Hi I am Diane

[DianKS]

I am Diane, mom of Sarah 24, Nathan 23 , Laura 21 and Kristen 16. Also mom of 4 Cavaliers: Bambi 6, Faline 5, Lady Bug 4 and Daisy 18 months, 2 Himy cats: Tora 4 and Lily 2, 1 cockatiel, 1 parakeet, 2 geckoes, 3 koi in our pond and 3 chinchillas: Puff 7 month old beige female, Smokey 7month old ebony female and Sugar 3 month old pink eyed white female. The chins are full sisters from two litters. I think Puff is pregnant. She is much fatter than Smokey and was caged with two males until we bought her this week. All the chins are very tame since they were held daily by a home schooled child whose dad used to raise chins but has now cut down to 20. They love their huge cage. We bought the biggest parrot cage with half inch bar spacing we could find and added pine shelves and hideaway cubbies at various levels. The flying saucer wheel should arrive soon. We started them out in the living room but the dogs were annoying them so today they moved to the study where it is quiet. I have lots of questions concerning Puff if she is expecting kits. I always get a sonogram done on my mama dogs when they are 3 weeks pregnant, should I do that with Puff? The breeder told me that he always keeps 3 moms together so they can nurse any extra kits since the chins only have two teats. I can't do that unless the sisters can nurse without being pregnant. (dogs can).

 

[tunes]

I don't think much of your breader if they kept two males with a female. Way to ask for your chin to get beat to death. Not to mention, who is the father? Unless they are completely unable to produce the same offspring, you would never know.

If you have a pregnant chin, the last thing you want is a monstrous cage with lots of shelves. You need a one level, with no wheel or saucer. There is no need for an ultrasound unless you see that mom is having problems. Stressing her out by dragging her to the vets could just end up hurting the pregnancy.

I would suggest going to the section here on the forum that has all the FAQ's. Find the ones on breeding and babies, why to breed, etc. and give them a read. They contain tons of information that is important when breeding.

 

[Jenn]

Hi Diane and welcome! Tunes gave you some great advice. Do some reading and if you have any more questions, there are a lot of knowledgeable people here who can help.

 

[lauralynne]

Hello & Welcome

 

[DianKS]

2 males

If Puff is pregnant it was not intentional on the breeders part. There were 5 kits housed together. Two females and one male were born in December. One female and one male were born in March. The females are all full sisters and I purchased all three. The 7 month old male was from a different litter but since he was colony breeding was raised with them. The male born in March had not been removed yet since he was too young to sire kits. His 13 year old daughter is home schooled and she has been in charge of about 20 of his chins which include these. She did a great job taming them. They are incredibly friendly and do not bite me at all. They do love to chew the cage shelves. I will have to put Puff in a different cage as you suggested since she loves to perch in a chew log 30 inches off the cage floor. I saw her poop out the back of the log last night and had this horrible image of her popping a kit out that way. Yikes. Thanks for the tips.

 

[cindyv3737]

Welcome!

 

[Claire D]

Hi Diane and welcome to the forum. :wave:

There are a few things in your posts that concern me that I would like to pick up on, if I may.....

Puff 7 month old beige female, Smokey 7month old ebony female and Sugar 3 month old pink eyed white female. The chins are full sisters from two litters. I think Puff is pregnant. She is much fatter than Smokey and was caged with two males until we bought her this week. ..................... I have lots of questions concerning Puff if she is expecting kits. ..................The breeder told me that he always keeps 3 moms together so they can nurse any extra kits since the chins only have two teats.

Firstly, your females are too young to be pregnant - they should not have been in with any male chins since they were weaned at 6-8 weeks old.


Secondly your breeder is talking absolute and utter cobblers! "Only 2 nipples"?? Has he ever examined a female chinchilla? Clearly he has not - basic anatomy exam: chinchillas have 6 nipples!
Female chins can cope with triplets or quads.

If that's the kind of info being given out then I would strongly suggest you absorb the correct info from this forum and ask all the questions you like - we're here to help.

If Puff is pregnant it was not intentional on the breeders part. ...................

There were 5 kits housed together. Two females and one male were born in December. One female and one male were born in March. The females are all full sisters and I purchased all three. The 7 month old male was from a different litter but since he was colony breeding was raised with them. The male born in March had not been removed yet since he was too young to sire kits.

If Puff is pregnant (and I truly hope she is not but chances are slim given the fact she's been housed with a 7 month old male chin!) then it is totally intentional - keeping male and female chins together after 8 weeks old is deliberate.
I can pretty much guarantee that no decent breeder on this forum will keep mixed sex kits together after 6-8 weeks (10 absolute max) due to the risks of inbreeding and inappropriate mating. To do so is to put the chinchillas' health at risk.
Male kits have been known (documented accounts) to get females pregnant at 12 weeks - so the March kit is not too young to impregnate a female but the 7 month old is certainly capable - you need to keep a very careful eye on both 7 month old chins and also on the 3 month old too.