Hey guys,
I am seriously considering finding homes for a couple of my chins. I will be heading off 16.5 hrs away to college and will only be home 2-3x a year (winter, spring, and summer break). My mom is willing to care for the animals while I am gone but due to her job she does not have a ton of time to give them all as much attention as they deserve. I know it won't kill them to not get as much out of cage time but I would make me feel better and I wouldn't feel so badly for leaving all these animals for her to care for (chins, hedgie, hamster, rabbits...).
Anyways, there are three chinchillas in particular who are very special to me and I am not willing to give them up. I have two others who I would like to rehome (and it really probably would be better for them, as they are the ones who need the most attention/socializing).
One is a female who is dominant and currently housed with a neutered male. He is one I would like to keep. The two deal with eachother but are not "cuddlebugs" with eachother... I don't think the female would mind being separated.
The other is a male (related to above female) who is also dominant. I will catch him on occasion snuggling with one or both of the two chins he is housed with, but he is clearly boss and I am thinking that he would be ok by himself as well.
But at the same time, they have both been housed with the other chins for the last few years and I would hate for them to be alone. How many of you have split up chins who have been with others and had them live by themselves?
I'm sure they will be fine, but knowing others have done this without any ill effects would make me feel better!
(And please, don't jump on me for this. This is not something I HAVE to do, but I feel that it would be better to reduce the numbers down a bit so that they all can get as much attention as I would like to have. I am just looking for experiences with separating chins/how they have handled it for right now...)
I am seriously considering finding homes for a couple of my chins. I will be heading off 16.5 hrs away to college and will only be home 2-3x a year (winter, spring, and summer break). My mom is willing to care for the animals while I am gone but due to her job she does not have a ton of time to give them all as much attention as they deserve. I know it won't kill them to not get as much out of cage time but I would make me feel better and I wouldn't feel so badly for leaving all these animals for her to care for (chins, hedgie, hamster, rabbits...).
Anyways, there are three chinchillas in particular who are very special to me and I am not willing to give them up. I have two others who I would like to rehome (and it really probably would be better for them, as they are the ones who need the most attention/socializing).
One is a female who is dominant and currently housed with a neutered male. He is one I would like to keep. The two deal with eachother but are not "cuddlebugs" with eachother... I don't think the female would mind being separated.
The other is a male (related to above female) who is also dominant. I will catch him on occasion snuggling with one or both of the two chins he is housed with, but he is clearly boss and I am thinking that he would be ok by himself as well.
But at the same time, they have both been housed with the other chins for the last few years and I would hate for them to be alone. How many of you have split up chins who have been with others and had them live by themselves?
I'm sure they will be fine, but knowing others have done this without any ill effects would make me feel better!
(And please, don't jump on me for this. This is not something I HAVE to do, but I feel that it would be better to reduce the numbers down a bit so that they all can get as much attention as I would like to have. I am just looking for experiences with separating chins/how they have handled it for right now...)