Long Wail or Moan

[zuchinno]

My chinchilla Naota was sleeping on the top level of his pen. Everything was peaceful and silent and it was approx 5am. Suddenly I hear something tipping over in his cage and a waaaaa-aaaAAAAaaaaAAAA-aaaahhh.

Naota was running all over the cage emitting this terrible sad, scared cry. It wasn't a screech like buns and chins do when they're in mortal danger or extreme pain. It was a moan or a wail.

I'd heard him bark before in his sleep and when he doesn't wanna be picked up, but I'd never heard this before and google turns up nothing. When I came to comfort him he was panting and he'd blown a total musk bomb, like nothing I'd smelled before.

Anybody seen this?

 

[Cuddlebug]

It sounds like something really frightened him. Is he ok now?

 

[zuchinno]

Oh yea, he's the same as always. Dunno what scared him so much. I thought he was seriously injured somehow, but I guess not.

 

[LYChinchillas]

Muff (my very vocal chin) will scream/sing sometimes at night. It's off-putting, but he's totally healthy and just needs to get it out. Oh, quirky babies!

 

[becky12883]

I'd bet that he fell off the ledge while he was sleeping and scared himself. One of my boys sleeps close to the edge of his ledge or on top of his house and will fall off in his sleep. He usually wakes up when he hits the bottom of the cage and squeals a bit. I tried rearranging the ledges so where he likes to sleep is the widest ledge, but he still sleeps right at the edge. I moved their hay pile to where he falls, so it softens the fall a bit.

 

[zuchinno]

Probably didn't fall out since he sleeps in a big penny candy jar on the top ledge. It's possible he rolled around and tipped the jar a little and spazzed out.
Penny candy jar:

We have 2, the other one makes an excellent dust bath.

 

[Crabe]

My newest little chin does the same thing. He also pounces on his wheel to run and makes that same screech/ scream. It's only at night. I thought his feet might be injured, or something else, but he's perfectly fine. Just vocal guy I guess. Side note my older chin is now super quiet at night.

 

[zuchinno]

Crabe, my chin Naota is really vocal. He sits on my shoulder and makes soft squeaking noises and also barks when he's asleep. He makes this doop doop doop doop doopdoop noise ascending in pitch and he seems to do that and musk at the same time. I think it's dominance display.

Glad to know at least someone else has heard it. Sometimes mine has a squeaky bark he does in his sleep, but nothing like this.