Based on my research, they take dust baths because it is healthy for them. I'm not so much help, sorry. :)
You are right; you aren't much help.
Here is another opinion.
First, chinchillas are native to dry areas where there is not much water.
Second, the dust baths get rid of excess oils and moisture on the fur which would not happen in a water bath.
In conclusion here is the ovarall reason:
They take 'dust baths'. Their fur is so soft and fine, that they can't really take a normal "bath" with water. They get dirty to get clean (kind of oxymoronic, but that's what they do).
taking long showers instead of baths
water
They don't use it properly by hjaving long baths instead of showers. and car washes.
As a chinchilla owner, I can tell you that chinchillas would be terrified of being immersed in, or sprayed with, water. It is not natural for them. The ancestors of our domestic chinchillas lived in the Andes Mountain Range spanning Argentina, Chile, Bolivia and Peru. They lived at sea level and at high altitudes. Because of the temperature, they accumulated a lot of moisture in their fur, which is very dense. They lessened this moisture by rolling in volcanic ash found in the Andes. That practice is ingrained in all chinchillas. If you place a large igloo with Blue Cloud Chinchilla Dust in it (the best brand), even if a chin has never seen such an object, or been exposed to chin dust, it will immediately know what it is for and will quckly proceed to take his first bath. It is instinctual, not something that is taught. View www.chinchilla-advisor.com for more information on bathing chinchillas.
Yes, Southforest swimming baths have water slides.
taking showers are much healthier than baths considering as you lay down all the dirt and oils from your body will go into the water getting right back on, instead taking a shower can show how dirt and oils leave your body going down the drain instead of soaking back up into your body.
Aqua Silus was heated by the underground springs, it was built near. The water was channeled through lead pipes into three baths; the first bath was the hottest and the third the coolest. Normal Roman baths would have been heated by the hypocaust system.
Please clarify the question; precipitation is rain or a type of water vapor. We don't really rain chinchillas.
The water supply for the Roman baths came from the same source as all water in Rome, the aqueducts.
like any other small animal
chinchillas bathe in a special kind of dust you can buy it at the same store you bought your chinchilla at. And im also sure that someone at the store can explain it to you in further detail. i Hope this answered your question.