Teeth grinding/chattering?

[Minimon]

Hey, I'm new to this site and a fairly new chin owner. I've had Pixel now for about eight months. We recently moved house as our tenancy was up and I was expecting Pixel's behaviour to change for a little while as I know changes are a huge stress on chinchilla's. I moved him last so that he had little time in his carry case and I could focus on sorting him and his room out without worrying about anything else. Although I took extra care and precautions with him, he didn't take the move very well and was very subdued for quite some time and ate and drank very little. He had no interest in his toys and would shake a lot when approached. He's a lot better now and has settled in nicely however I've noticed a change in him. He's started grinding his teeth/chattering his teeth. He does it a lot now and it confuses me why he had never done it before. I'm not entirely sure what it means though :S I got so worried that the lack of eating affected his tooth growth that I had him checked at the vets. His teeth are fine, not in the slightest over grown. Also has anyone moved with their chin and seen a distinct change in their behaviour even when they're settled?

 

[Laurie]

Chins chatter and grind their teeth for a multitude of reasons. They will grind their teeth if the are in pain, they will chatter and grind their teeth if they are annoyed and sometimes they do it just because they want too.

If you have taken him to a vet and the vet could find nothing wrong with his teeth this is a good sign. Most likely he is just doing it because.

 

[tunes]

He may be stressed from the move, hence the teeth grinding. Just because you think he's settled, doesn't mean in his mind he is. Some chins adapt to change well and others take a while. There are a whole host of new sounds and smells to adjust to, maybe a nearby predator you can't smell but he can, etc.

Since you've had him vet checked, it's nothing physical, I would just re-establish his old routine and wait it out.

 

[Minimon]

I guess he could still be stressed, it just seems to be quite random. Even whilst he is playing and making happy sounds he starts to grind/chatter. Since the move he has been a lot more alert when it comes to sounds as they're very different to the old house we were in. I guess we'll have to take each day as it comes and see if his behaviour changes. Thank you both for the replies.

 

[Siany]

When i got Dotty she would grind her teeth when i let her out for playtime, as she settled in she was doing it less and less and now she only doe it every now and then

 

[Godofgods]

not jsut stressed but excited as well sometimes. anything to get that blood flowin'

 

[Minimon]

Thanks guys! Sorry I didn't reply sooner, have been so busy with work! He seems to just be a teeth grinder these days but he's happy and healthy so I'm not too worried