Overview:
Changes to the current structure
that we have in:
1- A room
a) Minimum requirements
b) Location of the room (main floor terrace, basement)
2- A garage
3- A shed
-Construction
of:
A small shed 3.1-
A shed medium 3.2-
A complete hatchery
4- When you have only a wasteland.
- Different ventilation systems.
- Other extraction systems and air exchange.
- Construction costs of a type shed.
- Maintenance of air conditioners.
- Special-emergency situations.
General information
The chinchilla is a rodent,
night owl, from the mountainous areas of very low temperatures,
with dry
weather and living in caves.
Today farm chinchilla's has
evolved: They have changed their habitat needs and according
to what the man has been providing since 1923.
However, knowing the old needs
will be useful to learn to manage with peace of mind.
The general principle is that "any
place closed, isolated from high temperatures and airy, is
suitable and valid for captive breeding." No matter the
measures, no matter its location: it may be in Tierra del
Fuego and Misiones, Montevideo and San Pablo. The important
thing is that the conditions set are met. The chinchilla can
withstand temperatures of -5 ° C to 30 ° C and in a room of
4m x 4m. They can comfortably accommodate three hundred
chinchillas.
Now let's be more specific:
The chinchilla is not equally
comfortable with 18 degrees of temperature, 28 ° C, nor with
90% humidity than 40%. Neither it will be equally profitable
a breeder where, just outside temperature rise of 30 ° C,
have to turn on the air conditioning, that one that is so
well insulated that we allow an internal-external difference
of 10 ° C.
Obviously, it is not equally profitable a natural ventilation
that an artificial.
However, experience has shown us
that all large farms in the world have started the same way.
WITH PLACE AVAILABLE AT THE TIME AND minimal modifications.
Over the years, we have seen
situations of all kinds and diverse. People who before
knowing anything about chinchillas, built majestic buildings
for the future, with marble floors, expensive
ceramics and many useless elements for the smooth running of
the farm. Original diverting resources toward building
rather than direct them towards to buy good quality
reproductors.
Throughout this chapter we will
see what is essential and what is not. Essentially we see
that the cabin (cabaña) must be adequate, comfortable, ingenious,
cheap and useful for our activity. Moreover, the superfluous,
the eccentric, the beautiful only cause an expense rather
than an investment, it will take us longer in the recovery of our
invested capital.
Let's understand the terminology
that will be used here in after:
INSULATION: Control of the internal temperature of the room,
so that we can control all its minimum and maximum time. The
insulation may be external (offsite) or internal (within the
premises).
VENTILATION: The continuous movement of air within the
local, not to stand still at any moment: should cover all
parts of cabin (breeding place) and in special cases it must have direct power
over the animals.
When the air is still, all
enviomental dirt
drops,adheres to the cages and the skin of
the reproductors.
Natural ventilation is one that is achieved through windows
and doors
Artificial ventilation is obtained through ceiling fans,
standing, air turbines. This artificial system generally
runs continuously night and day from September to April (southern
hemisphere).
CHANGE OR REMOVAL AIR: It's the air renewal
in the breeding place when it is
flawed, either by the smell of urine, or simply by the fact
that there are many living beings in an enclosed space. When a room,
local or shed is filled with animals, air renewal must be
fifteen times per hour.
-The oven effect
The oven effect is a very common situation that occurs on the
premises that are poorly oriented to the sun. After a hot
day, the sun has stuck all morning on the east wall, at noon
on the roof, and at sunset on the west wall. Usually at six or
seven p.m. the temperature has gone down and it's cooler,
but the sun is still pointing towards the west wall and kept
warm as the soft rays do not allow to cool, it causes to remain
the heat inside the enclosure when outside is already cooler.
To resume, we say that the oven effect occurs when there is
hotter in the local than outside because the few
remaining hot sunlight are keeping the wall warm in the West. Conclusion:
Always protect that wall, either with an awning, a visor, or
simply dousing some vines on the hottest days.
Following generalities say:
- All kinds of smoke gases should be avoided, etc., within
the breeding place environment.
- Other species of animals have to be prevented from
entering the premises,
from dogs and cats to rodents and insects that can cause
nervousness or transmit diseases (not directly to our
chinchillas, but the food they eat). Normally, 90% of
breeders have dogs and / or cats or other animals, but never
on premises that there are chinchillas. There will be no kind of
problems if the dog is around the farm but it will if it is
within the premises and starts to bark in front of the cages.
- Water supply should be clean in all cases, enabled human
consumption. It should be replaced by fresh water every
other day at least, automatic waterers or troughs in bottles
can be used. If the water is running out of a
well, it is recommended making a periodic review
of it.
- Chinchillas habituate to their own cages (very particular
smell to them), the caregiver, the schedule, the breeding
place,
their noise, lights, height from the floor. etc, .
Therefore all changes have influence, it must
be taken into account to counter, or at least to lessen its
intensity.
- On the issue of protection from the cold in winter and
autumn, not much can be analyzed because if the shed is
properly insulated, it will be sufficient to locate within the
enclosure an electric oil radiator which are very economical
for both purchase and consumption.
These devices have replaced all previous heating systems.
Before quartz electric heaters were used, while they
were not dangerous, its consumption was too high. kerosene
stove was also used, but although it is the most economical,
it
is also the most dangerous. At night we had to turn it off for
fear of fire and also because of the smell of fuel.
The same happened with the gas cylinder and the screen (at
night, when it's colder, had to turn it off).
Finally something very useful and fully usable, it is the stove
with
balanced shot. Only suffers from two disadvantages: the need
to have the gas system, and the cost of it's initial
purchase.
1- A room
This is the most common, and certainly locally, typical of
the beginning of all great cabins today, in Argentina and in
the world event.
All the great breeders of today have started in a room of
a house, big or small, even departments. Then they were
able to grow and expand.
Detractors, who criticize promoting activity for their ads,
they usually do it in terms that ads say "breed chinchillas at
home, garage or shed" and that no one can live
economically with two hundred chinchillas in the back of the house.
This is a double error. On the one hand, 200 chinchillas
with
super quality, yield much more than 600 poor quality. On the
other hand no one can say how much capital a person needs to
live, there are those who live happily with $ s2000
monthly and others who live unhappy with u $ s20000.
Finally and referring to this chapter: Someone who starts in a room
of a house and reached an amount of four hundred animals
of first quality; will be in a very clear dilemma. "Grow
or slow down?" . The solution obviously obey purely personal
matters, which come to consider variables such as; more
staff, build, buy, rent, lease another activity, etc, etc ,.
the reader should not worry about this question. In 99% of
cases of those serious and willing to make things right , the answer is ... keep growing ....
Reached this situation, the breeder already dominates the
management and knows by heart the needs of their
reproductors and
their own. At this point in the circumstances you can make
the best, most comfortable and affordable breeding place
a) Minimum requirements:
-A thermometer wall
-A Small radio on a medium volume. The noise of permanent music and other sounds of the radio will make the
animals get used to permanent noise and to not panic or get
stressed when we enter the breeding room. This conclusion
has been reached after many experiences. Formerly it was believed
that if the one who entered the enclosure was the
owner-caretaker, his chinchillas would recognized him and not
frightened. This fact is entirely true but incomplete. If
the breeder (as careful as he can be) dropped the
spoon on the floor at the time of feeding, the sharp sound
of the fall would cause a shock to all animals. With the
radio all this kind of problems are over, such as street noise, neighbors, festivities,
fireworks at the end of the year.
-A Ceiling fan for every hundred animals at least. But
remember that each case is unique in terms of other
environmental conditions.
-Air Conditioning for premises that do not have proper
insulation, or in places that are very hot climates.
It is important to make a brief study on the best
arrangement of cages in each local, ventilation and aeration.
The important thing is to understand the concept, what the
breeding place needs as it changes with growth.
If the activity is started with sixteen females and four males,
the room will seem huge and only a ceiling fan will be
needed to move the air, and in summer it will be very easy to
lower the temperature on days of extreme heat.
If the activity started with one hundred females and
forty males, we will need immediately two ceilings
fans, good insulation
and soon an extractor fan.
More animals per square meter will mean greater need
isolation, ventilation and air exchange |