2 Questions about possible arriving kits?

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babygirllllll

Well-known member
Joined
Jul 28, 2010
Messages
47
Location
Glen Burnie, Maryland
1. What do they eat? I know they nurse from the momma but, do I need to have them a tiny little bowl of anything else, or does momma do all the work?

2. Momma is a standard, daddy is a black velvet. What are the possible colors I can expect for the little fuzzbutts?
 
Mom pretty much does all the work, at least at the beginning. However, you're going to want to weigh the kits every day, and specifically pay attention in the first few days, because if Mom doesn't get milk in or whatever, the kits will start losing weight, and you'll have to handfeed.

You could put in a dry kit supplement if you wanted... I personally put in the dry kit supplement which consists of powdered goat's milk, baby oatmeal cereal, baby rice cereal, and ground up pellets (whatever mom eats). They get that in a separate little bowl.

As they grow, you'll want to make sure there is hay available in the cage, because the kits tend to try out and eat the hay pretty early on.

From those colors, you can get either standard or black velvet babies.
 
You will get either standard or black velvet and no you do not need to put anything in for the kits, they will nurse and after afew days may start nibbling on moms feed and hay
 
Your chins can either have black velvet babies or standard babies. The babies eat milk and will eventually graduate to eating pellets and hay with mom. They don't need "extra" unless mom doesn't get milk in. I'd also not offer her for "trade" until you are sure one way or the other if she is or isn't pregnant. Trading/getting rid of a pregnant female is not a good idea.

I'm also confused as to why they were just separated a week ago.

I separated them(within the past week), but they were together for some time before being separated. I never thought much of it until I noticed she was being slightly more aggressive towards the other chin. They're usually happily cuddling, but within the past week she wants NOTHING to do with him and nips at him and rips fur anytime he comes near her. This is why I decided to do an online search and decided to 'sex' them and found they were of different sex.

Since you've known since August, shortly after you got them, that they were different genders...as stated in this thread.

http://chins-n-hedgies.com/forums/showthread.php?t=17886

You also posted a thread back when you "first" found out they were different genders asking about a diet for her and saying you had separated them then. Did you put them back together? Why weren't they kept separate?

And did you buy them as a pair as you've stated several times or did you buy her for him as you say here...

I recently got a playmate for my chin and was told it was a boy. Well now 'hes' pregnant.

But in your first post about Isabella, you clearly state she is a "she". I guess I'm just flat confused by all the contradictions.
 
Your chins can either have black velvet babies or standard babies. The babies eat milk and will eventually graduate to eating pellets and hay with mom. They don't need "extra" unless mom doesn't get milk in. I'd also not offer her for "trade" until you are sure one way or the other if she is or isn't pregnant. Trading/getting rid of a pregnant female is not a good idea.

I'm also confused as to why they were just separated a week ago.



Since you've known since August, shortly after you got them, that they were different genders...as stated in this thread.

http://chins-n-hedgies.com/forums/showthread.php?t=17886

You also posted a thread back when you "first" found out they were different genders asking about a diet for her and saying you had separated them then. Did you put them back together? Why weren't they kept separate?

And did you buy them as a pair as you've stated several times or did you buy her for him as you say here...



But in your first post about Isabella, you clearly state she is a "she". I guess I'm just flat confused by all the contradictions.


WOW, that does all sound really bad. I got him first and shortly after got her, from the same breeder. And I was told that 'he' was his original cage mate. So at this point I'm thinking I have 2 males. Then when one of friend familiar with chins came over, she said 'his' anatomy looked just like her females, so I separated them. About a week later I took them to the vet, and my vet said they were both males. So at this point I put them back together, assuming he knew what he was talking about. And I've been thinking lately that its a female because shes been showing the signs of pregnancy. To this day I am still not 100% if it is a female nor if she is pregnant, but I do have them permanently separated as a precaution. The whole idea of getting a second chin was so my male would be able to have a playmate. I just want 100% to know that I have 2 males. I'm scared to death that she is pregnant because I dont feel qualified to be 'breeding'. So I'm going to hang on to him/her for a bit, and see what happens and I would not be giving him/her away until he/she has the babies or not. I know all this sounds really really bad, and I'm sorry for all the confusions. All I wanted was a male companion for my male chinchilla and now I'm in such a mess :(
 
Can you take pictures of both of the chinchillas parts? Here is a thread that shows you how to sex them and what each gender looks like. There is a link in the thread that goes to another posting showing adult males and females. This should help a lot or if you can get pictures we can tell you what gender they are for sure.

http://chins-n-hedgies.com/forums/showthread.php?t=16956
 
If you post pics of your chins genitals we can tell you if they are male or female and then you'd know for sure.
 
a0v2oo.jpg


This is Beebo. I was told he was a male. But then again I was told by the same person who has gotten me into this confusion on my other chin :/

2060yvm.jpg


This is Isabella/Fluffy. I was first told it was a male by the breeder. Then a female by a friend who has a female chin. Then told a male by the vet. And I figured the pros would know what they were talking about? :/


So do I have an Isabella or a Fluffy on my hands? I now have them in 2 separate cages permanently and do not plan on putting them back together. If he/she is a female, I am looking to trade for a male cage mate for my chin. But I wont be doing so until I know for sure 1. if she is a female and 2. if she is infact pregnant! And if someone could tell me the correct sex of Beebo too I would appreciate it. I've always thought he was a boy, but the same breeder told me...
 
Beebo is male, Isabella is female. That breeder must be losing their mind if they don't know what sex chin they are selling.

ETA: if you are waiting to see if she's pregnant, you will either be waiting (1) until she has kits (and then until they are weaned), or in the alternative, (2) waiting around 111+ days from the day when you separated the two. In the event she does not have kits and isn't pregnant at the current moment, 111 days is right around 4 months. So looking for male to swap her with... you have some time.

Have you by any chance kept track of her weight? If you haven't yet, I'd suggest going out and getting a gram scale and weighing her now and writing down what she weighs. Then periodically you can weigh her and see if she's gaining. They gain the most in the last two months, but one way to tell kits is that females typically gain over 100+ grams, which would be unusual in the absence of a pregnancy.
 
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Boo so there is a possible chance she could be pregnant :/ Funny how my friend knew it was a girl, but a supposed 'breeder' and a professional vet couldn't tell me the difference.

Well I have everything prepared for her to have babies, but I'm kind of hoping she wont. I'm going to hang on to her for the 111 days to see if anything happens. Do you have any idea where I could trade her for a male from a breeder who actually knows what they're talking about? I would like a pink/white male if possible? And I'm in the MD area.
 
Vet's aren't always the most knowledgeable about these things. I suppose maybe because it probably doesn't come up very often whether or not they can tell a chin is male or female. Most people probably come in, saying "this is my male chin Max," and the vet assumes its a male and never looks to see what the male parts look like.

And about your friend knowing - this is why I often tell people to trust others who have been into chins forever (maybe not everyone, but some people are highly knowledgeable and would help more than a vet). Especially if people breed, like the breeder you got yours from, they should definitely be able to tell with a quick glance. I can tell someone if their chin is male or female and I'm not a vet, but I've owned chins for 8 years now... but I'm not sure the vets in town could.

I imagine most breeders aren't going to trade you for a male. I could be wrong, but I always find those "I'll trade my rabbit for a guinea pig!" ads on craigslist a little odd... partially, because I think, what's the chance that someone with a guinea pig wants a rabbit, and vice versa? I suppose it must happen every now and then or we wouldn't see those ads, but I just don't think it works out all that often. I would think you'd have better luck simply selling her and then buying a male from a breeder in your area. I don't know of good breeders around there, I'm too far away. All I can think of is Whitewoods, and I think they're in PA? (but even then, I can only vaguely tell you that PA is in the general east-coast-vicinity of Maryland, I don't know how long that drive would be). Might be worth looking into though, they have a ton of nice chins and might have a pink white male for you.
 
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Whitewoods is out of breeding, they no longer own chins. Brandi/Angel is in Elkton, Maryland, and Monika/moon is in Edgewater, Maryland. I am from Laurel and travel past Glen Burnie when visiting my parents, but that is once or twice a year.

I will say that I did have a pair of kits where I thought they were males the first time I sexed them - which is as soon as I find them - but I had doubt. They looked kind of inbetween. I gave them unisex names and sexed them again a few days later and sure enough, they were/are females. So, I understand where missexing even by a breeder can happen, especially if they sex them the day they're born and never double check... (I always double check before I wean.) I've seen it happen / heard of it happening on several different occasions, by breeders considered knowledgeable and responsible. It happens.

As for the vet, many people unfamiliar with chins (and not all vets are familiar with them, unfortunately) see the cone and assume it's male, that's a very common mistake. However, attempting to do a hair ring check on your chin - as is something you want to be familiar with doing if you own males, or think your chin is a male - would alert you otherwise.
 
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I will say that I did have a pair of kits where I thought they were males the first time I sexed them - which is as soon as I find them - but I had doubt. They looked kind of inbetween. I gave them unisex names and sexed them again a few days later and sure enough, they were/are females. So, I understand where missexing even by a breeder can happen, especially if they sex them the day they're born and never double check... (I always double check before I wean.) I've seen it happen / heard of it happening on several different occasions, by breeders considered knowledgeable and responsible. It happens.

Don't get me wrong, I agree that it happens, I've had kits that I wonder about too, but then check when they're a bit older and then you can tell if they are male/female. I suppose I find it easy to determine on an adult, and I know I double check and triple check that the chin I'm selling is what sex I say it is. Even for the adults, I make sure if I am selling a standard male that's in cage #2 (even if there's only one standard in cage #2), when I pick up the standard I check that it's a male. But maybe I'm just paranoid that I don't give someone the wrong chin, I would feel bad.
 
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