Youth spreads word to save chinchillas
Mary Malone Staff Writer | Hagadone News Network | UPDATED 8 years, 6 months AGO
Simone Wasylko, 8, of Sagle, is distraught over the plight of the chinchillas, who are being raised at chinchilla farms and killed for their fur. (Photo by MARY MALONE)
SANDPOINT — Chinchillas have been hunted for apparel purposes since the early 1900s, according to animaldiversity.org, and one local 8-year-old is very worried about the decreasing population of the adorable little rodents.
"They have the softest fur to make coats," said Simone Wasylko of Sagle, her voice edged with sadness.
Simone stopped by the Daily Bee with her brother, Niko Wasylko, and her nanny, Erin McNamara, because she wants to spread the word about the chinchillas and the dangers they face. McNamara said Simone has been studying chinchillas on her own.
Simone attends Sandpoint Christian School, but decided to study chinchillas due to personal experience.
Simone said chinchillas are her stepmom's favorite animal and her step-uncle had one as a pet — although she never got to meet it. Her stepmom, she said, told her the chinchilla fur was so soft it feels "like you're not even touching it."
She loves animals in general, and some of her favorites beside the chinchilla are the flying squirrel and wild gerbil.
"They are both really cute and flying squirrels are really cool because they can glide like a bird," Simone said.
But she was particularly interested in studying the chinchilla.
She said chinchillas are mostly located in South America and Australia. The long-tailed chinchilla, in particular, is listed as "critically endangered." Laws are in effect to protect them in their natural habitat, but as people hunt them in remote areas, enforcement of the laws is a challenge.
The real problem, though, even in the United States, is chinchilla farms, and Simone said there are no laws to protect them.
"They grow them to kill them for their fur," Simone said.
On a quick Web search, some chinchilla farms allegedly run under the guise of breeding them as pets, but actually breed them for fur. PETA has been shutting down some of the farms in the U.S., and with kids like Simone out there, maybe there is hope for the chinchillas after all.
Mary Malone can be reached by email at [email protected] and follow her on Twitter @MaryDailyBee.
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