The Changing Looks of a Mosaic
   When you buy a chinchilla, you expect it to look basically the same as
it grows up. Surprise! They will all go from that 'tiny baby faced kit' to a
beautiful/handsome adult chin within just a few months. Most will stay
close to the same color as when it is born, changing shades of the same
color slightly.

  The surprises come with the Beiges and Mosaics who have a tendency to
change the most. Take pictures ... you may not notice the change because
of the fact you are with them on a daily basis.

  One day I sent a picture of a new kit to a friend of mine who has been a
breeder for several years and received the reply: "He's cute! It will be
interesting to see what he will look like when he gets older." I knew they
change somewhat, but never as drastically as I would soon discover when
I went back through the pictures of some of our mosaics.

  Roo, now belonging to Amanda and Darren, (at Fuzzy Chins ) was the
perfect example of this transformation. Below you will see pictures of Roo
from the time he was a week old until he was 9 months old ... hard to
believe it is the same chin, but it is!
                        


                         




                        








   





        
                           



                



                            




 















  Yes, this is the same chinchilla. He was born March 3, 2002. His mother
was a standard gray and his father a white mosaic.

  Mosaics can get lighter or darker as they grow. What will your mosaic
kit look like when he's year old? Only time will tell!  
Roo at 3 weeks old.  Mostly gray, with a white tip on
his tail.
Roo at 9 weeks old.  No Aparent change.
Roo at 3 months old. A change is beginning to show on
the hips.
Roo at 5 months.   What a change!
Roo at 6 months.  His markings are really changing!  
From the almost solid gray to a misty gray over his
back and hips and dark gray on the back of his neck.
Roo at 7 months.  Where is the gray going?
Roo at 8 months.  Still getting lighter.
What a handsome chin! Roo at 9 months old and taking
2nd place in the white adult male division of the On
-Line Chinchilla Show, Sponsored by the Chinchilla Club!
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