Vota

Vota passed away in June 2014. We will miss you Vota :( 

I got Vota, who is named after a band I love, in 2009. The owner believed him to be about 6 years old at the time. Which would make him approximately 11 years old now. Chinchillas are long lived and can live for over 20 years. 

They are very fascinating animals and my favorite thing to do is just watch him. He has a lot of cute mannerisms. He holds his food in his hands while he eats, he's very curious and makes lots of crazy sounds at night. The first night he made the noises I jumped out of bed in a panic! I thought some crazed animal had snuck into the house.

Vota's temperament tends to be on the shy side. But he has moments where he'll come over to be petted or investigate something interesting. We tend to let him choose if he wants to interact or not.

Chinchilla fast facts:

• Chinchilla fur is so dense that external parasites (such as fleas) cannot live on them because they will suffocate.

• They cannot sweat

• They take dust bathes to stay clean!