Chins suddenly fighting? Please help!

[Jared]

Hi there! I'm aware that it's a wall of text but I'm really worried and am giving as much info as I can!

My girlfriend and I have been the proud owners of two beautiful boys who have been cagemates since the youngest was a kit. The older chin, Blink, is far more mellow and has taken to us very nicely. Comes to the edge for treats, likes being held for short periods of time, jumps on our laps to take a rest, etc. The younger, Scrivello (Scriv), is jumpier, less trusting but he has made a lot of progress since moving in with us, about 3 months ago.

They have a gigantic cage with all wooden shelves, individual sleeping tubes, etc. in a well air-conditioned room and get 3+ hours out almost EVERY day. They're our babies and trust me, they're pampered as such. (Scriv is coming up on 2 and Blink is 4 1/2.)

Yesterday morning I woke up to find urine in one of their sleeping tubes, which has never happened before and tufts of fur on the floor. I immediately was concerned but had no idea what had happened and they both seemed fine. Later that afternoon, they were out and Scriv began "charging" at Blink, chasing him around the room. As I went to intervene I heard yelping and then more running around the room. I immediately separated them and tried a bit later to reintroduce them. Same result.

Well, the hours passed and it became even clearer that Scriv was certainly the instigator. Blink now panics whenever Scriv makes even the slightest jump and I have resorted to placing Scriv inside their carrying case and then place the carrying case in the base of their cage while Blink roams around inside.

It breaks my heart to see him in there but after 5 attempts this evening, each resulting in an attack and 48 hours of this later, I am completely out of options. We only have the one cage and I REALLY don't want to leave Scriv inside the carrying case all night...

What can I do? There's no glaring reason why this may have happened and research online says that sometimes this just occurs, often with the result being a permanent split of the two chins.

This is really upsetting us and we would love any and all advice. Sitting here watching him constantly tug at the carrying case door is just breaking my heart.

Thanks.

 

[tunes]

Sometimes it just happens with no known reason. It can be a full moon, a bad day, raging hormones - there's no way of knowing. It can happen with pairs that have been together for 10 years.

They have been fighting though, and not looking like they are going to stop, so you need to keep them separate. Tomorrow you will need to go out and invest in a second cage and accessories and keep them apart.

Be sure to keep an eye on the carrier. They can and will chew through a plastic carrier if they get bored.

 

[Mt. Zion Chins]

I agree with Tunes - they HAVE to be separated. If you could divide the big cage into 2 separate divisions that would work also

 

[Whimsy]

You have GOT to separate them before it gets out of hand. If you temporarily separate them before it gets to past the breaking point, you have a better chance of reintroducing them. You may want to borrow a small cage that will fit inside your larger cage, that "time out" but not totally isolated method often works well too.

Also, you need to check the fur for wet spots. That's usually the telltale sign of bites that go beyond simple fur pulling. IF there are bloody bit wounds, then you have no choice but to permanently separate the boys.

This is a very serious issue and needs immediate intervention. You cannot keep trying to put them together while one is actively seeking out the other.

 

[Essentia]

I had to separate a father son pair that have been together for 3 years. There was no reason for them to start fighting, but the son just started picking on him. I came from work to find him with bite wounds on his back cowering in a corner. This was the same day I noticed the slight picking on, so it can happen fast. I would separate them now before it gets really ugly and you find a dead chinchilla.

 

[Jazicat]

The advice you've gotten is great and I just wanted to add that it's more heartbreaking to us when they don't get along. I have three boys in three cages and all of them are very happy chinchillas. We've tried introducing them to avoid the cost of another cage but they are happier alone. Fighting is just an instinct for them so that they don't have competition for the attentions of a female just in case one magically appears or for territory. It also doesn't make you bad chin parents.

 

[Jared]

Thank you for your responses. They are still separated and we are deeply considering our next step.

Thanks for all the input. If you have more to share, please don't hesitate!

 

[pita839]

I know that it can be heartbreaking but they need to be separated. It's safer to separate them then have one of them ending up getting hurt or worse. I've had a mother turn on the daughter and even have pics of them lying together. I've tried to get them back together several times and failed each time. So now they are separate and I think it bothers me more than it does them.