Paranoid Questions. :D

[Care]

I posted here a year and a half ago about getting chinchillas, which ended up not happening as soon as I expected it to. I just picked up three males from the SPCA about two hours ago, and paranoia is already setting in.

I've seen two of them pawing at their nose/mouth area, but if it were a hamster or rabbit I'd say they were just grooming. How much nose/mouth pawing is actually normal?

Uhh... What are normal chinchilla testicles supposed to look like? I was expecting it to be like most mammals where there is one "unit" hanging down, but on the mosaic it looks like two separate pink lumps with a fair bit of space between them. Almost looks like swollen nipples would on a female cat or something. Is that normal? They move so fast, it's hard to get a good look. Does anyone have a picture of what it's supposed to look like?

I remember reading here something along the lines of hair ring checks shouldn't be needed unless they're "hanging out", but what is that? When they stand up, it's apparent that they're male, so how much hanging out is normal?

I have a two-story FN. The food, water and hay are all on the top level. The standard and mosaic have both been to the top level and eaten a few pellets, but the beige has been hiding behind the wheel on the bottom level pretty much since I put him in there. None of them have drank any water yet that I saw. How long should I wait before being worried about the water? And how long should I wait before either putting the beige in the top level so he realises it's there, or putting the food/water on the bottom level for him?

What is the difference between grooming and biting? The mosaic went up to the standard and nibbled at him right under his eye. The standard kind of lowered his head and partially opened his mouth, and then they hopped away from each other. If they'd been cats, I would have interpreted that as "leave me alone or I'm going to bite you." What was that? Grooming? Dominance? A potential fight starter?

They seem small to me, though I haven't seen that many chinchillas in person. How long should I wait before weighing them?

And finally, how long should I wait before washing the fleece liners for the first time? I know normally every 2-3 days, but should I wait longer the first time just for the sake of not disturbing them too much?

 

[Care]

Here's one more:
The mosaic has about an inch of black on his back left foot. It doesn't look in any way abnormal, aside from the color. Is it possible for them to just have different pigmentation in the skin on their foot, or is this something I should worry about? I suppose he could have stepped in something, but I can't imagine what.

 

[Care]

Sorry for posting in a row.

The standard has a small hair-ring. I tried to remove it myself, but was pretty unsuccessful. But, while he was upsidedown, I noticed he has the same discoloration on his feet as the mosaic. I'm attempting to attach a picture - do these look like normal feet to you?

Back on the subject of hair-rings, what's the best way to remove them alone? I've seen a video, but that was such a calm chin. I don't know how that method is supposed to work with one that's now very scared and angry with me. I had him upsidedown by his tail, but every time I would touch him with my other hand, he would kick off of me and I'm scared of hurting him.

It's small, and I saw it when he was trying to remove it himself... should I just leave it for a bit to give him a chance to do that? How long before it really becomes a problem?

 

[StevieP]

I've seen two of them pawing at their nose/mouth area, but if it were a hamster or rabbit I'd say they were just grooming. How much nose/mouth pawing is actually normal?

Are they whisker cleaning with both hands or are they indeed pawing at their mouths? You shouldn't really notice them bothering with their mouths too much, but if they are, something is bothering them. Pawing at the mouth is a sign of teeth problems and requires a vet to diagnose.

Uhh... What are normal chinchilla testicles supposed to look like?

From how you describe them, it sounds normal.

I have a two-story FN. The food, water and hay are all on the top level. The standard and mosaic have both been to the top level and eaten a few pellets, but the beige has been hiding behind the wheel on the bottom level pretty much since I put him in there. None of them have drank any water yet that I saw. How long should I wait before being worried about the water? And how long should I wait before either putting the beige in the top level so he realises it's there, or putting the food/water on the bottom level for him?

Give them a day to get over the shock of being in a new home. RIght now they are probably scared. Eventually he will find the water and food. Be sure the water bottle is working though.

They seem small to me, though I haven't seen that many chinchillas in person. How long should I wait before weighing them?

And finally, how long should I wait before washing the fleece liners for the first time? I know normally every 2-3 days, but should I wait longer the first time just for the sake of not disturbing them too much?

In 2-3 days from now I would go ahead and change the fleece and weigh them while you are doing that. By then they should be less scared and more used to their new surroundings.

The mosaic has about an inch of black on his back left foot

Those feetsies look great! Nothing to worry about. IF you ever notice they look dry, you can put Bag Balm on them.

The standard has a small hair-ring. I tried to remove it myself, but was pretty unsuccessful

You can use some water based personal lubricant (KY) to aid in removing the hair ring. Once you pull his penis out, gently roll the hair ring off of the penis while holding the sheath back. Once the ring is off make sure his penis goes back in before releasing him.

I would get someone to help you. Have someone hold him while you use both hands. They can let his back feet stand on their left hand and put their right hand around his body.

Go ahead and try to remove the ring sooner than later becuase they can be uncomfortable for the chin and hinder urine flow.

 

[Lynn & The Chins]

Here's one more:
The mosaic has about an inch of black on his back left foot. It doesn't look in any way abnormal, aside from the color. Is it possible for them to just have different pigmentation in the skin on their foot, or is this something I should worry about? I suppose he could have stepped in something, but I can't imagine what.

AWWW...Mr. Whiskers has black feet!!! I call him my little Afro-American chinchilla. I think it makes him special.:thumbsup:

 

[Care]

I got my mom to hold the standard while I checked for a hair ring again, didn't see one (didn't manage to get his penis all the way out, though), but after watching the video again I think what I saw was part of the sheath. I'll keep an eye on him for that.

I weighed them today, hard to get an accurate measurement with them wiggling around, but all of them are over 550g. The standard was the only one I got an exact on, 557g. The beige is about 570g. The mosaic went completely psycho, fur slipped, acted like I was trying to drown him, but he's definitely heavier than the other two - somewhere between 580-620g. :wacko: Hopefully I can get something more exact in a week or two.

They're drinking and eating fine - about half a cup a day for the three of them.

Are they whisker cleaning with both hands or are they indeed pawing at their mouths?

After seeing it again, whisker cleaning.

 

[tunes]

The whisker pawing is the "fu man chu" move. They look cute as heck while they do it.

Whenever you get around to doing another hair ring check, it's good to know that not all of them have the exact same colored skin under the shaft. Sometimes there are black spots, which are just the pigmentation of the skin in relation to that particular chin. I know I've had to look twice at a few where I wasn't sure. If you can't feel the hair ring or get it to move with a bit of KY jelly, it may just be the color of this chin's skin.

Welcome Care. I haven't been on Yahoo in ages (I needed a very long break) but I have seen you lurking around the forum. It's good to have you posting.

 

[Tennyson]

Steven, I have to know if you posed your chin that way or if you were just at the right place, at the right time with a camera? That is such an awesome picture!

 

[StevieP]

Steven, I have to know if you posed your chin that way or if you were just at the right place, at the right time with a camera? That is such an awesome picture!

Right place at the right time! I have a ton of pictures of my chins and that one was already uploaded to my imageshack, so up it went! I never thought it would come in handy


Care-- Glad they're eating and drinking now. Congrats on the new chins )

 

[Care]

Thanks guys.