Bonding with my Chin

[Hollis_garr]

Hi everyone,

So I've had my Chin for a little over a month, and I think she is getting more comfortable with me. She does still run towards the corner of the cage when I get close but them will come up to the door when I sit there long enough. I have chin proofed my room, so I now let her run around. She still is very jumping when I move around the room, she'll run and hide under the bed or cage. But if I sit on the floor for long periods of time, she will jump/climb all over me.

Any advise on bonding with her or getting her to trust me more. Or how long before your chins bonded with you.

Thanks for the help!

 

[Chinmama]

It's been forever since I had a new chinchilla, but I think it took about three or four months before Marble really chilled out.

 

[Amethyst]

It really comes down to individual chins, how old it is and what their life was like before you got them. Also whether they have more of a shy cautious personality or more of a brave adventurous personality. It takes most chins at least a week just to settle into a new home, after that then they can start bonding. Then bonding takes normally at least a month, but in some cases of chins coming from bad environments it can take years. I can't really remember how long it took some of my old chins growing up to bond, aside from Wally, but he was a special one. Wally it was kind of love at first sight, he claimed me (and only me) and cuddled with me as soon as I picked him up at the pet store, I've never had a bond like that again. My current two although I was able to scoop them up and even had playtime on the first day I got them it really took a couple years for me to get to the point I am now. After a month or so they would happily hop into a box to come out for playtime, and now I can open the cage and pet them pretty much whenever I want. It was more of a slow building of trust over time rather then something that just clicks and they love you. Think of it like building a friendship with a human, some people you bond with quickly, others it's a friendship that develops and gets deeper over the years.

It sounds like you are already doing what you need to to establish a good bond, climbing on you is a good sign. You just have to be patient, chinchillas are prey animals so you need to prove that you are not a predator, even though you are much bigger. Sit by the cage, read aloud, sing, talk to her, etc. Let her climb on you, and explore, never chase her, even when you need to get her back in the cage, that will hurt the bond. It's natural for a chin to be more fearful of you approaching when in the cage, you are much bigger and the chin can feel cornered. By sitting by the cage and not making any motion to touch her sometimes she will learn that you being there doesn't always mean you are going to try to get her.