SALEM, MA — More than five dozen chinchillas rescued from a commercial breeding facility in Ohio are currently, or will soon, be up for adoption at MSPCA-Angell shelters in Massachusetts.
MSPCA-Angell Vice President of Animal Protection Mike Keiley compared the rescue to that of 200 beagles from a testing facility in Virginia five years ago.
He said bringing in the chinchillas, some of which are pregnant females, requires an "all hands on deck" effort from the five MSPCA-Angell shelters, including the Northeast Animal Shelter of Salem, which typically only houses dogs and cats.
"Obviously taking in animals and rehoming them is a big piece of this, but there's more to it," Keiley said. "We also sent several staff members out-of-state to help Humane World with intake and daily care of the chinchillas."
Keiley said the animals were removed by Humane World last month from conditions the group described as "dark and bleak, with hundreds of chinchillas living in filthy cages."
MSPCA-Angell staff went to the Humane World facilities over two weekends in October and collectively brought 63 chinchillas back to Massachusetts.
"We've long been saying that the only way to address the most pressing issues in animal welfare is for groups to work together, and this rescue is a perfect example of that," Keiley said. "Given the huge number that Humane World was taking on, we wanted to maximize our support, so we factored in the Northeast Animal Shelter."
He said a conference space at the Salem location was converted to cage space for the pets.
The chinchillas have been receiving various medical care since their arrival.
"We were able to take a lot of females that may be pregnant, as well as chinchillas that appeared to have greater medical needs because we have the region's best Avian and Exotics specialists," Keiley said. "We're doing ultrasounds to see how many females are pregnant, some chinchillas may need dental work.
"Whatever care they need to live their best lives, we'll give them."
Several male chinchillas are ready for adoption now, and the females will be available soon.
Anyone interested in adopting a chinchilla or donating to help offset the cost of their care is asked to visit here.
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