Issues with getting chin out of her cage

[Steelblue]

So we have had Coconut for 3 going on 4 months. She's my daughters pet and was a pet store rescue and I know that can have adverse affects on a chins social behavior.

She has actually been great exception for one issue: she hates being held.

Now that by itself is not a big big deal. Other than that we pet her, scratch her all over. She lets us scratch her chin, belly, neck with no problem. She will even climb halfway on my palm and let me rub her underside. During playtime she will hop up on us, shoulders, head, lap, she will wall run and bounce off the walls and occasionally popcorn.

She has nipped a bit but never drawn blood and I know the difference between her kind of scratching her teeth on you and an more aggressive nip. She has done the pee spray only twice that I know of but never to me just to my daughter who was probably annoying her at the time.

Now the issue is getting her out of the cage for playtime. Her safe room is our master bath which is pretty big for a bathroom so there is plenty of room for her to run around even with two or three in the room with her.

She's really smart and picks up things fast so tricking her only works one or two times before shes on to it. So the whole dust bath trick isn't good because I'm afraid she will stop using it and then she's all dusty for playtime. Tried a small box but again she learns that trick quick and won't get in it. I have tried moving the cage back and forth to the bathroom which worked for her but is not really a long term solution for us as its pretty big and kind of heavy. Tried letting her go on her own but she has to travel thru non safe areas (maybe about 25-30 ft away) to get there and will then avoid at all costs to go into the bathroom resulting in us chasing her around and under the bed even though we try and herd her toward the bathroom. I try rewarding her with plain Cheerios when she gets to the play area and back to the cage successfully. She loves plain Cheerios as a treat.

Funny thing is when she wants to go back to her cage she will literally come to your feet AND LET YOU PICK HER UP! I can carry her for brief moments but she is constantly on the move which I have learned to deal with and don't have to much trouble handling her. If she is tired she will kind of settle down a bit more and let me hold her without struggling too much.

Last time I took her out I waited till she was zoning a bit and just swooped in and scooped her up but shes seems to know when playtime is now and won't come out of her little houses and stays hidden. If I try she will run all over the cage trying to avoid being picked up. Its like she hates being held more than she likes playtime. Now one thing is she has a pretty large cage that she seems to love with three little houses and lots of levels, perches and a big running wheel.

I just need an easy and consistent way of taking her out of her cage that works for her and us without stressing her or us out too much.

Sorry for the long winded post, here is her cage

 

[TmG]

Awesome cage! So jealous. I actually have the same problem with my chin. He HATES being handled. So I bought a playpen that I now use and he goes in and out freely. I'm assuming the bathroom is the best for her for playtime so if you're taking her out everyday for playtime I'd suggest try every other day. It'll make it more of a treat then just an everyday occurrence. Every other day works for me an my chin. Hope this helped


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[BooBoo*TheKiddo*]

Have you tried using the dust bath as a way of transporting her from one place to another?

3-4 months... I'd say she is still getting use to being held. She likely wasnt held very much, if at all, at the pet store.

Sit with her during playtime and let her jump and climb over you. You might also try offering treats from your palm and let her eat them from there.

 

[Cuddlebug]

I recommend that you just reach in and pick her up in one swift motion. Contrary to what most people will tell you, she will not be traumatized by this and she will not hate you. Also, try holding her a little longer each time you hold her. Give her a cheerio while you are holding her to make being held a good thing in her mind.

 

[Steelblue]

Awesome cage! So jealous. I actually have the same problem with my chin. He HATES being handled. So I bought a playpen that I now use and he goes in and out freely. I'm assuming the bathroom is the best for her for playtime so if you're taking her out everyday for playtime I'd suggest try every other day. It'll make it more of a treat then just an everyday occurrence. Every other day works for me an my chin. Hope this helped


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Thanks, being handy comes in handy sometimes. Made everything except the cage. Even the wheel was home made. I also added some lava ledges up the side above the feeder since that picture

The problem with the playpen is two things, A: she can jump pretty high, she already jumped over my 32" high gate so I then had to use my creativity and add another 12" to it. B: It would have to have solid sides as she likes to wall run and did so on the gate, so I then had to get some material to go over the mesh so she wouldn't get her leg caught in it.

I also wish we could just let her play where the cage as its almost perfect but its at the top of the stairs an there is a part that if she where to get thru the railing or jump over she would fall a good 12' plus.

Have you tried using the dust bath as a way of transporting her from one place to another?

3-4 months... I'd say she is still getting use to being held. She likely wasn't held very much, if at all, at the pet store.

Sit with her during playtime and let her jump and climb over you. You might also try offering treats from your palm and let her eat them from there.

Yes but I'm afraid she will then avoid getting a dust bath knowing we are trying to trick her. Also she then gets dust all over the bathroom.

Unless I buy a second dust bath and leave it empty for transportation only that would solve the dust issue.

And as far as playtime she will jump all over us an even let us touch and pet her a bit, won't stay put for long but that is normal.

I recommend that you just reach in and pick her up in one swift motion. Contrary to what most people will tell you, she will not be traumatized by this and she will not hate you. Also, try holding her a little longer each time you hold her. Give her a cheerio while you are holding her to make being held a good thing in her mind.

That's what I did but after that she will avoid me like the plague and hide in her little boxes and run all over avoiding me. Unfortunately she is very quick and that cage actually makes it pretty hard for me to catch her. Now that I haven't taken her out for a bit she is warming back up to me and will let me do almost anything without running, she's back to walking on my hand with her front two paws and letting me scratch her belly and I know the minute I start trying to catch her again she won't get near me while in her cage.