Safe Chinchilla Wood

Not all wood is safe for chinchillas. Chinchillas need to chew and they love to chew wood, so we need to make sure that it is safe.

As there has not been a great amount of research done with chinchillas the information out there is not exhaustive, so many woods are still unknown as to whether or not they are safe.

Even when safe, the wood should not have been chemically treated. If collected from the wild you want to scrub and bake the wood at 300 degrees for at least half an hour. Apple orchards are great resources!

Here are the known safe woods:

• pine (kiln dried)
• apple (my chins' favorite!)
• aspen
• pear
• quince
• grape
• hazelnut
• pecan
• willow
• elm (untreated)

Many hardwoods (such as oak) and fruit trees are toxic. You can find more information about safe chinchilla wood by going to www.chinchillas2home.co.uk. There are a few other woods, but these are the ones you'll be most likely to find.

Here's some general information about chinchillas.