The chinchilla guinea pig has yet to be standardised
by the Rare Varieties Cavy Club (RVCC), but Caroline Creese
of Ganderland Cavies has been putting in some very hard work
in preparing a breed standard for this new breed. Her latest
revision is presented here - it is this standard which is
currently used by judges at UK cavy shows and we include a
printer-friendly version for anyone who may be showing chinchillas.
My first sight of a chinchilla guinea pig was a photograph
on the cover of Stephen Nelson's book "Guinea
Pigs as a New Pet
" some years ago.
In 2007 I obtained a gorgeous little silver chinchilla boar
from a breeder in Surrey (Sue at Kingate
Cavies).
I named him Oliver Twist (soon shortened to "Ollie")
and my real love of these cavies began.
In 2008 Ollie fathered Babycham, the cinnamon cinchilla in
the picture above. She is a beautiful girl and a very good
example of this breed. I've had great fun showing both Ollie
and Babycham and they've both been well received on the judge's
tables.
The Cinnamon Chinchilla The cinnamon chinchilla cavy is a ‘tipped’
breed with markings akin to the fox cavy; the belly should be
as white as possible and should be just visible when the cavy
is viewed from the side and eye circles should be white and
prominent.
Each hair shaft should contain three colours,
or more accurately, shades; a pale ‘beige’ at
the base, a broad darker grey-brown band, a narrower white
grey band and a dark grey tip. Eyes should be large and bold
and as dark a shade of ruby as possible.
Good type is an important characteristic of this breed, the
muzzle should be of good width, rounding at the nostrils and
the body should be short and cobby with a strong shoulder.
The Silver Chinchilla The silver chinchilla cavy is a ‘tipped’
breed with markings akin to the fox cavy; the belly should be
as white as possible and should be just visible when the cavy
is viewed from the side and eye circles should be white and
prominent.Each hair shaft should contain three colours, or more
accurately, shades; paler grey at the base, a broad dark grey
band, a narrower white grey band and a dark grey tip. Eyes should
be large and bold and as dark as possible.
Good type is an
important characteristic of this breed, the muzzle should
be of good width, rounding at the nostrils and the body should
be short and cobby with a strong shoulder.
" some years ago.
