Do you have chin gender preference?

[Chinmin]

Please share your preference if there's any and why.

 

[Jawramik]

I don't really have a preference. My chin is female, but that was just luck of the draw, since she was a rescue. I've never had a male chin, so I honestly don't really know how they differ.

I do know that male chins need to be checked for hair rings periodically, which seems like it could be a bit of a chore if they don't like being handled....but females spray urine, so girls aren't without their downsides, haha.

 

[Idgie]

I have only had girls. Don’t really want to do the hair ring thing lol. But some of my girls would spray, if cornered. And Ripley sometimes has difficulty when in heat--losing her plug.

 

[Amethyst]

I prefer males, I've just had better luck with bonding with them over females. Also I find males to be less moody then females, you can get a grumpy male, but then you know he is a grump, but with females you tend to have to gauge their mood daily. Most of the males I've had have been more laid back compared to the females too.

Personally I don't agree with this new idea of doing regular hair ring checks, I don't think it's necessarily, so I don't see it as an issue for owning a male. I'll take a look if the male is paying a lot of attention down there or I notice it's hanging out, but in my experience they take care if it pretty well on their own. I've had 9 males over the years and only even dealt with one chin getting a hair ring once. If you really don't want to do it you can just take the chin to the vet if they have a problem and have them do it. I really think it's more of a common issue for breeding males then pet ones too. On the other hand I was sprayed at least once by almost everyone of the 5 female chins I had in the past.

 

[Jawramik]

I prefer males, I've just had better luck with bonding with them over females. Also I find males to be less moody then females, you can get a grumpy male, but then you know he is a grump, but with females you tend to have to gauge their mood daily. Most of the males I've had have been more laid back compared to the females too.

Personally I don't agree with this new idea of doing regular hair ring checks, I don't think it's necessarily, so I don't see it as an issue for owning a male. I'll take a look if the male is paying a lot of attention down there or I notice it's hanging out, but in my experience they take care if it pretty well on their own. I've had 9 males over the years and only even dealt with one chin getting a hair ring once. If you really don't want to do it you can just take the chin to the vet if they have a problem and have them do it. I really think it's more of a common issue for breeding males then pet ones too. On the other hand I was sprayed at least once by almost everyone of the 5 female chins I had in the past.

That's good to know, that hair rings aren't as big of an issue as I thought. I just remember when I first got my chin and was doing initial research, several people on the internet made a big deal about how you HAD to check males for hair rings at least once a month or so. I remember thinking I was glad I ended up with a girl, because that didn't sound like fun (for me or the chin).

And yeah, my girl has sprayed me (and others) several times. And she aims for the face. Though she hasn't sprayed me in quite some time. It was mostly when she was new and didn't quite trust me yet. But she'll still readily spray other people, haha. I have to warn guests about it when they go to say hi to her. If they try to touch her through the bars of the cage, she'll usually spray them. Only Mom is allowed to pet and poke her through the bars.

 

[Agroeve]

I was concerned about hair rings too. supposed to get two females but one turned out to be male and like Jawramik i did my research and was concerned about having to check once a month as it would be stress for me and Dazzle. I dont intend to breed him so hopefully they won't become an issue then

 

[borwin98]

One of the reasons I have seven chins today is because I bought two females, my first chins. Live and learn, belatedly. Now I have three cages.

 

[Pixie1984]

No preference at all. I currently have more males than females, but I find chins like people, each one has their own little personality quirks.
The only males I keep a closer eye on for hair rings are my breeding boys if they’re in with females, the others I’ll only take a look if they’re paying more attention than usual. With my own chins it’s only occurred twice in 7yrs in my breeders, but was easily sorted out by them without any intervention. I’ve had one boy come to me for short term fostering with a nasty one though that was on the verge of prolapse, as no one at the rescue he came from had noticed he was trying to clean it more than normally. Luckily he was such a placid little boy that it didn’t need a vet to remove, just one to check for any lasting damage after, but he was fine. I can see why people get paranoid about them, but don’t agree with regular manhandling of them & their poor boy bits when the majority are perfectly capable of cleaning themselves more than adequately enough for them not to be a big issue.
Both genders can spray. I have one female that will flat out spray anyone but me who opens her cage door, but I’ve also got 2 boys that refuse to be handled & will spray the second anyone tries. The only real difference I notice in any of my girls, bar a their smell when in season, is in my breeding girls. I tend to find they’re a bit more cuddly & willing to be handled after having kits. But whether that’s a hormonal thing, just wanting a break from their babies, or both I’m not sure of.

 

[tunes]

Nope. I don't care any more than I care about having a male versus female dog or cat. Personality, IMO, has nothing to do with their sex. I've had a lot of chins and there are good and not so good amongst both sexes.

 

[Chin-ma]

I prefer males, I've just had better luck with bonding with them over females. Also I find males to be less moody then females, you can get a grumpy male, but then you know he is a grump, but with females you tend to have to gauge their mood daily. Most of the males I've had have been more laid back compared to the females too.

Personally I don't agree with this new idea of doing regular hair ring checks, I don't think it's necessarily, so I don't see it as an issue for owning a male. I'll take a look if the male is paying a lot of attention down there or I notice it's hanging out, but in my experience they take care if it pretty well on their own. I've had 9 males over the years and only even dealt with one chin getting a hair ring once. If you really don't want to do it you can just take the chin to the vet if they have a problem and have them do it. I really think it's more of a common issue for breeding males then pet ones too. On the other hand I was sprayed at least once by almost everyone of the 5 female chins I had in the past.

I have 3 males and 3 females, and i tell you what my males are sweethearts while the females are just mean as heck. Don't know why really, couse i really try to treat and train them the same, but i keep males and females separete, not wanting them to breed. I guess its due to females dominant role in chinchilla world, but no matter how much i socialise them they are just really not pleasant to be around.

 

[Jawramik]

I have 3 males and 3 females, and i tell you what my males are sweethearts while the females are just mean as heck. Don't know why really, couse i really try to treat and train them the same, but i keep males and females separete, not wanting them to breed. I guess its due to females dominant role in chinchilla world, but no matter how much i socialise them they are just really not pleasant to be around.

That's interesting that your girls have such attitudes.

My girl definitely has some sass, but she's quite sweet. I was initially told she was a vicious biter, but I've never seen that behaviour actually materialise. The worst she's done since I've had her is spray urine, and these days she only does that to other people, not me, haha. But she's quite sweet and affectionate with me.

 

[Chinchillaville13]

I've only had boys. I had Junior, a chin from Pet Smart who died about 2 weeks after purchase. I don't need to explain, I told y'all he was a Pet Smart chin.

Then I got Pedro and Pablo, somebody else's Pet Smart chins, who they had kept alive and well and no longer had time for. Pablo mysteriously died after pulling his hair. Pedro is about 8 and still with me, he's my best buddy.

Never had females, not sure how they differ. But if the boys make it (in other words, stay the Hell away from Pet Smart!), they're great

 

[Chinlove]

I've only had females, they've been sassy at worst and have nipped me a couple times and my old one sprayed once or twice but personally I've never minded all that much.