2 Female Chins suddenly attack cagemate

[Darkangellamya]

Hi,

I am hoping for some help and advice. I have six chinchillas. Three of them are female are live in the same ferret nation, large cage. The oldest is the mother and she lives with her daugthers. The oldest daughter is about six years old and the younger about two.

They have all been living in harmony until a few months ago. The mother and YOUNGEST started bullying the oldest sister/daughter, but not doing damage. Seemed like a dominance issue. I constantly check them and usually they all snuggle together and don't fight over food or space.

2 nights ago I heard them fighting. Ran in the room and they were all in attack position and urinating everywhere. My poor baby was trapped in the corner. I couldn't do anything to distract the mother and younger sister from trying to attack her. I had to stick my hand in the cage because there wasn't time for gloves. The mother retreated. The youngest grunted at me but did not bite. They are all usually so tame and gentle. When I felt it was safe, I pushed her away because she wouldn't budge and had this look in her eye like she wanted to rip her sister's face off (I'm not kidding). I gave her a little tap on the nose and pushed her with my finger.

Then I tried to get the injured one out of the cage. She was in the corner and fur was everwhere. I was afraid she was going to bite me but she just made very odd noises at me and kept pushing me away with her paws. Finally I coaxed her out and she willingly positoned herself in my hands like she normally does. I examined her as gently as I could despite her protests. She seemed more annoyed than anything else. She has fur missing from her tail, a puncture wound in her back (but not terribly deep) and her nose and ears were bleeding.

The first question I have is should I take her to a vet? I gently washed the wound with sterile gauze and applied very light coating of neosporin ointment - not enough to make her crazy as they don't like having that stuff on their skin and definitely not in the fur. On her back I couldn't help it. Nothing looks infected. I have her in a separate cage now. She is active and eating and will play and she slept on my chest all night because she was crying. But I think it was because she didn't want to be alone. She was fine with me.

I tried to reintroduce her to the mother and sister separately and they both tried to attack her again... But the other odd thing is her sister (the crazy bully one) seems to be extremely depressed and inactive since I separated them. She still has her mother in the cage but all she does is lay in her hammock looking miserable like she misses the other one? Could she be missing her because of a bond or could she be missing attacking her? This is very unsettling to me.

I am sorry for the length of this but I really am desperate for help.

1) Does the injured one need vet attention (she is eating, playing with me, normal bodily functions, responsive - but seems lonely)
2) I do not think I am going to be able to ever return them to each other - how do I help her not to be lonely? I ordered her a cuddle buddy, but is there anything else?
3) I am concerned that my youngest who is in the cage with her mother might start attacking her. She hasn't done this. But she is behaving irrationally and I don't know if I should separate all of them.

I took some furniture out of the room and ordered a critter nation cage so I will have enough space to separate them all if I have to - I am just concerned about all of their emotional well-beings. I am so confounded right now I can't even explain it. There has never been a problem like this. I have years worth of pictures with them all loving on each other. I just don't understand. They have plenty of room, toys, treats, human attention.... please if there is anybody who can help me to help them, I would appreciate it so much. I am heartbroken for my hurt one. She is the sweetest, most gentle creature ever. I just don't get it.

Thank you in advance

Jennifer

 

[Stackie]

Unfortunately it is very common for chins who have even been together for years to just turn on each other and attack for no obvious reason. This is my experience with trios- it has happened to me 3 times now. Two chins gang up on one. Eventually, I have had to separate them all into individual chins. I did manage to pair two back up, but that's it. If you're not comfortable leaving the two left together, I would definitely separate them. I have had one chin kill his cage mate, when the night before they were cuddling together and grooming each other. Honestly if it were me I would separate the pair that's left since they were the attackers.

The biggest killer of chin fights is chins going into shock from the fight/wounds. If she is eating and acting normally now (no lethargy), she's not in shock which is good. Keep a very close eye on the wound. If it starts to become swollen, inflamed, or have discharge, then you will need to take her to the vet to get put on antibiotics. For now, a topical medication I really like is called Blu-kote. You can get it at some farm and feed stores (I get it from Tractor Supply Co if you have one near you.) Continue to keep a very close eye on her, since chins hide their pain, to make sure she doesn't have more underlying injuries. If you are unsure, it would be a good idea to take her to a chin experienced vet to get a full check over just in case. Chin bites can look pretty minor but they can be very deep and nasty.

They may act off or lonely at first, but mine have always adapted. The one who killed his cage mate acted depressed for awhile, but snapped out of it after about a week. He is caged next to other chins so they can still see and hear each other, but can't have any physical contact. My rule is once blood is shed, they NEVER get any chance to be paired with another chin again. I have one chin who never attacked another, but was attacked himself. He is too afraid to be with any others now.

 

[Zoaea]

If the aggressive daughter is acting off, you might want to double check her for wounds too. She might be hurt as well. I would seperate her too, I mean what if she turns on the mom next. D=

Hope your poor chinny heals up fast.

 

[Cuddlebug]

I would definitely check all 3 chins for injuries and treat any you find. If any of them are acting unusually, get them to the vet. I would also separate them into 3 different cages and not take the risk of the remaining pair fighting. I agree with the above post about once blood is drawn, the is the end of any hope you have of getting them back together. It won't take them long to get over being separated.

 

[Lynn & The Chins]

I have had 2 instances of bullying. Both times vet visits were required, and my vet recommended neutering them both to take the testosterone out of the equation.

I prefer to put the bully in a separate cage. However, if the chin was badly beaten, I remove it into a small cage and keep them in my room by my bed so they know that they are safe with Mommy.

In both instances, I was able to rebond them and cage them together, but I am told this is rare. I agree with Stacie that once blood has been drawn, they should be singletons.

Although they have been living together peacefully for the last six years, I am ever vigilant, because I know that they (or any chins caged together) could turn on each other at any time.

Chins can and will fight to the death. They can make very deep, vicious puncture wounds on the face and nose, not to mention biting over the entire body. Because of their thick fur, it's usually best to have a vet check them all over.

You must always have an emergency cage ready just in case...