Can Ferrets And Chinchillas Play Together?

I have four ferrets (3 males and a female) that play together great in their playpen, but I am going to be adding four chinchillas to our family soon (two males and two females). Will they get along or will I have to keep their playtimes separate? Any information you have will be great. Thanks.

d cram's answer:
My ferrets free roam my garage and my chinchillas are in cages. Last night one of my chinchillas got out without me knowing it. This morning all I found was scattered fur all over the garage. I feel so bad about what happened to my sweet chinchilla. No, ferrets should never be allowed near a chinchilla.

Aria's answer:
I totally disagree with the comments, I have 4 ferrets, 3 rabbits, and 4 cats and they all get along swimmingly. The ferrets and cats play and sleep together, the rabbits and cats sleep together, the rabbits and ferrets sniff at each other, and one of my ferret squeezes into the rabbit cage to steal carrots (which is bad because carrots are bad for ferrets ><) and drink their water. I've had this menagerie for 3 years and have never had any problems. It is how you introduce them and how you train them. My ferrets grew up with the rabbits so that may have been a factor. Amee's answer:
It's not viciousness, it's instinct. A ferret is a predator, Chinchillas are high stress animals. It's like putting a mouse with a cat… maybe in rare cases it would work, but most of the time, the cat will eat the mouse.

padova's answer:
I disagree with the comments as i have a ferret that free roams my house with my dog and cat which the cat i got from a kitten and the 3 get along just fine and play together and i haave a chinchilla which stays in his cage BUT when their out of the cage together i introduced them slowly and they play just fine the cat/dog/ferret/chin so idk i guess all arent deadly and viscious as u guys are making them out to be

Kristin's answer:
A friend of my dads had a ferret and a puppy. Well, the ferret grabbed the puppy by the neck and they literally needed to pry its mouth off the puppy. There was blood and it needed stitches. Just imagine if that puppy had been a chinchilla. They are prey and ferrets are very sneaky, very deadly predators of any kind of animal small enough and defenseless enough. Plus the two climb so the chinchilla would have absolutely noooo escape. You will lose at least one chinchilla if you allow them together and I doubt the ferrets woould get hurt at all. Please be smart and keep them apart or you'll be responsible for the death of at least one animal-I'd put $1,000 on it and I'm broke so trust me on this. They're both awesome pets though-I have a chinchilla now and Had 3 ferrets a few years ago so enjoy them all, just keep them very far apart and the chinchillas very secure!!!

Oh, and putting ferrets in a cage under chinchilla is another super bad idea. They'll pry know they're scary and dangerous to them so they may be very uncomfortable and not as friendly with you as you'd like them to be. Plus the ferrets will smell the chinchillas and be trying to get to them constantly through the cage-I'm sure it'd be impossiblle, but again, very stressful on the poor little chins. Goodluck.

christina's answer:
After some of the things Ive read on here, i definitely would NOT put a ferret and a chinchilla together. It seems like a horrible idea

Jamie's answer:
NO! DO NOT LET YOUR CHINCHILLA A FERRET PLAY TOGETHER.
Since ferrets are used for hunting rabbits, if you let your chinchilla and ferret play the ferret will thing it is a rabbit and will kill your chinchilla

Shannon's answer:
I guess it depends but I was planning on building a double cage and having chinchilla on top for quiet and privacy since I have 2 dogs {which love babies of any kind even fish} and 2 curious cats. I was planning on putting ferret on bottom since they don't seem to mind through the cage kisses. The cage is mostly non toxic plastic coated kiln dried pine except for the front which is cage wire that should be okay right? It would be nice if we could do playtime together but we have a metal playpen that we used for kittens 3 years back that we could set up as a second play area. Post if anyone else has a chinchilla with a ferret playmate. Just so I can get an idea. Thank you.

Brian's answer:
Not to go against the norm here, but I came across this after a google search because I have a ferret and a chinchilla playing together right now and I was wondering if that were normal. After reading about how it can be a pain to introduce another ferret or chin, I thought it was weird that they would be playing together so fine with no “introductory” period. I guess the real answer is, just depends.

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6 Comments

  1. We are strictly speaking of ferrets and chinchillas, not ferrets w other pets.

    Chinchillas are prey to skunks. Ferrets are a member of the skunk family.

    I would have to disagree about putting these two together.

  2. Pff, its all depends from ferret character, just like in other pets. They are hunting ferrets and U can very friendly ferrets... I have one which can be bitten and he will only lick his oponent.
    Most ferrets need time to accustome with chinchilas or other rodents, just like in connecting few ferrets. Its always danger that one or more wont accept chinchila or rabbit as friend.
    Therefore like always in their dailycare, they should be watched all time playing

  3. There is a HUGE difference between a ferret with a cat or dog and a ferret with a chinchilla. I have had both Ferrets and chinchillas and I would NEVER place a ferret with a chin. Chins are prey animals and ferrets are hunters. The chin is going to be scared by nature. Do you allow a snake to have playtime with a mouse? Both are wonderful pets, just love them for their natural qualities and give them the space they need.

    • Honestly I know this is probably pretty rare but I adopted a chinchilla (now 2 years old) about 9 months ago and I adopted a 6 month old ferret about 2 months ago (she is now 8 months old) Lol. The first couple times I let them run around together my chin was really stressed out but after about 2 weeks they were totally comfortable with each other.... Like one time I caught my ferret cuddling with my chin under her belly sleeping. And I have a raised bed so they can both crawl under it and my ferret will take naps under it and my chin will also take naps under there. They also love to play with my pitbull Bella. They will jump on her back and all 3 will play together. I dont know if I have extremely gentle animals or if it is their young ages. Not once has my ferret bitten or harmed my chin. She just licks her and occasionally tries to steal her food and toys. And when I am giving my ferret or chin a treat the other will nuzzle up to them and sometimes try to steal it. Any opinions as to why they all get along so well??

    • I have a chinchilla and a ferret and we let them play together all the time
      It all depends on the character of the ferret

  4. I have 2 dachshunds and a ferret. I didnt get the 1 year old ferret til the dogs were 9 and theres no problems with them playing. I believe its just how your pets are raised! I wouldnt leave them unsupervised but i would say it would prolly be just fine

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