One of the risks of breeding

[aznmexaggie]

Adult chinchillas can turn on one another and it isn't unheard of for a female to turn on her mate. One of my boys, Ronin, was unlucky enough to experience an attack... and since he was not in a breeding run, he was unable to escape her. He received multiple bite wounds on his back/rump area, his tail, and on his mouth. I had to clean and disinfect his wounds, apply Blu-Kote, and now have him in his own cage with paper towels lining the bottom so I can monitor his output. He drank quite a bit but stopped eating and was pooping very little. I now am having to handfeed him Critical Care, antibiotics, motility drugs, and pain meds multiple times a day. He is starting to become much more active and takes the Critical Care like a champ. I am so glad he is on the road to recovery.

Warning, photos below
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*

For anyone who is considering breeding, think about the risk you are putting your chinchilla in and whether or not you are able to react in this type of situation to help your chinchilla recover if the damage is not fatal.

 

[jags]

And this is not even as bad as it can be. I have seen much worse over the years. Glad to see he is doing better.

 

[Bethany]

I had one go into shock and die after being attacked.

 

[MyFuzzies]

Aww poor fella....I hope he gets better real soon!!

 

[Chingal]

We have lost a couple of males and females over the years due to after mating attacks..They can be very brutal

 

[aznmexaggie]

Yes, I'm glad I got off work early and caught it when I did otherwise it could have been much worse.

 

[Twilight Chinchillas]

Poor guy. I hope he heals fast. I'm glad you caught it in time to prevent further injury, or death. I've lost a couple males too, and it is always heartbreaking.

 

[Chinniechantel]

Thank you for sharing. Yes, it is horrible, and can be worse. We too have lost a male and it is heartbreaking and you always blame yourself.

 

[eroomlorac]

Poor guy. I hope he heals just fine.

 

[Stackie]

Glad he is coming along. Sending all the good luck and healing wishes from here...

Just to add to this, I don't breed but I had a bonded pair of males that lived together for quite sometime and absolutely loved on another. They were always cuddling. One ended up turning on the other overnight with absolutely NO warning and gave him major gashes in his neck (vet had to glue them shut with surgical glue) along with tons of bite marks along his back. He also had a bite through his nose, which caused him to not be able to breath correctly.

Chins that have been attacked can go into shock, and it's really hard to get them to turn around. Unfortunately, my boy never got over his shock and ended up passing away.

 

[6Dusters]

I had a bonded pair of girls who had a tiff and thank goodness it was just fur flying and I seperated them forever. Has there been any information published on the behavior of chins? Studies of how they manage as a group in the wild or studies in runs or colony living? Since I had the girls fight and a mom who mauled a kit, I have often wondered if there was any published material to better understand group dynamics.
Best wishes for your little guy. Sounds like he is going to recover. It can be very difficult keeping these little guys.

 

[Anne-Lise]

Poor little thing..... I'm glad he made it!

 

[chin-nw]

I'm glad he is doing better. Poor guy. I recently had a male who after being with his mate for 6 months, was attacked. Fortunately, he is in a breeding run and was able to escape with only a minor rump/tail injury. But had he been in a closed cage, who knows what might have happened. Something to always consider when you decide to breed.

 

[Snickers]

Poor guy. Hopefully, he has a speedy recovery.

 

[Remyma0408]

Poor guy, hoping he feels better soon!

 

[starleomach]

One of the scary part of breedings. I have had that. I have a couple missing ears or parts of ears from sudden fights. It can be scary

 

[Cuddlebug]

I, too, have had a female turn on a male. Luckily, I was in the room when it started so she was only able to get a couple of bites in at the back of the neck, along with fur pulled from his rump. He's fine, now. I waited a couple of months and tried them again and now they snuggle up with each other. Needless to say, I keep a close eye on them just in case.

 

[Sasha]

Oh man that is so scary I am glad he is recovering now.

 

[weew]

Hope your chin recover soon.

 

[4everchins]

Awww poor baby, Sumiko how is he doing now?

I just had this twice happen here, all with 4 days, I had a male with two girls who have been together though both of their last pregnancy's. The one girl delivered trips and fatal attacked the other female, she died two days later along with her unborn kits. Then this morning one of my females had kit and I found attacking her mate, thank god I got thier in time. He has few minor scratches and some fur loss, but looks good. It just go's to show you that you any thing can and will happen!