Chinchilla Housing

Question
Hi.
A colleague at my dad's work broke up with his girlfriend who left him with her chinchilla that he now wants to give away. We have had a rabbit hutch in our backyard that has been empty for some time, and we would be interested in taking the chinchilla if it could survive the Massachusetts winters (my dad is deathly allergic to anything with fur, so an indoor chinchilla is not an option). Our rabbits did fine in the hutch during the winter, and it has two levels with a ramp and a wooden nesting box filled with hay. Would a chinchilla do okay in this environment?
Thanks,
Max

Answer
Hi Max,

The hutch would be fine for a temporary home but they do need much more room than a rabbit does, preferably one that is taller than it is long with multiple levels so they can jump around.

Unfortunately, the shouldn't be kept outside in the cold winter.  They do best with a constant temperature to higher than 75 degrees F and no lower than 60 degrees F. Anything different can cause them to get pretty sick and die rather quickly, especially in heat.

If you wanted to take it for now until another home could be found than I would say that is okay but if you have to keep it outside all the time, I wouldn't keep it permanently.  

I hope this helps and I think it's great you wanted to help out a chinchilla. Good luck!