Mixed messages from my chinchilla

[mae10]

Hi everyone!
Ok so my chinchilla has been giving me mixed messages lately. I will sit in front of her cage and she will come up to me and let me pet her under then chin and I give her a treat for being good (trying to show her I am not going to hurt her), but not even a minute after I stop petting her and I am still sitting in front of her cage she backs into the corner and begins spraying me.

Quick background: I have had her a little over a year and she has always had behavior problems I believe due to two previous owners who did not have time for her. She dislikes being handled. I have been working with her every day, but she has seemed to regress recently and I don't know why?

How can I correct/treat this behavior?

 

[kasiechanel]

I'm definitely not an expert like some of the users on here but one thing that I regularly see and have been told myself is that with bonding with a chin-specially one that has an iffy past, is a slow slow process. And the hardest part is if you push yourself on them, then you will lose their trust and have to start over again. I would suggest to keep at it, take the time to talk to her and sit near the cage and try not to take the spraying personally. I hear females are pretty good at it. Play time is my favorite time to bond because they come to me instead of me forcing myself on them. I either sit in the play pen with them or I let my other chin run around my living room (I block it off). But one thing you have to be aware of is that there is a chance that she may never be the type of chin that loves to be held or handled. One of my chins is soooo independent, it's just who he is. I can pet him but that's about it. He is too busy running all over. Also anther thing to keep in mind is make sure your not accidentally breathing on her or something. Something small like that could be scaring her as well.