Ok we just tried to have a short playtime for our two year old chin and our newbie. It did not go as well as last time! When they were first introduced at the breeders, all went well. We tried to put them together for a picture shortly after bringing the new guy, Chewy, home. Vader, our two year old, got rather territorial in his cage so we just ended that right away, keeping them in separate cages that are close together. A couple nights back, we brought them up to a small bathroom to play and it went great! They both had a healthy curiosity of one another and there was almost zero aggression. Vader groomed Chewy a bit, they "kissed", they climbed over one another a bit, all was good and happy. We tried the same thing tonight and at first they almost ignored one another. Then Vader started chasing Chewy, who was terrified, and experienced some fur slip. It appeared that Vader was trying to hump Chewy but since Chewy was so scared and running from him, I was concerned Vader was doing more damage than merely showing dominance. How can you tell the difference between a violent aggression and our two year old just showing dominance? How long do we let them go on to see what happens if the little guy is scared and being chased? We did check Chewy out; he did not appear to be bitten or hurt anywhere; he just lost a couple tufts of fur. Even Vader lost a bit of fur! Help! We just didn't want our single chin to be lonely forever.
introducing chins
- Thread starter jmess
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lauralynne
Chinnie Maid
Did you do a 30 day quarantine after you got your new chinchilla? If not, there's no use now, but I do want to point out that that's something you should do when you bring a new chinchilla home for others who read this thread.
I'm honestly not a fan of doing playtime intros. I think it's just asking for trouble, and gives more room for squabbles and makes it harder for you to intervene if needed.
I have found that going slow about things has worked best for me. I will generally put cages side by side for several weeks (about 6 inches apart). Next, I will put the chins in the each other's cage (alone) for the day and switch them back to their own cage at night. I usually do that for about a week or two. Then, I will use another cage with all new items (so the smell of either chin is gone from the cage) and put them both in the clean cage. If I you don't have a spare cage available, you can put one in a carrier while you completely clean the cage and furnishings, then put them both in the cage.
Also, here is a thread w/ some other intoduction methods. http://www.chins-n-hedgies.com/forums/showthread.php?t=13659
I'm honestly not a fan of doing playtime intros. I think it's just asking for trouble, and gives more room for squabbles and makes it harder for you to intervene if needed.
I have found that going slow about things has worked best for me. I will generally put cages side by side for several weeks (about 6 inches apart). Next, I will put the chins in the each other's cage (alone) for the day and switch them back to their own cage at night. I usually do that for about a week or two. Then, I will use another cage with all new items (so the smell of either chin is gone from the cage) and put them both in the clean cage. If I you don't have a spare cage available, you can put one in a carrier while you completely clean the cage and furnishings, then put them both in the cage.
Also, here is a thread w/ some other intoduction methods. http://www.chins-n-hedgies.com/forums/showthread.php?t=13659
One of my pairs fought just recently, so I broke them up and now have a trio and a single. So far so good.
I followed TUNES intro post (Laura posted the link) With the cage in cage method. Now my boys have had play time in the past with no issues, so I think that helped.
But I did cage in cage and when it came time to remove them and let them all have the cage I dabbed vanilla on everyone's nose and tail. and removed everything from the cage except food/water (which I had multiples of each to prevent fighting) and shelfs.
The boys were bored for a few days, but they had nothing to get possessive over while they really got acquainted. They got all their goodies back (Minus the wheel) yesterday and so far their happy as larks.
I followed TUNES intro post (Laura posted the link) With the cage in cage method. Now my boys have had play time in the past with no issues, so I think that helped.
But I did cage in cage and when it came time to remove them and let them all have the cage I dabbed vanilla on everyone's nose and tail. and removed everything from the cage except food/water (which I had multiples of each to prevent fighting) and shelfs.
The boys were bored for a few days, but they had nothing to get possessive over while they really got acquainted. They got all their goodies back (Minus the wheel) yesterday and so far their happy as larks.
Thank you I will definately still take it slow! We did keep them apart for a couple weeks but not 30 days. Right now their cages sit just a couple inches apart. Chewy, the little guy, suffered no real damage during the last playtime as he has been behaving, eating, pooping, normally. That makes me think that Vader was just trying to hump him to show dominance but there was enough fur slip and running away that it looked really bad. It's just so for us to tell. I will be ordering new items for the cage once we put them together. But is Vader, the two year old, already too old to learn how to get along with another chin? We have no other pets to take our attention so maybe he doesn't like sharing our attention...
The funny thing is that when we let one out a time, and they are no longer right next to one another, they both seem to vocalize as though they are trying to find the other. I assume that's a good sign?
The funny thing is that when we let one out a time, and they are no longer right next to one another, they both seem to vocalize as though they are trying to find the other. I assume that's a good sign?
