Agoraphobic?

[Srlampron]

I'm wondering if anyone has experience with a chinchilla acting strangely when they are out of their cages.

My almost two year old female (Dori, who is naturally very high strung and doesn't come out of her cage very often due to her jumpy nature) had what seemed like a fullblown panic attack lastnight. We let her out to play in our hallway with the playpen unfolded and used as a gate to keep her in the area. She ran up the hall and back twice and then she started crawling on her belly really slowly and low to the ground. Next she started to roll onto her side. I started to worry when she laid down in her side, folded her ears down, and froze with a look of terror on her face.

We got her into her dust house (happy place) and put her back in her cage. She took a good 10-15 mins to settle back in. It was scary.

Anyone else ever see this?

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[Dreamlite]

Could she have been dusting on your floor? I have 2 chins that dust on their cage floors when I dusting other chins, and they will 'freeze' when I look at them. If she was stiff or nonresponcive it could have been a seizure. What and see if it happens again.

 

[Srlampron]

She wasn't dusting at that point. We had to go get the dust house for her to crawl into. She was not stiff, just in a state of pure terror. She looked at me but just out of the corners of her eyes. It was just a look of horror.

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[Srlampron]

It may be completely unrelated but, Dori also sleeps with her eyes open. I didn't really believe that chinchillas did that because my older girl sleeps curled up on her side, like a cat. But, Dori is in a constant state of high alert and therefore sleeps with her eyes wide open. One probably has nothing to do with the other, just wanted to add it because it helps to further illustrate her anxiety.

 

[JessieVictoria]

Poor dear, I don't know why she was acting strange outside her cage, but she sounds stressed. Try to do a few things to make her day to day life easier and she'll be hopping out of her cage to play with you.
1. Give her routine, playtime should be at the same time every day, feeding time too. Chinchillas LOVE routine.
2. If your house is loud, try to keep her somewhere quiet, and with music playing. (So she can't hear the rest of the house)
3. Put fleece on top of her cage, she'll feel super safe and settle into the house better. (This isn't a permanent thing, unless she really likes it haha)

I'm just worried the poor thing is going to develop bloat or fur chew from stress. I don't know what that "panic attack" was, maybe she was just playing around. My girls will freeze and look pretty terrified for minutes at a time, but then hop away like nothing happened.
If she was actually that terrified she'd be running.

 

[Newt]

Is it the first time she's had playtime in that area?
Maybe she was just unsure of her surroundings, and that panicked her?

Just saying, because my old chin Baby J had never had playtime before we adopted her (she was over a year old by then), and the first time we let her out into the playroom, she freaked, crouched down low and froze for a few mins. Then she darted into a wooden tunnel and didnt move until we scooped her out.

Baby J acted like this for 3 nights until she got used to the playroom. She didnt lie on her side though...

 

[Claire D]

It is possible your chinchilla had a seizure/fit. If she is not used to exercising out of her cage and had been running around then a fit is quite possible.

If your chin is nervous out of her cage then start her off in a small, safe space with somewhere she can hide if she wants to. A piece of carpet tube is useful for that. Chinchillas are prey animals so open spaces can be daunting even if it's indoors - a chin which is out for a run and hears an unexpected noise (or sees fast movement) will freeze or bolt for a hideaway. It's part of their natural behaviour and sometimes they will hide under or in something until they feel safe enough to come out again.

5 minutes at a time and build up over weeks until she is happy pottering about without fitting. Then you can build up the time she is out and also introduce a bigger area if you like.

 

[Srlampron]

Thank you Claire D. I will try those things.

I don't think it was a seizure, just fear. I will go back to playtime in the bathroom for now. She seems happier in there. It is smaller than the hallway.

She is almost 2 and was out if her cage constantly at her home before mine. She was handled and played with by children. I think the fact that my older female chinchilla is so blatantly aggressive toward her makes a difference. She's been here for 7months and still won't let me hold her or really even pet her. She is such a sweet little girl anyway. When she is out for playtime inside her fence, she spends most of it inside her dusthouse. She's a conundrum!
(Especially since her "older sister" is let out to have free reign over most of the house.)


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[Claire D]

She ran up the hall and back twice and then she started crawling on her belly really slowly and low to the ground. Next she started to roll onto her side. I started to worry when she laid down in her side, folded her ears down, and froze with a look of terror on her face.

Your description here could well be of a fit TBH. There doesn't have to be trembling but hopefully moving her exercise to a smaller space will help.

Good luck & please do keep us posted.

 

[Srlampron]

TBH?




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[Claire D]

Sorry. TBH = To Be Honest.

 

[Srlampron]

Oh, boy! Do I feel dense. I thought it was a type of seizure that I needed to research!

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[Zoaea]

Also, the hall way would be wide open and exposed, and probably had a light on? Bathrooms have lots of hidey spots like the toilet and shower curtain. I would make a few houses or play things that she can hide in, keep a strict routine to boost her confidence, and dim the lights in her play area. My girl hates an area with normal lighting, she gets all darty and scared, so when I let her play in the bathroom I take a small lamp I have and just use that for light instead of the bright overhead one. She is kinda lazy too, and still mostly sleeps but at least she doesn't get spooked. ^_^

If you try the hall way again, make sure she has lots of safe places to retreat, and give her a few days before you expect her to be comfortable with any new play area!