Chin hates being held

[5melrose5]

I got my chin about 6 months ago, and he still hates being held,picked up. You can pet him all you want and scritch him but he HATES being picked up! He was scared by an attack on him by dogs,and his other owner had to have him locked away,not let out much for 2 months,so maybe that all made him untrusting? Or are some chins just this way? It makes it really hard to check for hair rings,or just give him a general check all over. Right now I just do it and do it quick, and he struggles and fur flies everywhere. Anything else I can do?

 

[eroomlorac]

Some chins just don't like to be held. Some chins take a very long time to trust their humans. You'll just have to slowly work on trying to gain his trust but there is always the possibility it just isn't going to happen. You have to learn to love your chinnie for exactly what and who he is. You can interact with a shyer chin by hand feeding treats or by sitting on the floor during his playtime and letting him climb on you as he feels comfortable.

 

[Siylvat]

Probably only one of my chins actually LIKES to be held. He will sit with you for hours, He likes to sit on my shoulders while i'm watching TV or playing games. The other three? They are much happier jumping around on the bed while I am sitting there. I know they are comfortable with me because I am often their "safe spot" and they run back to me when they get scared.

But as far as being HELD, they don't really like that very much.

 

[Stackie]

Out of all my chins (10), I have actually only been able to hold 3 for longer than 5 minutes without them flipping out and wanting down to explore. One of them i believe is because I hand fed him for about a month. That really tamed him down I think.

 

[starleomach]

Not very many chinchillas like to be held. I have only a few that will let me hold them for any period of time. They prefer sitting on my shoulder or hopping around

 

[AZChins]

The only way that I have been able to get a chin to enjoy being held is 1) hold the little guy from the time he is born every single day, 2) pouch tame the chin with a fleece pouch and touch the chin often while in the pouch 3) force the chin to be held on a daily basis, eventually the chin gets used to the idea - I am very gentle.

Really the only way that you can get a chin to enjoy being handled is to do it often and put the work into the animal. Most chins do not just come out of the box wanting to be held, it requires effort to train them and to gain their trust completely. Honestly, if a chin wasn't held as a baby, it is going to take a lot more work to get the chin to behave while being held. I put forth a lot of effort with my chins to make them tame enough to be held...I try to train them all to be held without jumping down. They will still have their moments and run up on a person's shoulders and then try to run down the back. Uggg...

 

[Brittney]

No chin really LIKES to be held. They will tolerate it, but would much rather run around and explore. Bryson will let me hold him for a little while, and will let others hold him, and will sit still for a while, but then after he's had enough he will squirm to get down.

Ande on the other hand. I've been working with him, and I can finally hold him, though, he's only still for 2 minutes, then freaks, finds a button or zipper to chew on, and in still again. We increase holding time daily, and he's getting better

 

[3CsMommy]

I've had mine for almost 3 and 2.5 years respectively and only the older one tolerates holding at all. The younger one I have to hang onto by the base of the tail and sort of smush against my chest to keep him from leaping out of my hands and dangling by the tail. Some of them never get used to it.

 

[LemonSqueezi]

Most chins hate being held. I have a few who tolerate it. If you keep doing it anyway and make them struggle they are going to forever hate it. Let them come out on their own.

 

[Carol~Anne]

Pffft, if you want to have a soft furry creature you can cuddle and hold on to then get a kitten. Chinchillas are more like squirrels who like to perch and hop about. Yes, I have two out of my four that put up with me holding on to them and smooching them, but they're always so happy to be put down to run about.

 

[AZChins]

I have some chins that love to be held. They won't get out of my hands when I return them to their cages. You just have to keep working with them to get them to be how you want them to be.

 

[Carol~Anne]

I can hold and cuddle three out of my four boys and they put up with it, and I even think they like it but they are used to being let down and have freedom to run around and so they can't wait to get going. If they weren't used to getting let loose then I think they'd cuddle with me longer b/c they know they're going back. It's like the more you give freedom to a chinchilla, the more they'll take it, haha.

 

[chinchillagirl]

Oscar loves to be held as long as you are scritching his head or belly. Once you stop, he will jump out of your arms and start exploring again.

R.I.P Yoshi you will be in our hearts forever