Should Your Child Take A Pet Chinchilla To School?

If your child asks you if they can take a pet chinchilla to school, please show wisdom and tell them no.  There are obvious reasons why.  Under no circumstances should a child take a pet chinchilla, or any pet for that matter to school (unless it's a seeing-eye dog).  They should not be stored as pets at school.

The chinchilla and schoolchildren operate on two different schedules.  When the chinchilla is up at night, the children are sleep.  The chinchilla cannot be surrounded by a lot of noise, and schoolchildren make noise.  It's just in their nature.  The chinchilla needs relatively no light or as little light as possible in order to get some sleep.  They can get stressed if they don't get enough rest due to lights and noise.  The stress can lead to them biting their fur, spraying urine and acting unfriendly. 

Another reason why your child should not bring a pet chinchilla to school is because they need a large cage and constant supervision, especially when they're being let out of their cage for exercise.  They also require constant attention every day.  Bring a pet chinchilla to school will hinder the everyday regimen for them.  Temperature is another concern.  The chinchilla has to remain comfortable and not too hot.

They cannot stand high heat or humidity.  If the air conditioner goes out for any reason, the chinchilla would start to get hot and sweaty.  If there were an emergency, more than likely, the teacher would be responsible for securing the animal's safety in addition to the students.  That would be too much on the teacher because her first priority is the safety and welfare of her students.   

Your child's classmates probably have an agenda in mind.  They probably want to take turns holding the animal.  What they don't realize is the chinchillas like to move around and not be held or petted.  They are very independent and get irritated if you try to hold them.  Chinchillas like to roam free and most times are hyperactive.  They must be dealt with gently and not manhandled.

Some of the children might see the chinchilla as something to play with, but don't realize how fragile the animal is.  The children must also control their temper when they realize that the animal doesn't want to play with them.  Then they'll be ready to retaliate against it. If they drop it, whether it is accidental or not, their legs and feet can be fractured.  This in turn, can cause amputation in that area and eventually they succumb. 

 There may be students in the classroom who have allergies, and they may be allergic to fur.  So if they were to come in contact with the animal, they could suffer itchy skin, watery or itchy eyes, or other allergic reactions.  So allergies are definitely something that needs to be taken into consideration.

Having a chinchilla would be too much for students to handle.  Besides, schools have rules in place forbidding students from bringing pets to school.  To prevent a fiasco with students, teachers and most of all parents, it's better if the child does not bring a chinchilla to school.