HELP ASAP! Introducing 3rd Male to Bonded Pair

[GingerRockStar]

Hi, I have a pair of males, Teddy Bear and Dunkin. Teddy Bear is almost 2 years old and Dunkin is 3. They have been together for over a year. Dunkin is a really sweet boy and very easy-going. Teddy Bear is kind of a stinker. He used to bite and bark at me when he was only 2-3 weeks old! He has since lightened up and become tame, and I think Dunkin has been a good influence on him. I went to the pet store last week and they had baby chinchillas and I (stupidly) bought a baby male. I thought since Dunkin is super nice and Teddy bear has gotten a lot nicer and since the two of them get along so well together (they are in love) that a little baby would be welcomed into thier family. Not so much. Dunkin is perfectly fine with the new baby but Teddy bear has been trying to kill the little guy. He is VERY aggressive and runs after the baby and tries to bite him. Ive tried to have them out in a common area to play and Teddy just b-lines straight for the baby and tries to agressively fight him. I seperated Teddy and have Dunkin and the baby in the big cage because I thought if Dunkin will bond with the baby (which he seems to have) then Teddy Bear will come around. But I don't know what to do now. Teddy is in a tiny little cage all by himself and so far it doesn't look like he is warming up to the baby at all. Should I try to return the baby to the pet store? If they can not all live together in one cage then I cant keep all 3. I have seen herds of cinchillas living together just fine, why can't mine? I need to know what to do ASAP because if I wait too long I may not be able to return the baby. Thanks in advance for your advice :thumbsup:

 

[Stackie]

Your situation sounds very dangerous and there is no way I would keep trying for an introduction. That type of aggression is a big red flag to end attempts right then and there or else someone could seriously get hurt.

Not ALL chinchillas will get along and a little bit of research will show that it is hit and miss with introducing chins. Some chins may like each other and hate another. Some chins may not like any other chins at all. It is not uncommon for chinchillas to fight to the death, or seriously injure one another.

If you are not willing to keep the baby in a separate cage then return him or rehome him. In the future, keep in mind that your bonded pair may not accept another chinchilla and if you are not willing to keep them in a separate cage, do not get another chinchilla. It is unfair and stressful to a chin to be bought, brought home and introduced to an aggressive chin, then taken back and returned. Introducing a new chinchilla to an already bonded pair could cause the bonded pair to fight and you could end up with 3 single chinchillas. Also for future reference, anytime you buy a new chinchilla it should be quarantined from your others for at least 30 days in a completely separate cage in a different area of your home.

 

[GingerRockStar]

Thanks for your reply. I feel really terrible for my impulse buy and being naieve in thinking they would all just get along together. I don't want to take the baby back to the pet store. I COULD get a smaller cage for my Teddy Bear and keep him seperate since he is the only aggressive one of the bunch. I just wasn't looking to have two cages to clean and have to buy double of everything. Or should I put Teddy Bear back in with Dunkin and keep the baby by himself? Im not sure what to do at this point. Is an introduction in the future out of the question? Is it possible that in a few weeks time Teddy Bear will get used to the baby and eventually accept him?

 

[rbarile92]

I would keep the baby by himself. It is not fair for Teddy Bear and Dunkin to have to be seperated since they have been together for this long. Just keep the baby by himself and get him a cuddle buddy to keep him company. You are also going to have to give the baby his own play time with just you. That way he will feel like he is special to you and doesn't have to share his time with Teddy Bear and Dunkin!
I wish you luck!
Teddy Bear might get used to him, just put the baby in a seperate cage in the same room and eventually Teddy Bear could come around to him

 

[GingerRockStar]

Luckily, I found a 3-story ferret nation cage on craigslist for only $50. If they still have it I'm going to go TODAY to buy it. Cross your fingers for me because that would absolutely solve all my problems. I cant afford to spend $300 on a brand new three story ferret nation. Does anyone else have this cage? I have heard nothing but good things about it but never seen it in person. I can put Teddy & Dunkin on top in the two story and seperate the baby on the bottom in the one-story. And then maybe one day I can open the cage up so all three can live together. Maybe.

 

[Laurie]

Why can't yours get along? Well they weren't born that way, if you're referring to chins that live together in the wild that is how they are born--into a herd. Other chins that get along do so because a lot of patience was involved. You cannot simply toss chins in with each other and assume they are going to get along. There has to be playtime first not one day but several. There should be side by side caging for several days if not months.

It is totally wrong to separate your bonded pair. The term you used BONDED PAIR should clearly tell you that. If you don't have another cage for the new chin get one and keep him separate from the other two. You can just as easily love 3 chinchillas as 2 they don't all have to share a cage together.

 

[Shahna]

As stated previously, the baby should placed in a separate cage next to the other cage. For the first week, I would leave a 1" - 2" gap between the cages... then try them directly side by side for at least a few weeks before trying open playtime. If they still aren't "playing nice", I would give it a few more weeks in separate cages, side by side. This process needs to be repeated until they are clearly getting along.

If you are very patient and take the process very slow, you can probably achieve positive results. There are those cases where it will just never work out, but you haven't done enough introduction yet to know.

Also, I recommend using the search feature for introducing chinchillas. I know I have read several helpful threads in the past on this issue.

 

[addictedtochins]

You may need to baby proof the ferret nation, depending on the size of your new baby. Don't break up your bonded pair, it would break Teddy's heart to be alone.

 

[GingerRockStar]

Thanks for all the replies. I am VERY happy to post this picture:

All three of my boys living together happliy in one cage. Joey far left, then Teddy and Dunkin. Both Teddy Bear and Dunkin have accepted little Joey and I've caught all three of them in a chin-pile-up sleeping together several times <3 I'm not sure why Teddy Bear decided to come around and stop trying to bite Joey, but I'm glad he did. So this story DOES have a happy ending

 

[cuddlycuddles]

Dear Ginger- I am going to comment on the last picture you posted, because your chinchillas' health and possibly lives are at stake.
First, your current cage setup is not suitable to chinchillas. You ought to remove ALL the plastic from the cage, because chins will chew on it and the risk of intestinal impaction, leading to death is too great of the risk.
The plastic wheel you have there is too small and unsafe for chinchillas and should also be removed.
I notice a piece of lettuce in the cage- fresh vegetables (or fruit) should not be given to chinchillas.
This is not a personal criticism of any kind, just an attempt to help you rectify the erroneous practices that could harm your animals. Please look on the forum for more suitable cage ideas as well as the proper diet to feed chinchillas.
Best,

 

[chinchillalover0927]

i believe there is also one of those chin hut things on the bottom..those are very unhealthy also, they contain way to much sugar..just a helpful though to go along with the above

 

[blondeangel]

I just wanted to say - I don't have the most experience with tons of chinchillas, but I do have 5 males ranging in age from 4.5 months to 13 yrs. I have them housed in two pairs and as a single. In the pairs they get along fine with the cage mate, but each pair has a docile chin and one with a attitude towards the other non-cage-mate chins. My single chin is my oldest at 13 and he's never had a cage mate because well he dislikes all the chins. With my two pairs typically they will tolerate out of cage time together, sometimes my little attitude's will get pissy. I will never leave them unsupervised just because I don't want trouble. But to me its kind of like asking for trouble, putting a baby (or even adult) chin in a trio situation with a known pissy chin. Spending $200 dollars on a new ferret nation to divide is a lot cheaper then vet bills, and probably not to terribly much more then you just spent on the baby chin itself. Not to sound like the several posts I have read in the past..but it's true.

 

[Blarklark]

I have two chins. The bonding processes is totally NOT easy. I been thinking maybe in the future getting a third.. however.. probably not.. The two I have are just too happy with each other right now. But I was going to suggest just taking it very slow. I swapped cages for weeks before the first intro. Then even then I got a whole new cage for then to live in... And that worked. I have heard horror stories im so glad things worked out! Loving bunch

 

[GingerRockStar]

In reply to the criticism about my cage, if you had read my prior post you would see that I bought a new ferret nation cage. That was my old cage. That is NOT a piece of lettuce so don't be so quick to assume. It's a piece of paper that came on a wooden chew toy. It was wrapped up to look like a piece of candy. Also, the plastic wheel is perfectly safe. It is sturdy and there is no way for the chinchillas to get stuck on it. I don't know what hut you are talking about, unless you are referring to the twig tunnel, which is all natural and made out of woven together TWIGS, not sugar....
And for everyone else who actually offered me advice about what i ASKED... Im happy to report that all 3 boys love eachother very much these days. I had them out to play today and they all jump around eachother like little jumping beans and chase eachother around. So cute. And all three of them sleep together in a huddle and I've seen them grooming the baby. So yes, in this case, it worked out. It may not work out for other chins but it worked for mine.

 

[Stackie]

Actually, no, your wheel is not safe. It is way too small for an adult chinchilla. When they run, it can cause them to contort their backs. Long term effects could cause back strain and injury. The minimum size for an adult chin should be 15".

You came to a place where everyone cares about the chinchilla's health, first and foremost. If we see something alarming in a post or picture that can jeopardize a chinchilla's health, we will point it out. What help would we be if we just turned a blind side to potential hazards and let the owner blindly put their chinchillas health at risk? Wouldn't you rather know something is unsafe for your chins and change it?

I also agree with the plastic needing to be taken out...I have had a chin chew plastic and get a piece stuck in his intestines before. He could have died, but thanks to my awesome vet and days of handfeeding, massages, medications, and check ups, he survived. It is pretty cheap to make your own wooden shelves, and there are also people on here that can make them for you.