…and don’t let the door hit you on the way.

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Hey all. I just wanted to give a quick recap of 2022. I know Whimsy’s has been quieter than usual on our Facebook page and main website. This year has got to go down as the most difficult ever.

Even still, it’s been a head scratching experience when folks have sent an email to ask if we’re still in business. Yes, Whimsy’s is still very much ready to fulfill orders, take in surrenders and adopt out rescues. As much as possible, we’ve been trying to keep things relatively normal. Anyway, the ultra-reserved web presence has had its reasons.

There have been challenges this year. Whimsy became an orphan and lost both parents 6 months apart. Sister-in-law died the day after dad. The kids little sweet 16 half-sister passed with a rare form of brain cancer. Whimsy’s uncle and even the family dog died this year. To make matters worse, there is unending anxiety with best friend who has developed serious health complications related to the jab.

We had a tornado rip through the property and a fire in the workshop and a neighborhood herd of deer that find our baby orchards irresistible.  Fortunately, no deaths, injuries or major destruction happened with those acts of God!

Now on a more positive note. Surrenders have been going down from year to year. I’m not quite sure if it’s because people are less likely to risk breeding their beloved pets, or if the shame for irresponsible breeding is finally taking hold, or if the information about how to gender ID a chinchilla became common knowledge. It could also be that folks are wising up to the fact that chinchillas on youtube who enjoy brushing and dressing up in doll clothes are NOT normal.

We had 21 chinchilla adoptions go to wonderful homes this year and 19 surrenders also from wonderful homes. Sometimes life situations happen that are beyond our control. I’m happy to report that the majority of the surrenders came in very well-kept condition. Our current number of available adoptables is the lowest we’ve had in 14 years. Hooray!

Whimsy’s was quoted in an article for The Spruce Pets regarding best chinchilla cages. While we don’t necessarily agree with the choices, it was nice that they asked and included several of our quotes.

Also, this year Whimsy’s won the ChinPals Chinsgiving poll! That included a $500 donation gathered from their sales and donations generated between Thanksgiving Day and Giving Tuesday. In addition, it was and is heartwarming to see friends old and new consider us in their support over the holiday season and beyond.

We appreciate those who spread the word about our rescue and webstore. I don’t like to self-promote, except when it comes to hand crafted soap. (Please buy my soap so I can make more.) Issues with the supply chain have made it difficult to keep certain items in stock. But the majority of our classic chew toys and cage accessories are available.

Anyway, we’re looking forward to a new year, new friends and new experiences while we enjoy old friends, cherished memories and work that keeps us close to the land. Blessings to you, all who choose to read my humble blog posts. We look forward to hearing from you and serving you with gratitude.

Well, we’re wrapping up another year. Where did the time go?! This year has been a whirlwind of activity as we expand and grow in ways I’d never imagined. I have to admit I’ve been lax on posting updates and keeping “a visible presence” online. Please forgive me as I continue to stumble and fumble my way through operating our little endeavor. Can I be candid? I never intended to start a business. I’m simply meeting needs (where possible) and hanging on for dear life.

Say it with me: “supply chain.” I can’t tell you how many panic attacks I’ve had trying to keep things in stock! It’s been especially challenging dealing with my vendors who can’t provide supplies or whose prices have skyrocketed. I even had one of them adding a surcharge. Ugh.  In some circumstances we’ve had to temporarily remove some of our store items until the market settles. Regardless, I have done my absolute best to keep my prices stable and have taken the financial losses personally.

All of this has served to motivate me to work harder to turn our new property into the bountiful Eden I had intended. We’ve had to implement a no-weekends policy for our availability for adoptions and surrenders as weekends are devoted strictly to farm operations. By doing so, we’ve managed to clear some areas of the property and finally got our mulberry orchard in. Currently we have about 50 or so individual trees with room for another dozen. Some of the larger trees that we “temporarily” planted in our old location took root with a vengeance. We finally wrangled the last of the transfers yesterday. Having our own mulberry orchard will give us pristine new growth for our chew toys and leaves that we can harvest and dry at their peak. It will be nice when we can produce all of our necessities directly from the property. Apple, pear and pecan orchards are still a work in progress.

My pride and joy this year, however, has been our trellis system! We used 4’x6’x8’ posts set 3 feet in the ground with concrete. We attached livestock wire for the support walls and arches. The system is set up near two water hydrants that will allow us to irrigate if the weather is too dry. Our trial run started a bit late this year, but we managed to produce some beautiful loofah.  It was a glorious sight. Additional trellises and/or fencing will support kiwi vine, grapevine and raspberry.

As you can imagine, farm work is hard work. But it’s immensely satisfying. Even still, those weekends that are supposed to be chinchilla-free are actually devoted to stuff… for... the… chinchillas. And I wouldn’t have it any other way.

Good bye 2020. Hello 2021

It’s January 2021 and it appears we’re still seeing 2020 complications overflow and taint our novel year. The global pandemic situation hasn’t changed at the stroke of midnight on New Year’s Eve. It’s been a long time since we’ve had an update. Don’t hate me when I say, hindsight is 20/20. The year was a remarkable one and we’d like to share some thoughts and maybe a couple of rants.

The stay-at-home mandates gave people insight as to what it was like to be caged. We learned what it was like to have every decision dictated. We experienced what it was like to be controlled.

Surprisingly, it was a fantastic year for pets. Pet surrenders were very low. Animal adoptions were extraordinarily high. And quarantine snacks, toys and new cage layouts became things of great importance. Needless to say, we’ve been busy keeping up with everyone’s needs. I wish I could say the same for some of our suppliers and the USPS!

With regards to shipping, we’re hearing from folks who placed orders at the end of November and still haven’t received their boxes of goodies. Word is that 30 postal service workers in the Richmond hub walked out on the job over the holidays. As the majority of our boxes go through the Richmond hub, this has caused some displaced frustration. On business days, we ship out orders almost immediately upon payment receipt. We’ve begun to include tracking information with all orders and encourage y’all to contact USPS first with your concerns about late or missing deliveries.

In 2020 we had more adoptions than surrenders. Many chins who had been waiting since the year prior for “their people” finally went to new homes. For the first time since I can remember, we actually have a waiting list of folks who want to adopt. The wait list has been helpful for weeding out those who contact us on a whim (no pun intended).

Considering a certain percentage of those on the waiting list either fade away or do not meet our adoption requirements, our availability has been a limiting factor too. Operating the rescue and web store is a full time job. It entails answering emails, arranging and overseeing pair bonding and adoptions sessions, keeping supplies in stock, creating blog and social media posts (HAHAHAHA, I’m failing on that one…) and growing, tending and harvesting our natural resources. It’s not unusual for Whimsy to work from sunrise to sunset and beyond. For this reason, we do NOT offer evening hours and strongly defend weekends as time allotted for farm and family. I hope you understand.  

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Now that we’ve got that bit of housecleaning out of the way, lets focus on the fur babies, shall we?

Right before the year’s end we were called upon to retrieve 6 chinchillas from a multi-species hoarding situation. The one male is in great shape, but appears to not play well with others. A trio of girls came in fair condition where just one had some large fur mats that were carefully removed with a chinchilla grooming comb. But it’s the girl pair that broke my heart. They are thin, severely fur chewed, and stay huddled together tightly. It just goes to show that some chinchillas in the same situation can be resilient while others are more fragile. Our goal is to soothe the pair to the point where their fur is no longer their primary chew toy. The scary thing is, these chins seem so familiar… I wonder if they have been through Whimsy’s before.

Animal rescue is not for the faint of heart. It takes a lot of work, a lot of money, and a very thick skin. Fortunately, we have an awesome support system. Many of you are regulars who have been with us since the humble beginnings. Some of you are new chinchilla owners who are eager to learn. And of course, we have our very own groupies who seek to pirate Whimsy’s design ideas.

We are now going into our 13th year as Whimsy’s Menagerie. So, I guess we’re still doing something right. Thank you everyone who spreads the word about our website. We humbly hope to continue to serve and seek conscientiously to improve.

Administering medications, hand feeding or applying medical care on a chinchilla can be a daunting task, especially if a helping second pair of hands is not available. In clinics, veterinarians are taught to use the shoulder hold. This can be especially dangerous for chinchillas whose bone structure is quite fragile. Not to mention the fact that with the shoulder hold, the head is still a moving target.

The burrito hold (wrapping in a towel) also poses dangers from crushing. We’ve actually had a chinchilla surrendered to us whose tail was broken due to an experienced chinchilla owner attempting the wrap. With the burrito hold, the head is still free to refuse service.

We have a “handy” tip that we use to instruct vet clinics when we’re called to teach in-service training and for individuals who need pro advice. We use the ear hold. When done correctly, there is no pain and the procedure is quickly applied and done, which results in lower stress for the animal. It is a one-handed hold that limits movement without binding the entire body.

First, prepare your area with necessary tools. Gather whatever implements you’ll need such as a towel, wet wipes, eye wash, pre-measured medications or pre-mixed hand feeding formula, etc. With one hand, gently but firmly grasp the base of the ears being sure that none of the tissue is folded between your fingers. Support the weight of the chinchilla’s body in your lap as your hand cradles its head and ears. The body should be prone and in an uphill alignment with the head higher than the hind feet. Be prepared, the animal will most likely curl up and try to kick your hand. Your grasp should be firm enough to ensure that the chinchilla cannot slip loose. With your free hand, apply wipes, meds, or whatnot. Pictures below for reference showing different angles of the hold.

It is normal for a subdued animal to try to escape. The chinchilla may squeal in fright. Typically, after only a brief struggle, the chinchilla will calm down. The procedure can be scary for the animal and the owner. But if your pet’s life depends on treatment, this bit of instruction should make the task easier on both.

A special thanks to our medication model, Liliana.

Well hello everyone!

The year is flying by and I’m totally guilty of not adding monthly blog posts. Now that we’re actually operating a “working farm” there is a lot less down time. This also means that scheduling pickup orders is very, VERY difficult. Also, after more than a decade of posts, it’s been hard to come up with anything new and exciting.

But first, just a quick recap of how things have been going with the rescue. We’ve had 28 chinchillas surrendered and 22 chinchillas adopted so far. We have at least a dozen chins available for adoption. We may have to break down and bring back the bios pages. Thoughts?

Aside from the chinnies, we’ve been working sporadically to groom the land for the orchards and trellis systems for our organically grown toy parts. The soil here is rich, but we have to actually wrestle it from the native trees. The new heat/AC system is working great. The air conditioned workshop has been absolutely wonderful. It allows us to store fresh cut limbs out of the sun and rain while we process the various batches. The office got a facelift and finally got baseboard and other trim installed. The wall in the rescue room that had ugly OSB now has some beautiful bead board overlay.

Ok, so now that we’ve got the updates out of the way, let’s move on to something more serious: Complacency vs. Neuroticism

After the honeymoon period of getting a new pet ends, we see where individuals sometimes morph into extremes. Those extremes would be complacency, where basic care or consideration for the pet’s natural inclination is ignored. On the other extreme is neuroticism where every minute detail of the pet’s behavior, food and water consumption, shed cycles, weight loss or gain, etc are strictly monitored. Neither extreme is helpful for the pet.

With complacency, it’s not uncommon for owners to run out of food or get nothing but bare basics. The focus is on what is most beneficial for the owner, not the pet. Expense and mess are their primary concerns. They allow pets to play unsupervised. Cage cleaning is ignored until it becomes stinky, filthy, or excessively chew worn. Chew toys are left until all that remains is wire, if they even have chew toys. Mats and fur knots develop, sometimes to the point of dreadnoughts. Fractures go untreated until the chinchilla chews off a limb.

Recently we got word from an individual (name withheld, but story and pictures shared with permission). The owner had a young chinchilla and kitten who were raised together. Both got along well and even “played” together. After a few years, the owner figured the natural instincts of predator and prey were nullified. Then the inevitable happened. The cat mauled the chinchilla during out of cage playtime.

On the other extreme we see overly anxious owners. They tend to worry themselves sick over their pet. This does translate to the animal since our little fur babies can pick up on our emotions. An anxious owner can make their pet anxious, lose weight, slip fur, develop behavior problems, bark excessively, have loose stool, chew their fur, etc.

Bloat (gas) in a chinchilla literally causes the intestines to burst.

The problem with being overly anxious is the tendency to second guess, doubt and commiserate with others. Internet forums seem especially attractive then. Veterinarians have a difficult job when it comes to dealing with pet owners. Many times the professionals “do something” just to appease the owner. Here is an example that we actually see quite often. Chin goes to the vet for XYZ. Vet prescribes prophylactic antibiotics. The drug then causes gastric stasis, so vet prescribes other meds to stimulate the gut, chin then bloats, more meds added to treat bloat, side effects are compounded, now the belly is full of sweetened medications, chin stops eating entirely, owner panics, vet then prescribes hand feeding, more trips to the vet. More tests. cha-ching!$$

The more anxious an owner is, the more they want to intervene. Basically, these types of owners are guilty of a form of overkill. The more they intervene, the worse the situation becomes. Folks, this is especially true if a chinchilla is ill. The body has an amazing ability to self-heal. Sometimes we need to step back and allow that to happen.

Do you find yourself in either of the two extremes? My advice to both is simple: Step up your game, or relax. The hard part is figuring out when to do either. For those who are anxious, hopefully we’ve been able to provide a bit of no-nonsense advice. For those who are complacent…well, you’re probably not reading this anyway. XD