly as possible.
My current crew consists of 5 females (mother and four daughters) and one unrelated male. I am hoping to get Jeremy a helper come the springtime. I also have access to some25 other chips who now reside with family and friends mainly aguiti but one or two dilute.
All the current crew are a dark cinnamon  which is why they are all together as I am hoping to breed more cinnamon lights next year when I bring is a dilute to help out Jeremy but as I am no expert on genetics and species variations it is more hit and miss with me.
There are others on here who can tell you more about recessive genes and expected outcomes from various pairings.
As for buying chipmunks I think the accepted rule around this forum is not to go to a pet shop whose care and overall knowledge of the species is not of the best quality.
Many on here also advertise on pre-loved and gumtree which are nationwide.
As for colours....Aguiti/Cinnamon/Dilute are mentioned in this forum as they are the most prevalent there was one posting of a lady down south who has a black pair but no reports of them breeding.

Hope I have given you some ideas....

[Nick]

Hi Steph,

On the cage question, I've had both indoor and outdoor aviary, I personally prefer the outdoor one, but this is mainly due to not having the room inside to let them out so interacting with them was difficult. Some guys let them have free run of a room, only using their cage to sleep. Sizes seem to vary and again my personal view is nothing smaller than 3'x2.x5' , if they let out every day then the its really just an extension of their bed really so a smaller cage isn't an issue.
My aviary is 8'x5'x6' outside, its built onto the side of a shed which I have built a smaller cage inside where they sleep and can get out of the crappy weather. There are no real hard and fast rules and they adapt really well to their environment.
I've always kept them in pairs, but I know people have single chippies and they are fine. You can be pretty sure a male and female will mate in spring, then maybe again during the summer, so other than having the males castrated (eyes watering as I type) then same sex groups is a must.
I use a ready made mix as a base then add just about anything from the garden really, they get fruit and veg every other day and since using this forum, I've tried all sorts of new stuff, they quite like Philly cheese and yogurt now, I would never have thought to try them.

I hope this helps a bit, you'll get loads of other views and ideas on here so between them you should get some good allround knowledge

 

[StephyT]

Thankyou Tarcus and Nick for taking the time to reply and answer my questions you have been most helpful

Still hoping I will get some more replies but the ones I have, have given me a really good idea, thank you both

[ilovechips]

Tarcus i hope youre joking about Pepsi 

[tarcus/Kevin]

Tarcus i hope youre joking about Pepsi 

NOPE they especially love it more if it has alcohol in it  mind they do tend to  in a bit the next day.

[peter01]

Welcome to the forum
I i have both outdoor and indoor chips and there is pro's and cons to both. Outdoors is a natural environment for them and they love all the different types of weather. The bad point is they hibernate in the winter and you don't get as much time to spend with them as you would inside.

Inside is good as you spend lots of time with them and its great watching them run riot in your bedroom and you can try and make it as natural as possible for them with digging pots etc for them. The bad point is i suppose is that they are quite messy little ones. Scattering the mud from the digging pots everywhere, same with food really but its worth it to watch them.

In my opinion i wouldn't say chipmunks smell that much. All animals have a smell but I'd say chipmunks isn't too strong. My 4 mice smell worse than all the chips put together in my room! If there is any smell you'd get used to it anyway and with regular cleaning they tend not to smell. (Just my opinion).

I got my first chip who lived alone for 1 year before i got her and a couple months until i got more friends for her. She was fine, extremely tame and acted like any other chip. I'd say they are better in pairs/trio's/groups as it gives them company when you can't play with them and they enjoy it. Most people would say keeping 2 girls to 1 boy (if breeding) is a good ratio. A group of girls or a single male would be okay.

I'd get them from a breeder. As mentioned, Preloved and Gumtree are good i got 7 of my chipmunks from Gumtree by posting a Wanted: Chipmunks ad. There is also the 'Chipmunks Available' section on the forum.

I feed mine on a mix of different foods. I mix in Beaphar Xtra Vital chippie food mixed with mouse food, dried meal worms, cereal and mixed seeds into a big storage tub and thats what they get. Chips tend to eat anything they are not fussy at all. Mine love ice-cream, biscuits with fruit in them, fruit&veg, tea, yogurt, milk, dandelions, daisys, cuttle fish, mineral licks and more. They can also eat scrambled/boiled eggs but mine don't like them. There is a thread on the forum somewhere of safe foods for chips. I'll try looking for it for you. I also have to admit Lilo did sneak some of my sisters cola before

I hope this has gave you some more help and you will get some great advice on this forum!
Good luck with getting your chips

[jennyb]

Hi Steph,

You have had some great replies.

I've had Chipmunks for many years now, i'll tell you about my experiences:

With caging i've had them both indoors and outdoors like others have said there is both advantages and disadvantages to both.
Indoor cages: advantages are they are nearer to you so you will probably see more of them sometimes my indoor ones wake up during the night also you won't have to go out in the bad weather to feed them and they will rarely hibernate.
Disadvantages - they can be very noisy especially if they have a wheel so not always great when you want to sleep in if they are in your bedroom. Sometimes they can smell but usually i find if you clean out at least once a week this isn't a problem. They will chew so when out be careful of wires and also they will try and get in the smallest spaces so you need to be careful that the room is Chipmunk-proofed

Outdoor avairies: advantages are its a more natural environment, generally you have more space, Chipmunks often breed better. You can get in the aviary with the Chippies.
Disadvantages - Chipmunks are great at escaping and having them outside does mean if they escape you might struggle to get them back. The aviary needs to be built on a concrete base since they can dig well and also any wood needs to be meshed over, they will chew any exposed wood. You have wild animals to consider the aviary needs to be extra secure, good locks for the doors, double-mesh on both sides of the frames if you have Cats around. Very important is a safety porch. The weather will affect their behaviour, in very bad weather they may hibernate in some cases you might not see your Chipmunks for weeks or months. Mine have never hibernated but some do. You will be going out in all weathers to feed them and clean them out.

Chipmunks live naturally quite solitary in the wild and can be happy living singly which is ok if you can spend alot of time with the Chipmunk. If you aren't around so much then getting more than one is good. With groups you must have more females than males or the boys will fight. Colonies can be difficult fighting can happen quite often as the Chipmunks get older or at this time of year when they become territorial over their food stores, you may find you need to separate some individuals. In the past i've had unrelated pairs live together quite ok but i've found groups much harder. Chipmunks will usually have two litters a year they don't breed like Rats. Most babies will be born early spring and then some Chips have another litter in late summer, they can have between 1 and 10 young in a litter but 6/7 is most common. Chipmunks do not breed until the spring after they were born so you haven't got the rush like with other rodents of separating siblings and parents unless its a summer litter then they mature in only 8 months.

Agouti is the name given to the normal colour its the most common. Dilute White is probably second common its white with light stripes on its back and reddish eyes. Cinnamon is the least common of the three colours and its a very gingery Chippie with brownish stripes instead of black. I have 5 of these. There have been Black ones but i've never seen them for sale anywhere. Other colours are very rare at the moment but its likely as with Hamsters more colours will appear in the future.

I would always advise buying from a breeder, most pet shops don't have a clue about these animals. If you do want to get from a breeder it does mean some travelling. I keep Family Trees on my babies and other records, some breeders may also do something similar. With genetics it can get complicated but i'll try and explain. The Agouti colour is dominant so it will always appear in the young and mask other colours bred with it unless the parents both carry the gene for the other colour or one carries the gene and the other parent is the same colour as the carried gene from the other parent. If you want Dilute babies you need to breed two Dilutes or breed a Dilute with a Agouti carrying the Dilute gene. This is the same with Cinnamon and this can make breeding difficult especially with Cinnamon which is a rare colour. If you breed Dilute/Cinnamon to an Agouti which doesn't carry the same gene you'll just get Agouti babies which will carry the gene themselves so they are still useful for breeding but none will be that colour in the first generation.

I feed Beaphar Xtra Vital Chipmunk food but you can make your own which quite a few members do. Getting the diet right is very important as unfortunately Chipmunks will get very ill if it is not correct. So you need a good quality dry food and then you need to feed fresh fruits and vegetables as much variety as you can so they don't get bored and it gives them what they need, they will get most of their Calcium needs from the fresh food. I feed fruit and veg three times a week but you can feed daily. They will also need yoghurt i feed it several times a week and some scrambled egg or cooked chicken several times a month. You can also give mealworms, its good for their protein needs. Chipmunks also need a cuttlefish bone and mineral block left whole in the cage and you can also grate some cuttlefish over their food weekly. Nuts i try to limit extra ones except for treats, most Chipmunk foods have lots of peanuts and too many peanuts can cause the Chipmunk to get fat or get a Calcium Deficiency. My Chipmunks love getting nuts so i use them for treats and i try and feed ones in the shell so they can wear down their teeth and keep themselves occupied.

[StephyT]

Some brilliant replies, thank-you very much

They seem fairly simple to keep really.

The outdoor accommodation looks great, not just to the eye but for the chippies to. Those with aviarys what sort of bedding do you use in the inside section on the floor/in nest boxes? I've seen some use bark/soil in the outside section but i'm unsure what would be used inside. Would something like Finacard be okay? Its like soft, shredded, dust extracted cardboard.

I think I would much rather have them indoors as it would be easier to spend time with them etc. What sort of cages are good for indoor chippies? Do they need to be taller rather than wider or not? Has anyone ever used chicken coops for chippies? http://www.netpetshop.co.uk/p-34937-chicken-house-run.aspx?CAWELAID=755875633
I'm guessing with some small modifications and an entry pen added one would be okay for a pair or trio? You can also buy waterproof covers for them to keep the rain out, unless they happen to like the rain?
Not sure how economical a coop would work out to an aviary

I'd love to have an inside cage attatched to an outside aviary section...but its not possible at home and doubt a rented property would approve of me cutting holes in the wall for a chipmunk flap  But ah well I can dream!

A little elaboration on their diet would be great. Are the shop bought mixes usually pretty accurate? What sort of percentages of nuts:seeds:cereals etc are approximately needed? I've read they like mealworms, what about dried crickets or other dried bugs? And would adding a small amount of a good quality dry cat/dog food be okay as part of a mix?
I don't want to sound stupid but are their dietary needs at all similar to rats? I'd be looking at modifying a version of the shunamite diet so its suitable for chipmunks
http://www.shunamiterats.co.uk/shunamite.shtml

So using chipmunk food as a base mix and adding in extra seeds/nuts/cereals, can they eat dried pasta? And can they have dried fruit like raisens etc?

Do they partake in the eating of grass or dried grass or any hay at all? Or maybe a boxfull of hay could be given as a different textured substance to dig/play in?

What sort of toys do they prefer? Things to climb on? Tunnels? Cardboard boxes? Wooden hanging parrot/bird toys?
Are these kind of food/forage toys okay? As a place to put some of their food or treats so they have to work to get it out for a bit of enrichment/variation?
http://www.bird-supplies.net/media/product/bird-parrot-toys/ss_size1/25112386.jpg

Again, sorry for all the questions, but if your gonna do something its best to do them right I feel
I'm in Gloucestershire, does anyone know of any breeders in/around the area? Or am I looking to be travelling a bit further afield?

Eta: I also meant to ask if they a nocturnal or diurnal or what are their sleeping habits? As if I decide to keep them indoors I don't want to make the mistake of putting them somewhere where they will wake us up. Are they very vocal at night/day or just when breeding? Trying to think of everything really...not that you can tell of course!

[Nick]

I've used wood based cat litter on the floor of the inside cage with hay, shredded paper and old jumpers cut into small bits.
When feeding them, try to think of what they'd likely find in the wild, I don't think dried pasta would be good for them. Dired fruit on the other hand goes down a treat.
They tend to be up and about at sunrise and active throughout the day, mine are in bed before dusk normally.
When looking at cages the mesh shouldn't be larger than 1"x 1/2" as babies can wriggle through anything bigger. I would say a taller cage is better than a wider one and the bigger the better.

[peter01]

Chicken coops aren't suitable, they need plenty of space to climb. On the outdoors make sure you line the outside part with slabs/concrete as they will dig their way out. I use bark outside and inside the shed and they seem to enjoy that. In the next boxes i use hay, shredded newspaper and i put a big corner of the bedding in the shed and they choose from this to add extra bits. In my indoor cages i use the same for their nest boxes but as flooring i use shredded newspaper but people use wood shavings. They must have a digging pot as they dig naturally in the wild and they absolutely love it. Mine love damp/wet mud as they can't really dig in the softer mud. They love climbing and tunnels. Mine love stripping the bark off the tree's make sure none of them are from a Yew Tree as these are poisionous to chips, there are a lot of sad stories of people using plants and tree branches and the chips dying from being poisioned so be careful on that one, i was always worried haha! Mine sleep all night unless they are awoken by a noise from my dog or me moving their food tub but they just go back to bed. As said post a wanted ad on Gumtree and preloved, also the chipmunks available section on the forum. You might find someone close to you but you might have to travel. Its good your doing your research before getting them and good luck with them. As you said they are fairly easy to keep and make wonderful pets!

PS. I always liked the idea of a inside cage leading to an outside but as you said just a dream

[jennyb]

In my aviaries i have bark chips for the outside floor and inside their houses i use hay to line the floor and in their nestboxes hay and paper-based small animal bedding and they love to tear up tissues and leaves. Some of mine shred cardboard tubes up so they will use anything for bedding really.

The cage needs to be big and tall, its not easy to buy cages for Chipmunks so you may have to make something or if you want to buy you will be looking at the big Bird/Parrot cages. As Peter said they need space and if you want more than two Chipmunks you would need a small aviary rather than a cage. I've kept a pair in a cage that is 4 foot by 1 1/2 foot by almost 6 foot high and at the moment Abigail is living in this cage on her own. If you look through the Visitors Photos section on this site you will find lots of examples of indoor cages and aviaries other members have for their Chipmunks.

I think the Chipmunk food should make up about 80% of the diet. They will eat Crickets, Waxworms they will eat them live or dried and mine eat any bugs that enter their aviary. I've found mine are not keen on Cat/Dog food but you can feed it. The Chipmunk food is similar to other Rodent mixes so i guess Chipmunks are similar to Rats with their dietry needs. Chipmunks like other Squirrels do have a high Calcium need though and i think that a Chipmunk's diet needs to be higher in Calcium than a Rat's. I follow the diet for captive kept Squirrels, Squirrels like Chipmunks can be prone to Metabolic Bone Disease if their diet is not high enough in Calcium, their diet is too high in Phosphorus which will lead to a Calcium Deficiency or their diet is deficient in Vitamin D. They need Vit D to adsorb the Calcium. This is a nasty disease which can cause paralysis, seizures or death at its worse.

To add to their diet you can feed cereals and dried fruit, treats for other Rodent species. I've seen mine eat grass shoots which grow through the mesh into the aviary and mine will eat Dandelion both leaves and flowers, also Daisies and Clover. Other wild foods they eat are Acorns, Blackberries, Helicopter seeds from Sycamore and Rose hips.

I find mine don't play much with toys but they do quite like tunnels, ropes, ladders, rope bridges, branches, digging pots, hanging baskets with hay in, hammocks to sleep in. Any toys for small Rodents and most parrot toys are ok. 

Chipmunks are diurnal, in the spring they get up from 5am going to bed about 9pm. At this time of year mine get up about 7am and are in bed by 4.30-5pm. They are generally active the whole day but do rest at times through the day.

The females will call for a mate, this will happen from the moment she gets up until she goes to bed, she hardly stops. The chirping can be very loud and will happen every two weeks once she starts coming into season. Mine generally start calling for mates about February. Most will have two breeding seasons first one is Spring and the second is later Summer/early Autumn. At night mine hardly make a sound, some of my females do chirp softly in their sleep sometimes. The males tend to chirp less than the females and more quietly. Both sexes do alarm call and this can be very like the mating chirp but it won't go on for very long. Other than the mating calls and alarm calls they are quite quiet creatures.

[StephyT]

Its a shame the chicken coops aren't bigger/taller, I reccon they would have been quite good otherwise. Oh well nevermind!

Have just been made redundant today so the chippies are going to have to be put on hold *sigh* 

Oh well, gives me even more time to read up/prepare I suppose. Who knows, I just might find the perfect bargain on ebay or at a car boot if I hold out long enough

Thanks everyone for all the replies, everything said has been really helpful

[Nick]

Sorry to hear about your job Stephy   

[peter01]

Sorry to hear about your job, hope you find something soon