From 0 to 5. Advice?

rnmomof4 · Jul 25, 2015

So I may just be a little crazy but thankfully I'm pretty smart and a research nerd and have actually been researching chins for a couple of years off and on in considering them as an addition to our family.
Friends of ours are in a situation where they have to find temporary housing for their animals. They have many rescue cats and dogs as well as other fur babies. They found homes for all except their Chins. We were going to adopt 2 of them, they have a pair that have bred and we were going to take the two 3 month old females however that would leave them with still having to give up the pair and another female which was breaking their hearts. We have decided to take in all 5 for the time being. The goal is that the pair will go back to them when their situation is resolved.
I have lots of experience with hedgies but absolutely none with chins and although I will have some guidance I would appreciate any advice on how to make this transition into our home as smooth as possible so that they are as happy and healthy as they can be.

Madmartigan · Jul 26, 2015

Oh wow 5. Is your friends giving you the cages as well? Once a chinchilla gives birth, she goes in strong heat again 12 hours later. They turn into baby machines. I don't know how long you're going to have them on loan, but ya just might be having babies real soon. your 5 might be turning into 8 or more. Good luck. Oxbow Essentials is a very good food, comes in a 5 lb bag, 18 bucks, so you might want to use that, more bang for your buck, seeing how other bags are normally 2 lbs. Careful with the 3 month olds, they go in heat after that, and don't care if they get with the parents.

rnmomof4 · Jul 26, 2015

Yes she is giving me two cages, one FN that houses the pair and another generic cage that currently houses the 3 females. I will be buying my own cage for them seeings how they will be ours permanently. We are hoping that this is only for a couple months but it could be until May when we finish nursing school. She has given us permission to sell/adopt out any babies that they may have however I may just try separating the pair if possible into cages next to each other so I don't have to try to manage that.

Godofgods · Jul 27, 2015

if the female jsut had two female kits, then i would guess you best bet would be to bond/leave the kits with mommy chin and separate the male chins. Other wise you WILL have more baby chins.

Thats how my chins ended up. I had a pair that had babies, then had babies again before i was able to separate them. Now i have mommy and two daughters together in one cage. And father and son in another cage.

tunes · Jul 27, 2015

Madmartigan - A chin can get pregnant while STILL pregnant. They can be pregnant with two pregnancies at once. Saying that they go into heat 12 days later is not correct. In fact, you are told to remove the male for 10 days before putting him back in the cage, to avoid a breedback.

rnmomof4 · Jul 27, 2015

My biggest concern is making sure they are happy and healthy. I know this is going to be a rough transition for them and I want to do it in the least traumatic way possible.

I have set up a cage cleaning/dust bath schedule so that I do not get overwhelmed with my older kids helping out. I do believe she uses some type of wood shavings and I would prefer to use fleece as I have with my hedgies, it is just much cleaner and easier on allergies.

Personality wise, she says the pair are pretty shy and timid, keeping to themselves for the most part. The adolescent female is friendly with the other two females but shy's away from people. The two 3 month olds however she has had more time to work with and are very friendly and active.