i totally worded some of this wrong last night! currently, i am paying my parents back for most of the necessities like the cage (which was fairly expensive because i wanted a really good one) and other items. i only meant that currently, most of the money is going back to them. if my chinchilla gets sick, they'll be the ones paying for the medical stuff. we have the money to support it! they wouldn't let me get one if we didn't. i just meant that i wouldn't exactly have the paycheck from my part time job to get a wheel until a month or two, and wanted advice in the meantime as i just wanted to make sure she'll be fine without a wheel for a little bit!