2 males and 1 female?

[katiekean19]

I currently have 2 male chins and they have been living together peacefully since August. I'm going to meet a guy tomorrow who is giving their white chinchilla away because his daughter is allergic. He said that they think it is a boy. If t turns out a girl is there any way that she could live with my two boys without them killing each other? I really want it but don't want to disturb the peace of my boys. Help?!

 

[jags]

Not something I would try. Best to leave the males together and cage the female alone.

 

[Cat75]

Housing 2 males and a female together is asking for fighting. Also keep in mind even if the new chinchilla is a male there is no guarantee he will get along with your two current chinchillas. Do you have a separate cage to quarantine the new chinchilla away from your current chinchillas?

 

[katiekean19]

Yes, the guy is giving me the current cage that the chin is living in. I know I have to set the cages beside each other for the first week to get them used to each other and gradually move them all into one cage. Do you have any other tips to get them used to each other?

 

[AZChins]

The males will fight over her and if by some incredible miracle they don't, you could end up with a pregnant chin and all the headache that goes along with it. Keep a separate cage for the girl.

 

[tunes]

Don't set the cages next to each other. You need to quarantine the new chin for at least a month in a completely different part of the house. You have no way of knowing if that chin is bringing in health issues. Also, if it is a female, I would not put the cage right up next to the males cage ever. Your two chins, who have been getting along great, could suddenly turn on each other and then you would need three separate cages.

 

[greychins]

Not a good idea, if the chin ends up female. The two males could fight to the death over her, and even if they somehow didn't, trying to intro a third to any pair could result in the original pair breaking up and not getting along. So, even if it's a male, be careful if you want to introduce it to your current boys (after quarantine, of course).

Not to mention, if it is a female, then you could end up with babies, which, if it goes wrong, can end up killing the female. I had a rescue come in once that was pregnant, and she was so small when she delivered, the babies literally ripped their way out, causing internal bleeding... tried to spay her to stop the bleeding, she lived through the surgery, but not through the night. And that was an $800 expense for a chin that didn't make it. And all the babies had neurological problems and died shortly after. Lots of people think babies are all cuddly and rainbows, but problems do come up and things do go wrong.