Question about my Male Chin!

[chiyo]

Hi i got 2 chins about 7 months ago both only 3 months old when i got them and the male recently seems to be sat on his shelf dare i say it? 'pleasuring himself' i think is this normal or is he just cleaning? i keep reading up about hair rings? but not sure exactly what is ment or what they are?

if anyone could give me a few pointers would be great!

 

[Kalandra]

Here are a couple of links that explain hair rings and how to check for them.

http://www.chins-n-hedgies.com/forums/showthread.php?t=36
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GUfmBoighpA - hair ring check video.

 

[Mt. Zion Chins]

It is completely normal. He is cleaning himself (less likely to have a hair ring that way). While doing that he is of course, enjoying himself Hair rings are just that rings of hair that can get wrapped around a chin's penis. With a pet chin hair rings rarely happen. If you look at the FAQ about the care of chins you will see how to properly care for a male chin

 

[Chin_Parent]

He's probably cleaning himself. Hair rings are (as the name would suggest) hair that collects around the penis of a chinchilla. If left alone they can be painful and cause problems for the chinchilla. Males need to be checked once a month for hair rings (I think it's suggested that you start checking after they are a year old, however, it doesn't hurt to check if they're younger, especially if you see him paying a lot of attention to it and trying to clean it). If you search the forum, there are instructions for how to do hair ring checks. Normally you burrito your chinchilla in a tshirt or towel so they can't get away, gently fully extend the penis, and remove any hair that's caught on it, then gently put it back to normal. If my poor instructions fail you, you can also see demonstrations of it if you search on youtube.