If he jumps on you, can I say he trusted you?

[Evelyn]

I have my chin for three months now. I don't know when I can really tell he trust me yet. When I let him out on the playtime and if I sit in there with him he will always jump on me. I think it mostly because he knows I will give him a treat though. So, the question is, What kind of behavior will really tell me he trust me?

Another question is, if he is ok being alone up until now, would he suddenly change his mind and wanting a cage mate later? Or if he is ok til now then he probably will never wants friends in the future?

 

[Marie5656]

Hello Evelyn:
I would say that yes, you are trusted if he jumps on you. He knows he will not be hurt. My chinchilla will sometimes jump uo and sit on top of my head!!
I cannot answer about the cagemate, but I am sure someone will. My chin is a lone chin and I have had her 5 years.

 

[jessers]

I think having a cagemate would make it so that he isn't so bored but to me I don't think it's needed if you have enough toys and playtime. My chinchilla would jump on my leg and I'd just be chatting or on CnH and she would just climb on my IPod

 

[Rickman]

I've a couple that'd climb your arm, and sit on your shoulder as long as you wanted!
That's complete trust, to me.

 

[caiti]

I think having a cagemate would make it so that he isn't so bored but to me I don't think it's needed if you have enough toys and playtime. My chinchilla would jump on my leg and I'd just be chatting or on CnH and she would just climb on my IPod

I have a single chin and got her about 3 months ago also. I think about getting her a cage mate too sometimes but I would hate if they ended up not liking eachother or even worse, if they fought. I'm still iffy about it. I figure I got her recently--I'm in no rush to make a decision about it now so I'll just see how it goes.

I think jumping on you definitely requires a level of confidence on the chin's part. I don't know if a small prey animal can ever fully trust ANYTHING but I find I actually really enjoy the challenge of trying to get my girl more comfortable with me and to trust me more. It grows on you and other people sometimes don't really understand. Whenever my friends come over and go see her they all say "She's so boring, she just sits there" and I'm like "That's because you're probably are scaring the bejesus out of her and she's taking her time to figure out if you are friend or foe". They seem more disenchanted when they ask me if she bites and I say yes haha. I tell them that's kind of how they interact with the world. They put stuff in their mouths! It's sort of their thing (as we all know).

Chins are cute when they jump around on your stuff. Especially if you're using it

 

[DramaMama]

I have a single chin and got her about 3 months ago also. I think about getting her a cage mate too sometimes but I would hate if they ended up not liking eachother or even worse, if they fought. I'm still iffy about it. I figure I got her recently--I'm in no rush to make a decision about it now so I'll just see how it goes.

Chins are cute when they jump around on your stuff. Especially if you're using it

You can get almost any chin to bond if you introduce them right. I'd look into introducing them online, I read a lot before I started introducing chins. The first chin I had was lone for about a year, and I thought he was just happy dandy, but I took in a chin for a friend that was no longer able to keep hers. I kept them apart for a good while (in different rooms!) but finally I thought I'd introduce them and see how things went and now they are in absolute bliss. An important thing to look into if you're worried about them not bonding is to find a chin that completes your chins strengths and weaknesses, for example if your chin is timid getting a more outgoing one kind of leads them to balance each other out. The other important thing is to make sure you're prepared to deal with them seperately if it doesn't work out. Once one chin inflicts bodily harm on another you won't be able to keep them in a cage together. I've known too many people who have bought an extra chin and brought him home in a carrier, without getting a cage, thinking that they could just toss it in the lone cage and things would be fine, but that's not how things work. Chinchillas can be very territorial.

 

[Brittany_Lynn]

If you slowly offer him treats less as time goes on, when he jumps in your lap, he will soon realize that it's a good thing but it doesn't always get him a treat. Then he will trust you, but you don't always have to give him treats.