In the industries of clothing and fashion, chinchillas are known for their exquisite, blue-gray fur, which is used to create the most expensive fur coats in the world. The fur is also thick, which makes it difficult for parasites to live. But aside from their highly recognized fur, did you know that they can be treated as pets? Before knowing the chinchilla prices, for those who don’t know what a chinchilla is, it is a rodent that is a bit larger and bigger than a ground squirrel. They are popular house pets, requiring proper care and attention. With this being said, how much does a chinchilla cost?
Typical Chinchilla Prices
The chinchilla price typically ranges from $50 to $187, depending on your location, the place where you want to buy it, and the color that you like to own. Apparently, the cost of the chinchilla is the biggest amount you need to spend. The additional expenses will already be friendly to your budget.
In most cases, pet stores place an initial pet chinchillas cost of $150 for a standard gray chinchilla. The price goes higher for colored chins.
Meanwhile, if you want to buy it directly from the breeders, then you can expect the same initial cost for the rodent. However, the price can be around $80 in cases when you are living in areas that have many chinchillas.
How much do chinchillas cost according to their colors? To know some chinchilla price, here are the costs based on their hues.
– Male Standard Gray $50
– Female Standard Gray $113
– Charcoal $100 to $125
– Black Velvet with Black Back $125 to $160
– Beige $100 to $135
*Afro-violet $125 to $160
– White $162 to $187
*The Afro-violet color is a soft lavender gray that comes with a white chest.
Additional Cost of Chinchillas
Of course, if you want to take care of a chinchilla, then you need to purchase necessary items to help it grow and live conveniently. Evidently, these factors will increase the pet chinchillas cost but only a little higher than the maintenance of other domestic pets price.
*Cages
Just like the most common domesticated rodents, chinchillas are placed inside cages. You don’t have to buy the most expensive cage you see. A simple rat cage that comes with an exercise wheel would suffice, and it only costs $50. But if you really want a more sophisticated kind, then you can have the 30x30x15-inch multi-tiered cage that you can buy at a price of $140. Yes, it is costly, but it already has a pellet feeder, dust bath, glass water bottle, and a bottle holder.
*Hiding Place
In case you don’t know, chinchillas are nocturnal animals, which means they are most active at night.
For this reason, they need to have a hiding place where they can stay at daytime. If you are on tight budget, then you can have a small wooden hut for $18. You also have the option to spend on customized abode but expect that the chinchilla price will increase further.
*Dust or Sand Bath
Chinchillas need to have a dust or sand bath twice a week, and thus the chinchilla cost would rise by around $5 to $6 every month.
*Food Maintenance
The food maintenance of chinchillas is not that much.
They appreciate gnawing on wood chews. They can eat feed pellets that 
can cost around $1 to $2.50 for every pound. They are able to consume 2 pounds per month, so you’ll have to set a monthly budget of $2 to $5. You can also feed them with alfalfa balls, cubes, or nibbles, which you can buy at a price between $2 to $4. As much as possible, make it a habit to check the feed every day to make sure that your chinchilla does not urinate on the food.
*Transport Carrier
If you want to bring your pet chinchilla to different places, then it is ideal that you get a transport carrier that costs around $10 to $25.
*Medical Operations
You can ask a veterinarian to neuter or spay your cute chinchilla if you don’t want it to reproduce too many offspring. The procedure of neutering can cost $120 while spaying (for females) is about $160.
*Other Items
– habitat toys with an exercise wheel $12
– litter pans $4 to $9
– straw litter $1 per pound
– water bottles $9
– pellet feeders $7
– dust bath tubs $11
If you add everything, how much does a chinchilla cost then? Assuming that you have taken the cheapest cost from the list of baby chinchilla price, the total pet chinchillas cost is around $178 for the first month, excluding the cost of medical operations. For the next months, you only need to spend for the food, water, and vitamins when necessary.
But if you choose to buy the most expensive type of chinchilla, then pet chinchillas cost will be around $315 for the first month.
*Do take note that the Chinchilla prices are just approximations and can vary based on where you currently reside.