Bonded chins now fighting

[ChinnieTime]

last night we noticed one of our males would not come out, his fur looked bad, and he was staying on the highest ledge in his cage. he has been with another male for over 3 years and they have never had any real fights. i figured he was just being moody as he would happily take treats and let me scratch him. we went in there to check on him tonight again, and he was on the same ledge. i moved the cage, took him out, and inspected him for any bites, sores, etc. couldn't see anything so i put a dust bath in there and he would not go in. if you knew Riley you would understand that this is definitely not usual. he LOVES his dust baths. about the time i was going to close up the cage, his buddy Sushi took off after him and attacked. chased him all over the cage until he had him cornered and was jumping on him and biting. i quickly seperated them and pulled sushi out of the cage. i have sushi in a carrying cage next to the large cage now, and Riley climbed into his hammock at the very top and is laying there. he doesn't seem to be injured in any way, but is this normal behavior for bonded pairs of that length? any advice would be greatly appreciated. thanks.

 

[menagerie]

Get another cage for Riley and keep them separate. Bonded pairs can turn on each other at any time.

 

[ChinnieTime]

is there a way to "re-bond" them? i tried to find more instances like this before posting, and most suggested to leave them seperated in cages next to each other, and introduce them again slowly during playtime.

 

[starleomach]

sometimes they can be but more often than not they need to be kept separate for good

 

[mishellyshel]

i would separate. you dont want to come home to a bad situation. this is a warning sign. maybe in the future you can have shared playtime, but for now they need to be separated. i had that happen to a bonded pair, now they are next to each other but happy to be in their own space.

 

[Stackie]

is there a way to "re-bond" them? i tried to find more instances like this before posting, and most suggested to leave them seperated in cages next to each other, and introduce them again slowly during playtime.

Unfortunately, when they begin fighting they usually will not get along again. They may for a few days or weeks, but they usually will start fighting again. I honestly would not try to reintroduce them...from the sounds of it, it was not just a squabble but it was a full out attack meant to kill.

If Riley continues acting off and lethargic I would look him over real well and consider taking him to the vet. Their plush fur can hide bite wounds very well and they can easily get internal injuries from fights.

 

[Laurie]

The best advice is the hardest advice to hear--they need to be separated and remain separated. I know it's hard and it's even heart breaking, but if you want to keep both of your chins then it's what you have to do. If you keep them together eventually one will kill the other or you could wind up with both of them dead.

Fighting is very emotionally draining for both, so you don't want to allow this to continue. Get a bigger cage or separate the cage you have into two sections for them to live together but separately.

 

[Lynn & The Chins]

Although some consider it controversial, or even risky, I have had success with having males neutered when they started fighting with each other.

In the case of Mr. Whiskers and Baby, Whiskers bullied Baby. Dr. Fitzgerald suggested neutering both of them. I did so, and they recovered together, becoming "bonded" again by sharing their pain. They lived happily ever after, until Baby died, from completely unrelated causes.

I then got My Little Snuggler. When The Snuggler reached adolescence and started beating up on Whiskers, Dr. Fitzgerald fitted him with his own Little Pink Apron. Getting rid of the testosterone really helped. Dr. Fitzgerald even said one of my favorite things of all time: "Man, those testicles are nothing but trouble"!!! When I asked if he was speaking from experience, he just smiled!!!

The Snuggler and Mr. Whiskers now spend their time snuggling, baking pies and comparing recipes!!!

 

[ChinnieTime]

thanks everyone for the advice. i immediately separated them when i saw the fighting. riley has been doing much better and is almost back to his old self. i have sushi in a large enough, but smaller cage next to the huge cage they were sharing. it was 4ft wide by 3ft deep and 7ft tall with multiple houses, ledges, bowls, etc... we have 10 chinnies so now i think im going to have to shuffle some around to utilize that large cage. it is heartbreaking for sure to see them separated, but its their happiness that is most important, not us as chinnie parents. i have thouroughly looked riley over and he has no bites. he got a long dust bath today and his fur already looks much better. sushi seems to be a little stressed being in a new cage but i think they will both be fine. thanks again for the advice, nice to know there are experience people to turn to when something like this happens.

 

[Laurie]

I know how you feel about the hearbreaking thing as it broke my heart to separate Mick St. John and Wesley but they are both better off now because of it. I'm glad you caught it early.