Is this grooming or fur-biting?

[Cassadaga]

I have 2 chinchillas, brothers from seperate litters. I got the older one , Remy, about a month ago and the younger one, Momo, almost 2 weeks ago. They get along, sleep on eachother, etc. but I noticed Remy sometimes nibbles on Momo's fur (only in the facial area). It doesn't seem to be aggressive and Momo doesn't try to get away, but he did peep once. There does not seem to be any noticeable hair loss, but maybe I'm just not seeing it. I'm not sure.

Does this sound like a problem?

 

[Lynn & The Chins]

It sounds like just regular grooming, especially if the fur is not showing any signs of chewing.

Most chins with a cagemate enjoy grooming each other, as well as their owners from time to time. Remy might be snuggling Momo like a mother chin would, and Momo may still feel like a baby and enjoy Remy snuggling him. I'm sure you'll see him return the favor before long.

 

[searchand_dstry]

Sounds like grooming to me as well.

Baxter grooms Smush all of the time & he always goes for the face and around the ears. Sometimes Smush makes noises but they're "happy" squeeks & shortly after does the same for Baxter. Then they share big cuddles! lol

 

[TillyChinchilla]

Like everybody says, it just sounds like mutual grooming. I've seen them "cack" occasionally during this. My thought was the groomer might have pulled a hair or used a little too much teeth. It is very sweet to watch, especially when they tilt their head, close their eyes, and really enjoy it!

 

[Ristarwen]

The other day I saw Charley sitting on ChickaChikah (my 3-month old twin chins), holding him down, grooming his face. It looked kind of like one brother holding the other down giving him a wet willie or something. It was a little worrisome, especially when ChickaChickah made some peeps...he didn't seem to dislike being held down, but I wasn't sure. It's good to know that it's probably just happy grooming.

 

[chin-nw]

Yeah, mated chins often groom each other in that same fashion. As long as fur isn't missing or chewed shorter, it's just grooming.