Introducing a new chin.

[getupasb]

I've had multiple chinchillas in the past and I am pretty familiar with them. I've done a lot of research but I've never had two at a time.

I have had my one male chin for a little over a year. He's still extremely skittish. He will walk over my hands and let me pet him but he will randomly run away and squeal... and I can not for the life of me pick him up. He was from PetsMart (always bad) and was actually a returned pet because a dog tried to attack him so the people took him back. He's very friendly but I cannot get him to trust me enough to really handle him.

Fast forward to today. I got a chinchilla from a kid who didn't have the time for his anymore. Another male and he's about the same age. Well-handled. As soon as I brought him home, he was crawling up on me and was actually wanting me to hold him.

I put the two cages next to eachother and both of them are sniffing at eachother, not spitting or making any 'angry' sounds. I picked up the new guy and put him up close to my old boy and they were making nervous sounds but were touching noses and not doing anything wrong. I didn't want to torture them so I put the new guy back in his cage to settle for the night.

I've looked into how to get them used to eachother so hopefully eventually they can be homed in the same cage. That was what I was hoping for. They are both docile so I think they will be okay, but the problem is I cannot catch my old guy to put them in a hallway or somewhere of neutral territory so they can meet. Any ideas?

Sorry for the long explanation!

 

[getupasb]

Helppppp!!!!

 

[Godofgods]

well generally you should quarantine them from each other when you first get a new one in-case one of them turns out to be sick or is carrying something. That way you don't harm the other one.

You need to be patient with this. If you rush it things can go very bad. The new chin needs a time to get used to a new home and new environment. That could take a few weeks, maybe even months depending on the chin.

After that you can try placing the cages next to each other to let them get used to each others presence. But you might want to leave several inch's or more between the cage to make sure they cant come in contact with each other. Some times things can get violent in a hurry, and your not there watching them 24/7. That can take just as long as for them to get used to each other as the envirnment.

If everything goes smoothly and there's no issues, then you could try moving the cages closer together. Just enough so they can sniff each other, maybe touch noses or something. But not so close they have pretty good access to each other.

After a lot of time has passed, if your chins are getting along well and there's no fighting through the bars, then you can move on to trying to let them meet in a neutral area for a short time. If they get along you can keep doing that for a while. Let them become accustomed to each others physical presence.

If everything goes well, only then should you consider options of them living together. But each step can can take weeks or months. Rushing is usually never a good idea. It can do a more harm then good.

This was the method i took to introduce my first two chins. Each had been taking in from different ppl. It took quite a while, but when it finally came time to let them meet face to face it went beautifully. But there is no guarantee that any two chins will get along, no matter how much prep you do.

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Also, learn the difference physically between males and females. It is not as easy as you think. Ppl very often make mistakes with this, so do not take the former owners or a petstore's word for it. You don't want there to be a mistake and introduce a male and female. An intro like this is child's play compared to dealing with a kit. Not to mention there is a lot that can go wrong during a pregnancy or with a kit. And you could end up with the worst to a chin, especially if you don't no what your doing, and/or your not prepared. It can also get expensive if something went wrong. So do yourself, and your chins a favor, and check them.

 

[getupasb]

I will say, I did rush a few steps but their personalities are so alike, I kind of expected them to be okay.

I got them both out today (I had to trick the one into his bath house and get him out). I took them into the bathroom together and let them run around.

There was no squeaking, no barking, no spitting, nothing. They just ran around and hung out with eachother and touched noses. No fighting what-so-ever.

I changed the cage out to fleece instead of bedding, so it doesn't smell as much like my first guy, and I put them in there together. They seemed fine but I could tell the new guy was uneasy so I split the levels and put one on top and the other on bottom.

I figure I'll keep them separate for a few weeks but give them play-time together and see if they continue to get along. I don't want to rush them and ruin things, but I think they will eventually be fine. I think playtime was a good sign that they will be buddies.

I'd just prefer not to have a bunch of cages when I have one large one that they could share. But if they have to be separate, then they have to be separate. I won't have them hurt eachother.

 

[dreenbmp]

It's a very slow process.
I would never start out with the cages in the same room even.

Let the new chinchilla get used to his surroundings first, after about a week (maybe more) then you can put the cages in the same room.

Once they are in the room, make sure they are far apart, so they can get used to the scents of each other

after another week put the cages closer, but not touching.

and then another week, put the cages where they can sniff through the bars of the cage.

Once they are used to that, bring them in a small room (or bathroom) where you are in reach of both of them, let them run around, see if there is any conflict. (noises and humping is fine) but only if they start pulling out fur, or drawing blood, put them back in the cages right away. A good thing to do is to bring a blanket, so if there is a fight you can throw it over them...that generally shocks them into stopping the fight.

If they do get along during play time, don't rush and put them in the cage together. have a few more play dates first.

next step: Try to find a small hamster cage, and put the new chinchilla into the cage with the old one for a few hours, and then the old chinchilla in the new chinchillas cage..

after you feel that it is safe (only under supervision) you can put the two together....I would recommend cleaning the cage first, getting rid of old chew toys, and deodorizing the cage as well, that way there are no scents, and neither chin will feel that they are dominant

Hope this helps and good luck!