Sneezing chinchilla

Question
Hi, I own a male, five year old chinchilla. Lately, he has been sneezing for quite a while. It started just this summer and usually in the day. I use pine shavings for his bedding, I don't know if that's the problem since I used the same brand from the time I brought him home. Is there something wrong with him or will he stop on his own?

Answer
Hello Aitza,
pine bedding is not a good bedding at all. It can cause respiratory problems and liver and lung disease. I would certainly take the bedding out and use something like carefresh or soft-sorbent bedding. The problems due to pine and cedar bedding can develop over time. When you switch the bedding and he continues to sneeze I would take him in to a vets office to get looked at.