Introducing and breeding concerns :(

[Toria]

Ok so I have one female chinchilla that I've had since April and honestly didn't know she was a girl cause I was told she was a boy and my friend was told the one she got was a boy. Well, I wasn't worried about gender or anything and never planned on breeding or even having more than one. So a few months go by and I come across a video on how to tell their gender. And then I just got curious and decided to check...and well, she wasn't a boy which didn't bother me ...so then my friend sold hers (simba's brother) to me and he is for sure a boy they are in separate cages.... Now I have no plans on trying to breed them because for one, I know nothing about it! And I'm pretty sure breeding siblings would not be a good idea...that being said I would like to get one fixed I don't really know which one I should get fixed. :/ any opinions on this? Anyone that can help that has experienced this situation?

 

[tunes]

It is a much less invasive procedure for the male to be castrated than it is for the female to be spayed. Many people have lost chins through spaying. Two things to consider. First, is it absolutely imperative that you keep them together, necessitating the neutering? They can be absolutely happy living apart with no surgery. Second, do you have a very experienced chin vet who can do the procedure if you choose to go ahead with it? Chins are not like a lot of other animals. They do not handle anesthesia or surgical procedures well. There are plenty of folks who regret getting their boys castrated after going through postop care and almost losing them.

 

[Amethyst]

Another thing to keep in mind is even if they get fixed there is no guarantee they will even want to be friends. So basically you could go through the risk of neutering the chin only for it to be for nothing. Even a couple weeks apart can break the bond between chins, so a few months is a long time.

Also before considering getting one fixed, look up on the forum here about neutering, it's not a simple thing like with a cat or dog. Is having one fixed worth it possibly dying? are you prepared for round the clock care and feeding if the chin has issues? Recovery can take about a month, if all goes well, but you need to wait 2 full months to reintroduce the male after neutering to make sure everything is out of his system.

 

[Toria]

Yes, I know an experienced vet...and do either of you have experience with this situation?

 

[tunes]

I have had females spayed due to pregnancy complications. The recoveries varied. One I lost after 10 days, the other 2 were okay. I have 2 males here that I sold to a lady who worked at a vets office (he is the zoo vet) and she had them castrated when they were only 2 months old. They have never had a problem and I ended up taking them back due to a family emergency and they are great. They are 6 now and going strong.

 

[Toria]

I have had females spayed due to pregnancy complications. The recoveries varied. One I lost after 10 days, the other 2 were okay. I have 2 males here that I sold to a lady who worked at a vets office (he is the zoo vet) and she had them castrated when they were only 2 months old. They have never had a problem and I ended up taking them back due to a family emergency and they are great. They are 6 now and going strong.

Thank you

 

[Earthlyrose]

I think both procedures are harsh on chins. Even though a neuter is much less invasive, it's still imperative you keep them calm during recovery, which is a hard thing to do with chinchillas! I would say keep them separate.

 

[Smidgeyy]

There are people who have tried neutering for the sake of keeping a pair together and they ended up with two separate cages anyway. When they're recovering, you need to keep the separated during that time. All that is enough to ruin the bonding between the two.

Some almost lost chins after a neuter and refuse to do it again unless there is a medical reason, so I would never consider spaying just for bonding purposes.

My opinion is to cage them separately. They do fine on their own and you won't be putting them under for something silly. It's just not worth the risk to me, I almost lost mine when he was sedated for x-rays so I could not imagine having him get a procedure that wasn't necessary.

 

[Cass C]

A word of warning: I almost lost my male due to an infection from him pulling out his stitches. It was a 3 month recovery, which was terrible for him to endure. I highly recommend against spaying and neutering chinchillas without medical cause.