New chin

chinlover10112 · May 25, 2012

Hey! I've had my chin (boo) for a week today. He is a boy and is about 4-5 months old. I had a couple of questions!

1. Can I let him have some playtime? Because I've read somethings that say don't let them out before 6 months of age. He's been out 2 times and the 2nd time he peed on my floor "/

2. Whenever I try to hold him, he wiggles away. I can't even hold him to just take him out of the cage. What is wrong/ what can I do?

3. he is very curious, and has already been stepping into my hands, licked my fingers, and lets me pet him. Are these good signs for bonding?

Sorry for so many questions! Please help! Thanks!:chin:

jess32247 · May 26, 2012

1. I think it's better to wait until they are 6 months old for playtime. You've only had him a week, you should wait longer before you let him out because he's still adjusting. Waiting another month or two would be good because he would be more ready for playtime and be a lot more comfortable (plus, more time for you two to start bonding!) Ps - my chin would pee every where around the room for months. I would have to clean up almost every day until I taught her that she has to use the bathroom in her cage BEFORE she comes out for playtime, and if she pees out side of her cage, she goes straight back in for the night! Be prepared to do lots of extra cleaning!

2. How are you holding him? A lot of chins don't like to be held, plus they can get very hot when being held. I don't hold my girl (unless I have too) because I don't want it to stress her out. You're probably stressing the little guy out holding him so soon, he hasn't adjusted or bonded with you much yet.

3. Yup! Those are good signs with bonding! He sounds like he's taking to you quickily, let him go at his own pace and don't be deeted if things take a step back. It can take months/years for them to bond with you. I've had my girl for 8 months and we're still bonding more and more!

Grats on owning a chinnie! What's his name?

chinlover10112 · May 27, 2012

I've decided to name him boo

and thanks for the helpful information! Right now he has no toys and a smallish cage so He seems bored. He will be getting a much bigger cage soon though!

tcraighenry · May 27, 2012

My chins are very particular about how they're held too. Vincenza likes to be face first, Cinnamon likes to face out.

chinlover10112 · May 29, 2012

We are coming up on our 2 weeks being home this Friday. Tonight my boo has made some big progress all tonight. When I went to take his water bottle out and refill it, he ran right to my hands an jumped up on my arm and started running around on my arm and was letting me completely pet him without having to stop every minute to sniff me or run away. I'm very pleased with how much he has bonded with me already!

VolunteerChin22 · May 30, 2012

Sounds like you are off to a good start! Also just want to point out you should begin holding the chin for short periods of time after the first week or so as much as he/she will tolerate - it's essential that you are comfortable holding/handling him should he become ill and you need to hand feed him.

Also are you trying to hold him correctly? You should never grab them or hold them around their waist - imagine if he was being grabbed by a hawk - thats exactly why they struggle being held this way and it will lead to slipped fur. To do it correctly, you need to either scoop him up from the bottom with both hands or you can hold him by the base of the tail, lift and then place him on your arm/hand. Either way, if you are holding him you need to support from below and keep a medium grip on the base of his tail (about an inch away from his body - too close and he'll slip fur and too far down you risk injury to the tail) as this keeps him from jumping from your hands and injuring himself. I believe there is a video somewhere of proper holding techniques. Doing it this way he will be much calmer and you won't risk slipping fur/overheating.