Davidson Chinchillas - Specialising in Charcoal Chinchillas

Some of my furry friends

I began keeping chinchillas in 1997 when I fell in love with a big, fat, lazy looking standard chinchilla in a Pets at Home store in the Midlands . I put a deposit on him and took a chinchilla book home to read that evening. I collected Monty the following day and drove him back to Hertfordshire where he has ruled “Monty’s Manor” with a furry paw ever since. Monty was bred by a (now retired) NCS breeder. 

I then purchased a small charcoal chinchilla from another pet store in 2000. Button was my teenager – always either asleep in his tube, playing with toys in his cage, or hurtling about the room like a small furry whirlwind. Button became ill in 2002 with dental problems and unfortunately had to be put to sleep in December of that year. He was only 2 ½ and I was devastated by his loss.

I tried to find another charcoal chinchilla but was very disappointed to discover that charcoals are a rarity now due to their small size and difficulties in breeding. It took many months before I found a breeder who had a charcoal chinchilla for sale.  

I now have several show quality charcoal and pastel chinchillas who I am pairing to good quality standards in order to improve the charcoal mutation. The standards will bring density, clarity, and size to the charcoal lines, improving their overall health and quality.

I also have several rescue chinchillas whom I love dearly and who lead a life of comfort at the Manor. Some of the chinchillas are simple re-homes but some have deformities of varying degrees, from loss of limb to chronic inner ear infections which have produced severe head tilts. Some of them have cages specifically adapted to help them cope with their individual needs.

 All of my chinchillas get exercise outside of their cages (in their chinchilla-proofed room), including the ones with infirmities, and enjoy an excellent diet of good quality pellets and hay. They have healthy treats once or twice a week and “breakfast” of shredded wheat daily. All of my cages have plenty of toys and ledges etc to keep the residents happy and stimulated.