Troubled Adopted Chin/First Time Owner Questions

Bostitch · Oct 31, 2012

I'm a brand new chinchilla owner, and my little guy has been through a lot before his adoption and as a result he's understandably very, very nervous. I've only had him for a week but he has already developed a tendency to bite hard enough to draw blood, so I do wear gloves when trying to interact with him. He's initially fearful of my hands being in the cage but allows me to pet him while he eat/drinks and moves away when he tires of it.

My major question is:
Is it ok for me to make these attempts with him while he's eating/drinking or could it be causing him additional stress?

But I'm also curious about any tips for a caring for a troubled chinchilla whose past includes escaping his former home and time at a shelter.

ticklechin · Oct 31, 2012

I personally do not do the glove thing for biters, I let them bite and I don't react even though it hurts like a beech. I want them to get used to my hands naked, the more I handle the less fearful they become. I also let my rescues chill out for a couple of weeks without being touched unless needed to let them acclimate to their new space-some rescues act like they are on a new adventure and settle in no problem, some act like the world that they knew has ended and you are the cause. It takes time and alot of patience dealing with rescue chin psychological issues, I have one now I have had 3 years and he still thinks I suck, the longest hold out was 6 years and she was physically abused by a teen age boy. Eventually they all come around and when they do they are pure pleasure.

Tagna · Oct 31, 2012

Time and patience are what works best I find. Like Dawn said, I would let your chin just get adjusted to their new home before handling.

Bostitch · Oct 31, 2012

Thanks for the feedback! I am nervous about giving him out of cage time because he is an escape artist but I know it is important for them. Should out of cage time take priority over handling? If so, how do I get him back in the cage?

Godofgods · Nov 1, 2012

The first chin i took in was so so beyond stressed out. He had been passed around so many owners that i cant get a past history. Living with new new kids, and after a move +2-3 hour drive, he was a mess. He would bark and freak out when you even walked near his cage.

I mostly let him be for a long time. He not only had to get used to a new place, and new ppl, but adjusting from such a past took even more. I kept things quite around here which helped him. It just took time for him to adjust.

Eventually he would slowly start coming around. Getting a scratch here or their. When it was time to start letting him out, he would slowly start coming to me and crawling over me. Now a days, out of my 5 chins, that first one is beyond the most friendly and affectionate chin of the bunch. It just took time'

ticklechin · Nov 1, 2012

I would not let the chin have playtime if he needs to be caught, he is just going to think you are going to eat him. With rescues or stress fest chins I let them come out and in their cage on their own-build a playpen around the front of the cage, you can tape cardboard or something like it together and tie it to the cage, tape where they cannot reach, put a couple of boxes with holes cut in them for doors so they can streak from their cage to the box and back-as time goes on and I see they are spending more time out in the open and not in their cage or box then they can go into the play pens. I carrier train mine so they come when called into their carriers.