My chins suddenly became really fearful

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Darkfinale

New member
Joined
Sep 14, 2018
Messages
3
So I’ve had my chins(1 male 1 female) for more than a year now. They love to get handled in the past and would run and climb around me during playtime. However, recently they suddenly got scared and would bolt away the moment i open the cage. Also, when i do catch them to put them back into their cage after playtime they drop a ton of fur. I’ve now kept them in the cage without playtime for 2 days but whenever i do come to the cage to check them out and greet them they would run into their hideouts. I’m scared as i don’t know what happened to the two of them. What should i do to help them calm down or rebuild our bond we had in the past?

Note: i do not have any other pets
 
So both are living in one cage? Is the male neutered or the female spayed? Hormones can effect behavior if the female is pregnant and/or the male is protecting her.

Fur slipping, as you mentioned "drop a ton of fur" is a sign of stress, it's a defense, you likely scared them when you caught them to go back in the cage. You will need to start over on bonding and earning their trust back. Go back to treating them like they are brand new.

If it wasn't you catching them that caused the fear, and no chance of the female being pregnant, my next guess would be to look around. Anything new? Any construction in the area, new animals outside (cats, barking dogs, etc), any new people in the house, new noisy neighbors, or pipes rattling from heat kicking in? Is anyone else in the house or visiting that could have done something to them? Have you changed any lotions, shampoos, etc that could cause you to smell differently?
 
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