I thought I knew what to do with my new chin, but now I'm not so sure.

[pansecho]

Hello All,

After reading up on chinchillas for over a year now, I finally got one of my own. He is a 2 month old medium ebony named Kromer, I would post a photo but I don't have any of him yet. He has been living with me for about two weeks now.

I have heard a lot of referencing on the forum to very limited play time sessions at this age, but can some one please tell me something a little more specific? I have been playing with him a little bit every day in the evening, probably around 30 minutes to an hour. This involves him being able to jump in and out of his cage into a segment of hallway that is blocked off from the rest of the house. Some times it seems like he is having a lot of fun, hopping around and what not, and other times it seems like he is really skittish. Also, it seems like he is always wanting to come out of his cage when I walk by, but he isn't interested in being pet or held, really.

Lately, too, it seems like he is taking to biting my fingers and nails. I assume this is because I hand feed him Calf Manna pellets as treats, but if someone has a better explanation I'd be more than happy to hear it.

Thank you for your time, and sorry for the wall of text. :chin4:

 

[freedom]

I'm in the same boat. I have the two new chins, one is 8 months, and one is 3 months. I let Posh out first and let her run awhile and she seems to be tame. The little boy Pika is so afraid that when ever I come near he cries. He will take things out of my hands, but has nipped at me to warn me away. time is what I think will change things.

 

[Filia]

When I first got my chins they nibbled my fingers and nails ALL the time! It's just their way to become familiar with you.

I think 30 mins is the max amount of play time he should have. When my chin was 2 Months old I didn't take him out to play at all. (Basically because he wasn't interrsted in coming out during that time)

For now I think you should really focus on bonding with him; letting him crawl on your hands and such--They enjoy that just as much as play time! Just my advice though

 

[pansecho]

Okay, thank you. I guess I'm just a little bit worried of overwhelming him.

 

[chocochin]

The big thing about limiting playtime is that it can mess with their blood sugar and potentially cause hypoglycemic seizures (I believe) or overheating. Also, they are growing still and will need extra calories.
My rule is usually try and see how much energy he is expending. If he is out for an hour, but half of that or more is just wandering and (semi) calmly exploring or chewing on toys, then it's probably fine, especially in a smaller area. However, if he spends lots of time bouncing off the walls and sprinting around he may wear himself out too much-check his feet to see if they are warm, or if his ears are red then he needs a good rest.
At two months, a thirty minute play time limit should be plenty of time for him.
He should continue to warm up to you if you're spending that much time with him everyday..it took a couple of months before my chin was comfortable to actually sit on my lap and let me pet him without taking off.
hope this helps!

 

[Lady Nox]

Play time and quality time are different. You can have a lot of quality time with your chin when they are awake. Let your chin get use to your hands in the cage frequently etc. I would spruce up Lola's cage randomly whenever I happened past the room and she was awake. This involved me putting my arm in the cage using my hand broom to sweep up the dried pellets placing her dishes back in the correct spot etc. While I had my hand in her cage I would calmly stroke her back once and then go about my sprucing as if it was no great thing. When she nibbled my nail I just pulled my hand out of reach and give her a willow stick or something to nibble. Chins teeth all the time. Afterwards I sat in a chair I keep in there and talked to her or we listened to an audiobook together just enjoying us time. She is almost a year old not and is becoming very affectionate. She is happy to hop on our laps or shoulders during playtime although she wont sit long she wants to remind us she is there Just be patient and take time to get to know each other - Good luck!

 

[VolunteerChin22]

If the chin is young and is exploring biting your fingers, do like you'd do with a puppy who nipped too hard and squeak loudly. I've found that they are testing boundaries, much like they'd do with a littermate and that's what a littermate would do to tell them, hey that's too hard! Nails is just par for the course - mine also really like rings.

He's too young for any treats period. Stick with wood chews or you can give him bites of hay other than timothy (orchard, botanical) treats until he's 6mo or older.

30 min is probably the max. Mostly because they need all their calories to grow. I also would limit it to a small area to explore.

Some don't like to be held or petted. Just their personality. Kits of that age are very spastic so as he grows he'll settle into his personality and you'll be able to tell more about what level of interaction he prefers.

 

[pansecho]

Chocochin, I hadn't thought about calorie retention and haven't heard about the seizures. Very useful information.

I was given the Calf Manna by his breeder as a dietary supplement (to be given 1 teaspoon a day), do you think this is not for the best? I just use them as treats because he likes it so much.

Haha, I try just to put my hands in Kromer's cage, but he always tries to get out of the open door, which makes me worried. Good points though.

 

[Cuddlebug]

Kits under 6 months of age should only have 15 minutes or less of play time a day. any more and you run the risk of overheating or low blood sugar along with using wy to many calories to play instead of for growing. Handling, such as holding or letting him climb on your arms is not considered play time. Running around on the floor, running on a wheel, jumping all over the place and bouncing off of the walls is.

Chinchillas shouldn't be given calf manna at all. It is a protein supplement and as long as they are fed a quality pellet, there is not need to add more protein. Kits under 6 months should not get any kind of treat. Give them things to chew on instead or feed them pellets and hay out of your hand. They really like that a lot.

 

[Chinchilipuss]

Now first of all I think your giving him way to much play time, he is only 2 months old when they are that young they don't tend to think of how hard their playing. Also him bitting your finger nails is normal because cinchillas like to try new things and thats somthing he likes but I wouldn't let him eat them, I am not saying hes going to die from them.

Also chinchillas normaly arn't big snuggle buddies they like to run and jump instead of being held. So the only thing I would change that you are doing is how long his play time is.


Proud owner of 2 chinchillas Tesser :chin4: and Dodge :chin:!