What do the sounds made by chinchillas mean? Let's figure it out together

03/17/2021 31,390 Chinchillas

Author: Olga

The sounds made by chinchillas can be interpreted in different ways. They differ in tone and in some moments the intonation resembles human speech. Watching these animals can be a very interesting and educational experience for their owner.

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Chinchilla voice library

Let us conditionally divide all the sounds of chinchillas according to directions and give examples of each of them. You can listen to these “conversations” of the animals in the appropriate section. Here you will find contact signals, calls for the opposite sex, expressions of dissatisfaction and love for children, other animals and many other sounds of chinchillas.

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These rodents are known to become more active at night, so don't be surprised if you hear strange squeaks or squeals, grunting of teeth, or anything else inarticulate. The pet makes an exclamation when it wants to convey something or simply feels a lack of attention. Let us further consider situations in which a chinchilla can make one or another sound at night and during the day.

Sounds during contact and communication

To communicate with each other, rodents use an exclamation similar to a grumbling speech. If you hear it, you can remain calm, since the pet is simply expressing closeness to other chinchillas or is simply suffering from loneliness and reports this to its “neighbors.” What sound is this? We invite you to listen.

Sounds of mating

Chinchillas who want or do not want to mate behave especially interestingly. As a rule, the male pursues the female, emitting an inviting squeak. This happens mainly when a girl goes into heat. But this is not at all a reason to agree to mating. In response, the girl may squeal irritably, splash urine in the male’s face and thereby express her protest.

Some boys turn out to be quite persistent and continue to get their way. At the same time, they can continue to invite a potential partner and throw their tail or make an offended sound after refusal.

Immediately after mating, the male utters hoarse exclamations, after which the partners peacefully fall asleep, sitting side by side on the same shelf or in the house.

Sounds of cubs

Next to their mother, little shins make loud squeaks, thereby telling them that their mother is nearby and they want to eat. In response, the nurse may grumble and lick her baby's ears. It also happens that children worry their mother by biting her nipples or starting a fight for milk. Then mom gets angry and her contented grumbling turns into an irritated scream.

In this video you can listen to a mother cooing with her children.

Sounds of protest and defense

It may be unclear why a chinchilla squeaks when sitting at the feeder or when next to its cage neighbor. Sometimes, with the help of protesting sounds, the rodent makes it clear that it has become a victim and has been infringed by another inhabitant of the cage. Each animal has its own character, and therefore some pets in a cage may be more assertive and capable of offending others.

The injured party will clearly make itself known with a nervous exclamation, similar to the tone in which a person says “Get out of here!”

In some situations, a chinchilla emits a defense signal when it wants to protect itself from danger. Then the exclamation will be short and in intonation will also be similar to the human “Go away!” Often a rodent utters such an exclamation when a stranger picks it up or approaches the cage.

Sounds of Anger

When an animal is angry, it often stands on its hind legs and at the same time emits a characteristic loud cry. A chinchilla's anger may be accompanied by splashes of urine into the opponent's face. Mostly, a mother chinchilla can get angry with her babies, as well as a female with a male for being too persistent in courtship.

Alarm sounds

When a chinchilla is worried about something or is scared, it can make alarm calls to warn its relatives. These are short syllables coming in a simultaneous stream from a small mouth. In reality, this exclamation looks very funny and looks like a quiet short bark. That is why it is often called the chinchilla bark. Quite often, a pet makes similar alarming sounds in a new home. And when she gets used to the home, she will make such exclamations less and less often.

Why can a chinchilla squeak?

Males and females differ somewhat in their personalities and in the sounds they make.

During the mating season, the boy screams quietly, while he clears a place under him and slightly twitches his tail. So, the boyfriend makes it clear to the chosen one that he is ready to mate.

The female during estrus can behave differently. If a lady accepts courtship, then her sounds will be soft and inviting. In case of disagreement, she sharply snorts and squeaks. Moreover, notes of resentment are clearly visible in the voice. At the same time, the rejected gentleman may whine and squeal pitifully.

During the extramarriage season, the male is quite phlegmatic and peaceful. It rarely makes noise and does not require much attention. 30 minutes a day will be enough for your pet to behave calmly and quietly. The sounds that the boy makes are low screams, hissing, or hoarse, muffled quacking.

Girls, by their nature, are much more active, more aggressive, they need more attention. Also, females are more likely to show a desire to communicate.

Sounds made by females:

• Shout.
• Squeak (with many variations of intonation).
• Duck quack.
• Hiss.
• Grunting.
• Hooting.
• Grunting.
• Sound like a dog barking, etc.

Males also scream in a similar way, but in them it manifests itself less frequently and less intensely.

While an angry female will not only squeak, but bite and try to spray the “attacker” with urine.

Other features of chinchilla sounds

Each animal is unique in nature and has its own special character. And therefore, all animals can be conditionally divided into silent people, talkers, squeakers, and singers. In order to better understand the animal, you need to get used to it and, after the first acquaintance, listen to the exclamations it makes. This way you can understand in what situation he is scared, when he wants your attention, and at what exclamations he shows anger. By the way, chinchillas do not make any sounds in the arms of their beloved owner. The best sign of contentment is the silence of the animal. This is not a cat that loves to purr...

Unofficial classification of chinchillas

Breeders who have dozens or more animals have developed their own classification of chinchillas, depending on their sociability and talkativeness.

• Silent people are the quietest and most non-talkative, they practically do not make sounds audible to humans,
• Singers are the most sociable in childhood, they “sing” very often, but with age they become quieter,
• Grumps - most often make grumbling sounds, which express both pleasure and irritation,
• Meows - most often these are females during estrus, which begin to tease the males with drawn-out and loud meowing sounds,
• Squeaks are the most squeaky individuals, who squeak quietly or loudly almost all the time,
• Eagle owls - most often produce a quiet but audible guttural sound, reminiscent of an eagle owl's hoot. By this they also express pleasure, swear, and make it clear about their anxious state.

Video “Chinchilla is angry”

In this video you can listen to the animal screaming angrily.

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Chinchilla screams during the day

If your pet squeaks loudly during daylight hours, there are definitely reasons for this:

• The owner pays too little attention to the animal.
• The pet wants to go for a walk and asks to be let out of the cage.
• The owner forgot to leave a treat and the pet persistently tries to remind him of this.
• If there is a cat in the house, then the rodent could be scared of it.
• A quiet whine or squeak is a signal that the animal is not feeling well. Here you need to pay attention to other symptoms.

Chinchillas are considered crepuscular animals that are active in the dark. During the day, pets prefer to rest.

The animal has a very sensitive sleep, so any sound or sudden movement can frighten it.

However, you shouldn’t worry too much, if your pet makes noise, nothing bad happens. In most cases, a sick animal sits silently, trying to hide in the far corner of the cage.

When to be wary

Very frightened, when feeling pain and injury, the chinchilla utters a sharp calling sound, which sometimes turns into a melody of 20 repetitions.
When transporting an animal in transport, you can hear an alarm sound, indicating a stressed state of chinchillas. It may sound like crying.

Sometimes nursery owners do not give chinchillas the necessary attention. Animals run wild and see people as a threat. In such cases, the animals have such a reaction.

It happens that a pet makes a similar sound based on past experience (former owners could hurt, hit or scream without studying the animal’s manners).

If you encounter this behavior in a purchased animal, be patient. This is an affectionate, gentle animal that has endured cruel trials. He closed himself off from the whole world and stopped trusting people. It is necessary to help him trust people again, to find cheerfulness.

By spending time with your pet every day, especially letting him out of his crate and allowing him to explore his surroundings, you can get to know him better and learn to recognize the meaning of each sound.

After a while, you can easily understand when a chinchilla needs something when it simply behaves friendly and greets its owner.

Learning what your little friend says is one of the most fun things to do. So give your chinchilla your attention and work hard to earn her trust and companionship.

Chinchilla cry at night

Some owners hear screaming sounds from their animals at night, which causes concern about the health of their pet. In fact, such screams do not always indicate that something is bothering the chinchilla. Why then does the animal make so much noise, scaring its owners? One very common reason is that your pet is bored. Do not forget that chinchillas are nocturnal animals. It is at this time of day that animals are most active.

What causes a chinchilla to grind its teeth?

Grinding or knocking of teeth means irritation, indignation.

Also, creaking may indicate the grinding of your pet’s molars, which is a normal physiological phenomenon. At the same time, some individuals grind their teeth even at night.

You should be wary if the grinding is accompanied by a lack of appetite, drooling, or diarrhea; consult a chinchilla or exotic animal veterinarian. Since this may indicate poisoning or problems with dental growth.

Source

Chinchilla screams at night

The main reason for crying at night is boredom. After all, the dark time of day is the phase of activity of a rodent; he simply does not have enough attention.

If the pet is lonely, then a loud squeak indicates that it needs to find a mate.

A family of chinchillas can share a tasty morsel at night or fight over toys.

If an animal quacks like a duck, then it expresses an extreme degree of irritation and dissatisfaction. The same emotions manifest themselves in the form of hissing.

A loud and sharp squeal most often means fear, anxiety, pain. Sometimes the most ordinary sounds (a car door slamming on the street) can cause stress in an animal. If the pet is scared, then its cry will be similar to the barking of a dog. In nature, a rodent warns its relatives of danger.

How do chinchillas communicate with each other?

Living in large flocks, chinchillas communicate through sounds and signals. Different tones and volumes are a call for a meal, inform of a perceived danger, or indicate readiness for reproduction.

Chinchillas often make sounds with the following meanings:

1. Intimidation. Hissing and quacking sounds are used, accompanied by gnashing of teeth. This is how the male scares the rival away from his partner or drives him away from the territory.
2. Invitation. A melodious squeak occurs when the chinchilla scampers around the room and wants a friend to join her.
3. Mutual understanding, care or love. Expressed by soft melodious trills and cooing.
4. Irritation. The reason is an attempt on food, rest or sleep. Sounds like a hoot.
5. Danger signal. Intermittent barking indicates a threat from a person (at a doctor’s appointment or while getting used to a new owner), or the approach of a predator.
6. Rage/anger. The chinchilla's cry resembles laughter.

What to do: provide comfortable and safe conditions

The animals are most active at night. They sleep most of the day. Individuals living in pairs or groups prefer to hug or climb on top of each other.

Even a soft knock can wake up the animal and put it into an excited state. If you choose a chinchilla as a pet, then you will have to adapt to its rhythm of life.

. Since these rodents like to get ready for bed at a certain time, they will need to feed and clean the cage according to a schedule.

If the baby lives alone in a closet, then most likely he will choose the sleeping position - lying on his belly. Seeing a pet lounging on its side, you can be sure that the animal is accustomed to a person and completely trusts him.

Chinchillas are nocturnal creatures, spending most of the day sleeping. It is important to remember, no matter how long the animal sleeps, you cannot wake it up!

Sound of defense or resistance

This sound is characterized by sharpness and volume. Chinchillas use it when they are in pain or irritated by something. Animals make this sound at any age. In nature, they use it to scare away their fellow tribesmen or other animals, which is why this sound is called protective.

This sound is often made for protection, from bad neighbors who create competition or from strangers passing near the cage. This sound is very often made by animals that are not allowed to go to the feeder by their neighbors or have just begun their acquaintance.

If the sound of defense is made by a female with cubs, then she is trying to tell them that they have been sucking her milk for too long or are biting her painfully.