How do breeders house their chins?

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Zoomom

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Jul 21, 2013
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I am very interested to know how reputable breeders house their chins. It seems I read more often than not, that ANY housing together has so many dangers with it - fighting with severe injury seems to be a prevalent result.

With that, how do y'all do this? Does everyone get separate cages, and you simply put the prospective breeding pair together at a certain time, or what? Very curious ... I thought these animals were colony animals, wanting and needing same-species companionship, but the horror stories I hear make me wonder if I am very mistaken.

Any info is greatly appreciated! Also, specifics help: ages, genders, cage types, etc. Thanks!!
 
I have singles, pairs, trios, and colonies. The only ones that are by themselves are the ones who fight when they are with another chin. When they fight, it is really ugly.
 
I breed mostly in run setups but I do have a couple of pairs and trios. It really depends on the chinchillas in question, whether there are fights... I've had females who are so nasty to other females that there is no way they could be housed in a colony setup. And I have females who are much happier when they are in a trio or colony grouping.
 
I breed typically in polygamous runs. One male to anywhere from 2 to 6 females. They are in runs where the male has access to all of his females cages via a run in the back of the cage(if they are actively being bred) and the female wears a collar to prevent her from following the male into the run and potentially other females cages. The run is a great way to introduce the two chins as the jump hole (access point for the male) can be closed and they can get to know each other through the wire separating them before opening the jump. I also have done pair breeding with success but honestly colony breeding and having more than one female together scares me. I have the ultimate respect for the breeders that do colony breed but I would have an ulcer.

Pictures of my chin room and set up can be seen on my Facebook Page here: https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?...37.1073741833.1398517733700404&type=1&theater

Just scroll through the pictures and it shows several angles as well as the jump hole.
 
I have 48 holes in runs and 10 CN/FNs. It depends on the specific chin as to where they go. I mainly use the pet cages for males I only want to put with 1 girl. I have more males in breeding right now that I would eventually like to but that is only because my herd is pretty new and I need some diversity in my lines to build on...
 
Thanks so much - more ...??

O.K. - I am only just getting acquainted with the "run" concept; I can see many advantages to this, though I don't think I will have enough animals to consider that as an option!

Those who have pairs or trios: is there a certain age that you feel is "too old" to introduce to cagemates? Have you put those animals together at a young age (under 6 months) or at a noted time in development? How did you go about making the introductions? If one of the animals you intended to pair, wanted nothing to do with being with another chin, how did you handle that when it came to breeding? I would assume that you choose your breedings based on many factors: color genetics, diversity of gene pool, temperament, for example. If one of the chosen animals appears to be opposed to "sharing quarters", what do you do?

I know I am asking a lot of questions!! However, I feel that if I get as much info going in as possible, it may help me NOT to make bad decisions when I am considering breeding at some point. I may simply want pets, but even then - how/when to introduce would be helpful information for me.
 
I introduce young and old chins, just depends on the situation. When you introduce really young chins, you run the risk of them not being breeding quality because you haven't been able to judge them as adults yet. I then hate to separate them because they have been together so long. With adults, most of the time they go together pretty easily. If I have an issue, I use the cage within a cage intro and it usually works out fine.
 
Chins get along just about like people do. Some are great with anyone who is housed with them and then there are a few that just want nothing to do with others and may fight to the death of one or both if housed together. As for who will and who wont you just never know until you try. Some may get along for years and then some thing sets them off and the fights on. It is some thing you have to watch for signs of aggression between them, then hope and pray fight does not happen. Unfortunately the few and far in between cases happen and when they do it is really ugly.
 
The cages in a breeding run are designed to be safe for both pregnant and nursing moms as well as young and growing kits. Each cage is 24" X 18" x 15". You have to remember that this is a breeding setup and not a pet cage - they are two very different things.

One is not better than the other, but is designed for a specific purpose. In the case of breeding - safety.
 
Best chance for success ...

in pairing - a girl who is 2 years old: she wants nothing to do with a younger male, do you try her with an older one, nearer to her own age?

The cage-in-a-cage method: I know the concept, for how long do you do this, hours, days? Is it the more dominant chin that you but in the smaller cage?

What do you feel is the optimal age for pairing? And do you leave them together (those who do not use the polygamous system, that is) after pairing?

Thanks to everyone who is answering my questions!!!
 
Kits are big dummies, the smaller the space they have the less chance they will themselves doing something stupid. I only kit sat a couple of 2 week olds and those were some dumb animals!
 
you try a different male, it is normally the single chin she doesn't like, remember too females need to be minimum 8 months for breeding, and their weight is an important factor too.
when a pair is paired they are a pair until female gets close to delivery then the male needs to be pulled to prevent back breeding, some will allow their chins to back breed pending on litter, but it isn't recomended
the cage in a cage I think everyone does slightly differently?
I personally put whoever owns the cage in the smaller on with food and a glass bottle, and test the grounds. some chins will never get along, but honestly most of the time I find I have succsess in hours - a day
 
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