History of the Chinchilla
The Chinchas were conquered by the Inca and forbid the Chinchas from wearing the fur. The Inca tribe mandated that the fur for only Inca Royalty.
16th Century, Spaniards then conquered the Incas. The Queen of that time in Spain received a chinchilla fur and proclaimed it the finest quality fur she had ever seen. The Spanish community started to demand the fur so as to dress like the Queen.
The British went to the Andes for mining ventures and brought with them red foxes for their hunting pleasures. When the fox wasn't hunted by the British, the fox was hunting the chinchillas.
Between the Spaniards and British, the Chinchilla was near extinction.
In 1918, the governments of Chile, Peru and Bolivia outlawed the exportation of pelts and prohibited trapping.
In 1918, Mathias F. Chapman, a mining engineer form California, was in Chile. He learned of the chinchilla through his dealings with the local Indians and even bought one as a pet. Chapman was shocked at the destruction of the Chinchilla population and became fascinated with the idea of trapping enough animals alive so that he might bring them to the United States.
His goal was to raise them in captivity while trying to save the species.
In 1918, the governments of Chile, Peru and Bolivia outlawed the exportation of pelts and prohibited trapping.
In 1918, Mathias F. Chapman, a mining engineer form California, was in Chile. He learned of the chinchilla through his dealings with the local Indians and even bought one as a pet. Chapman was shocked at the destruction of the Chinchilla population and became fascinated with the idea of trapping enough animals alive so that he might bring them to the United States.
His goal was to raise them in captivity while trying to save the species.
Chapman enlisted the help of local Indian trappers to bring him as many living chinchillas as they could by promising them gold in return. After 4 years of trapping, Chapman was able to send 11 live chinchillas to the US.
You can read more about Chapman's journey to the US and hardships he experienced establishing a breeding herd can be learned here.
A Chinchilla has between 80 and 100 hairs per follicle compared to two or three in other fur bearing animals. This is what makes them soft and cuddly.
