Need info from others on pairs who bicker

[6Dusters]

I had two girls paired up and have sat back and waited for the right males. I paired up one of the girls with her new male and they are both high strung. Yes I did have them side by side before placing them. The female was born this way and has really calmed since being here back in April. The male came from a ranch, was an only kit and has spent his entire life alone in a run cage without being bred. Keep in mind the other female is now in a single home next to her new male mate. Getting to know each other.

This is my first breeding pair. I understand runs vs pair. These two really are trying my patience. The first week was bickering. I took out everything but the one house and left the ledges. I offer then snacks from the same hand. No problems. I encourage a healthy "comming together" by placing hay where both animals feel safe to be close and graze. That works very well. One evening last week ( while making dinner ) they started the rough works again. I put them in a small hamster cage............walked them around the house..........and sat them down in the kitchen to watch me. They calmed down . I finished dinner and placed them back in the cage. Same rough chasing and hair pulling again!!! :hair: So I placed the female ( the problem that day )back in the hamster "time out" cage and put her in the cage where both reside. So far so good. So I think.

Now to last night........:impatient: We are watching the tv and there are strange male noises going on. The husband mutes the tv and..............nothing.
We go back to viewing and then we hear alot of wrestling. Well I know its them. So in the chin room I go. I ask the herd what is going on in here? And I turn the light on. Well the girl now has fur pulled all over her. The male has bits pulled. They look at me like two humans that have just "ground pounded" one another. Both breathing heavy. Uggggg. So I go to the garage and pull a small cage out. I put them both in there and move them into another room away from the herd. ( It is stressing the rest of the chins)

The moved away pair are now exhausted from a battle. No blood has ever been spilled. The female lays down on the top wood shelf. Male on the bottom. This morning my husband said they were together sleeping side by side. When I went downstairs they are sleeping on the same floor bottom at opposite ends. Prior to this madness they have even been sleeping in the same box!!!

For the love of God are these two going to continue this? Or did our boy do his duty when all this happened? This is my first pair and I know they are both high strung. They are super fine animals and as a respondsible chin owner I feel half nuts about now. I care for their safety. I understand the dangers of breeding. And I'm on hands to make sure each animal is not in danger from one another.

Any suggestions? I do have a run but I decided not to use it. Would rather have them paired in one cage. Decided to use the run for future growers to save room. Now this girls pervious cagemate is on the floor next to her male. And these two animals are very calm. I just have not proceeded until I could get the first pair settled. Perhaps I will be spared this crazy mess with them and they won't be stinky over who is going to be the " pants wearer."

 

[Terbear24]

have you tried trimming their whiskers?
Or the vapo rub on their nose?
Otherwise it sounds like they just need more time!

 

[6Dusters]

:hilarious: I've trimmed whiskers on another chin last year who was in with the same sex.

I'm sitting here laughing to myself wondering which one to trim. They are both acting like 3 year olds.

Thanks for the tips. And thanks everyone else who sent me a note in private. Now I'm going off to buy a case of booze to get through my first mating pair. :wacko:

 

[Silverrose]

I have a female who is in pair breeding and she can be a reeeeal ****** to her males. Most of the time she will cuddle with a male and be no problem. But when she is in heat, oh man, the fur flies! I have to put her with an equally aggressive male who can put up with her. There is also no blood, just a lot of fur and aggressive romping around. I always keep an eye on them just in case, but it's almost certain that when there is craziness in the cage, she's in heat and he's tried to get at her. Once I do know she is pregnant, I will separate the male, just so I don't have to worry. And she is also one of my best moms here, if that counts for anything =)

Have you checked to see if she is open? I'd guess that your male knew it was that time, and she wasn't having any of that business lol.

 

[chinchildren]

i am with terbear24 (terri?) on this. you can trim whiskers. also, the vapor rub on the noses in a small cage (the infamous smoosh technique) and then the cage with plenty of hidy places has almost always worked for me. do NOT do time out. no blood no foul and just let them work it out. if you do see real aggression than you separate but do not try again before a good long cooling down period.

good luck

 

[starleomach]

I have a pair that only bickers when she is in heat. she is the dominant animal until then, those days he thinks he is. but with some they were just o agressive and if I am losing sleep over it I split them up and try a different pairing. there are often more issues with a group that has more than 1 dominant animal

 

[6Dusters]

Thanks everyone. I continue to have them in a different room. There has been no fighting. No hair pulling ect. They are sitting together very sweet. I think what happened is the little guy did his "duty." They look at us watching tv in the evening and sit side by side. They have remained as quiet as can be since that big event and all the hair pulling.

Can I assume at this point I can look forward to my first kits next April? Or has her cycle come and gone and next month we will go through this again?

 

[VolunteerChin22]

Perhaps - but she still might not get pregnant the first time - I had a pair that started out like that then to quiet cuddling and it was 9.5 months later before I had their first litter...but both were unproven so the "learning curve" could have contributed to it haha...they didn't seem to bicker like that once they got over the initial greeting...just keep an eye on them and see how they do.

 

[chinchildren]

i would not recommend assuming kits. this thing of "put male and female together, count 111 days, voila kits" is bs as often as not. assume kits when you see them or if you are experienced when you feel/see real signs of pregnancy. being too hands on will not help when pairing chins which is about the only thing i really like about runs.

don't know what you meant by having them in different room (are they separated?) when you are trying to pair it will only make things worse if you keep on pulling them away from each other because you are anxious. you need to give them time to figure it out even if they blow fur! blood is another matter...

Can I assume at this point I can look forward to my first kits next April? Or has her cycle come and gone and next month we will go through this again?

 

[Godins Chinchillas]

I think she met they are in a different room than the rest of her herd. She was afraid of the stress it was causing the other chins.

jessica

 

[chinchildren]

oh thanks jessica. that did not occur to me... duh..........

I think she met they are in a different room than the rest of her herd. She was afraid of the stress it was causing the other chins.

jessica

 

[6Dusters]

Since my original post my pair have calmed down. Thanks Jessica for the enlightenment. I did take the bickering pair and move them away from the chin room for peace and quiet. When they started to argue, the rest of the herd became stressed.

I moved them into a quiet room ( in a smaller cage ) and covered them and the couple bonded much better. They have not pulled hair or chased one another since. This was my first pairing and so far so good. They have since been taken back to the chin room and the entire herd is fine. And they are in their bigger home.

I asked the kit question as I want to know if that could be a possible mating and the bickering will quit. ( my first concern is the safety of my animals ) I've waited years to put a pair together. I take this all very serious and any question a person should post is never too dumb to ask. People need to take the time to read a post before offering a damning remark.

I do know the signs of pregnancy in later stages as I had a rescue who was pregnant.