Placing Chins

[Kaiya]

Hey guys! I have come to you with yet another question. This seems to be all I'm doing here, lol. I suppose it's better then going in blind, ne?

OK, this might be kind of long, but here's the scoop. i currently own 5 chins. 2 females, 3 males. I'd originally had 2 chins, one male, one female(that i didn't know was female). By some God given miracle they never had any kits, but i still split them up just in case. They really didn't handle being alone well, i tried the chin buddy and all that. Nothing seemed to really perk them back up. So i invested in 2 more chins(this time from a breeder, yes i do learn). Another male and female. The two new ones have been in quarantine in another room, in separate cages, and it has come time to rehome them.

The females seem to be doing fairly well, there's has been no fights, no chasing, but they don't seem to be "friends". They eat together, but that is about it. I am hoping they warm up to each other.

The males... heh.... don't seem to be getting a long so well. The new one is a lot smaller then the other. He was just born in late December. So i wasn't sure if the size had something to do with it. They have never gotten into a fight, but they have had their run ins and there is quite a bit of chasing. So i moved the cage he was in into the room next to the male, hoping they may get used to each other that way. Any suggestions on what else i could or should do?

As i said earlier, i have 5 chins. The last one actually came to me from a friend who could no longer care for him, bit of a surprise. So he is off in quarantine as well and has had no real contact with the other 4 chins (other then my family not abiding to my wishes). He is a baby too, about the size of the other young chin. So again, I'm worried about the size being an issue. With the males I'm kind of at a loss what to do. The older one being a bully and the youngest still in quarantine. It seems to be a bit of a mess. The baby in quarantine has about 2and a half more weeks of being alone. I was thinking maybe it'd be smart to just wait on trying to introduce the males until he is ready to come out? Maybe that would be the least stressful for them?

I really don't know, lol. I need help! Thanks guys!

 

[Kaiya]

Sorry, I should add that the cages had been moved into the same room for a little while before the boys met so they could get used to each others scent. I also gave them both a dust bath before they physically met to help with scent as well.

 

[Tagna]

I wouldn't have 2 males in one cage when there are females in the same room. That can lead to fights to the death.

 

[tunes]

I wouldn't have 2 males in one cage when there are females in the same room. That can lead to fights to the death.

Can, but in my experience, rarely does. Every time I see this statement, I wonder where it comes from. If I had to house all of my males separately and in a different room, I would need to have two chin barns. I have chins throughout my barn in pairs, trios, and quads of males and there is never a squabble between them. If a fight does break out, I'd be willing to bet the same fight would break out whether there were females in the room or not. I can count on one hand where two males fought to the death here. Male and female? Absolutely, but not male and male. Males fight just as much when there aren't any females around for miles.

I'm guessing their personalities just aren't meshing. Anything is possible with chins, but when a fight breaks out, it's just as likely that it happened because the sky is blue as because there was a female in the same room. There are a few things you can try, though often times once they have fought, they don't forget. You can try cutting the big guy's whiskers way back. Just leave him half an inch or so. Try using a completely neutral cage when you put them together, completely cleaned, all new or cleaned stuff that doesn't have the scent of one or the other. There is an intro thread in the forum FAQ's that may be of help if you want to try again. Be warned though, once they fight, if it was a true fight and not just a little chasing, it may be a hard situation to rectify. You will need to be constantly vigalent to be sure nothing happens.

Something else you can look into is getting the males castrated. You need an experienced vet, but it can and has been done with great success by many people. Chins don't handle anesthesia well, so it's important that you find a vet who knows what they are doing. But as more and more people are having this procedure done, and as more and more chins are being seen by vets, it's becoming a slightly more acceptable surgery, whereas in the past people would freak if you even mentioned it.

 

[Mt. Zion Chins]

I completely agree with Tunes on everything. I have paired many males with females around with NO problems. I have also suggested to people who have had males fight (one was a brother pair) to try castration with a knowledgeable chin vet. and it has always work for them

 

[Tagna]

I know a few people that's it's happened to. I wonder if there is a difference between pet and breeders fighting. The males in a breeing situation do get to breed, whereas a pet situation don't.

These are people I know personally, and not "stories" I've read about. The result in one case was a dead chin.

 

[mishellyshel]

i have NO females in my house (well 'cept me & my doggie!) and my males have fought and been separated. i think if they are going to fight, they will fight. not everyone gets along, just like in life.

 

[Riven]

Whether they actually get to breed something or not the urge is there.

I know a gal who neutered her males and they get along great now. They might never get along, or they might eventually. Really it just depends on the chins and their temperment. I've had breeders that I've put two males together, no problems. They are just chins that are happy to have company, and that was in the middle of my chin house where all of my breeders are houses. I also had two males houses two inches away from seven females, they never fought severally, they had a couple squabbles, but I believe they had them before they came here anyway.

 

[Lynn & The Chins]

Yes, I'm the poster child for neutering males and then getting them together!!!



As long as it's done by an experienced exotic vet, it's usually uneventful. I've had 3 males neutered by Dr. Fitzgerald.



In both cases 1 chin was bullying the other, and the neutering worked out They spend their days snuggling, sharing recipes and baking pies!!!

 

[Kaiya]

Castration? Really? I've never heard of that in chins. What is the difference between castration and neutering? I mean, obviously i know what the difference is, i mean in terms of the effect it has on the chins? The problem I'm having now is I don't want any kits. I have no business having kits because I'm really inexperienced when it comes to chin babies. So if I don't want babies would it be better to just neuter? Then I could mix all the chins despite gender, yes? The big male that is giving me problems gets along great with the female he was paired with before, they were quite the snuggly pair.

 

[Lynn & The Chins]

Castration = neutering.They both refer to the removal of a male chin's testicles.

 

[Megan]

I currently have a male/male pair. They are both around 10 years old, one is possibly older. They were introduced as adults 5 years ago when Raisin came in as a rescue, was adopted out, returned, adopted out once more and returned yet again I decided he'd stay here. I introduced him to the my very first chin, who was NEVER bred, but had always been around females in the chinchilla room. They've been together 5 years now, get along great.

I also have a current trio of younger males who have been housed together thus far with no problems.... I haven't had much of a problem with male pairs fighting.

 

[tunes]

Castration is for males, spaying is for females, neutering is either/or.

Castration is the removal or destruction of one or both testicles

To spay is to remove surgically the ovaries of (an animal).

Neutering, from the Latin neuter (of neither sex[1]), is the removal of an animal's reproductive organ, either all of it or a considerably large part. It is the most drastic surgical procedure with sterilizing purposes. The process is often used in reference to males whereas spaying is often reserved for females. Colloquially, both terms are often referred to as fixing. While technically called castration for males, in male horses, the process is referred to as gelding.

 

[starleomach]

I am always slightly amused when I see you can't cage males togther with females in the room...I have several groupings of males. I have only had 2 really big fights between males and lost one only once to that and that was before I owned any females....I have had more issues with male/female

 

[Spoof]

I personally wouldn't cage two proven breeding males together close to females. Have had males get into other's breeding runs and kill each other.

I wean in groups of up to five, both male and female. Have not had a problem with the same-sex groups, will leave them up to eight months of age when I separate out for show or breeding cages.

 

[Riven]

Castration or neutering in male chins is done the same way it is with dogs, horses, etc. they simply remove the testicles, unlike say humans where they do a vasectomy and cut and tie the tubes.

 

[Kaiya]

Oh! Okay, when I heard "castration" I assumed it was the same practice they perform on humans. That's why I was confused, lol.

I want to assume none of my chins were used for breeding. 2 of them came from petstores, the breeder claims she didn;t use the other two for breeding(I don't see why she would lie), and the one I got through my friend seems too young to breed, and I'm sure if she had she would have told me, I'll ask her, though just to be safe.

The thought of putting any of my chinnies under anesthesia scares me to death. Some years ago we got a guinea pig neutered and somehow he ended up with a hernia and got very sick. He had to be put to sleep. It was very sad. Not to mention I don't know of any reliable vets here. I'm not saying the ones here are bad. The vet my chins currently see is wonderful. I go to her with my dogs, too. It's just chins aren't in her line of expertise.

Thanks so much for all of your replies! They were very informative and you all were very kind! I knew I made the right choice joining this forum!

 

[Lynn & The Chins]

Oh! Okay, when I heard "castration" I assumed it was the same practice they perform on humans. That's why I was confused, lol.

I want to assume none of my chins were used for breeding. 2 of them came from petstores, the breeder claims she didn;t use the other two for breeding(I don't see why she would lie), and the one I got through my friend seems too young to breed, and I'm sure if she had she would have told me, I'll ask her, though just to be safe.

The thought of putting any of my chinnies under anesthesia scares me to death. Some years ago we got a guinea pig neutered and somehow he ended up with a hernia and got very sick. He had to be put to sleep. It was very sad. Not to mention I don't know of any reliable vets here. I'm not saying the ones here are bad. The vet my chins currently see is wonderful. I go to her with my dogs, too. It's just chins aren't in her line of expertise. Thanks so much for all of your replies! They were very informative and you all were very kind! I knew I made the right choice joining this forum!

One of the first things you should do when you decide to have chins as pets is to find a qualified EMERGENCY Exotic vet. If you have one, you don't need to worry. If you don't, you'll be sure to end up with an emergency in the middle of the night and have nowhere to go. Trust me -- it's Murphy's Law!!!

I have always taken my new chins in for what I call a "Healthy Baby Checkup". (My vet does not charge me for this visit.) This does more than get them checked out. It also establishes a relationship with the vet and you then become an "established patient", and are usually able to be seen more quickly should the need arise. :thumbsup:

 

[Kaiya]

Thanks! That's very good to know. I guess I've been really lucky all this time and never had any emergencies with my chins.

 

[Soft World Chins]

I have had two males that hated each other so much, that even though they were in separate cages they would fuss at each other across the room, and pace in front of their cage doors. They have never been in a fight or in the same cage which I am sure would case the death of one. I have no idea how it start unless it was one of those "I'm prettier that you" deals, ha.