Need help reintroducing my chinchillas

[nick and emily]

I have 4 male chinchillas that lived together for about a year and a half. They are all between the ages of 3-2yrs now. I had to separate them a year ago (2 and 2) because one of them had a power trip going through purberty and decided to chase the other chins. I ended up turning my QC mansion in to a top and bottom cage.

Since I have done this, the chins have gotton over their little puberty craze. However, i feel like they arent happy. When they all got seperated they stopped eating for a while and grew thin. Eventually I got their weights back on track but I havent seen them play really in a year. I havent seen one popcorn at all. They have lots of toys and a wheel. I guess it just hasnt been the same since it was the 4 of them in one big cage jumping around and mounting eachother. Playtime was a real trip watching the 4 of them.

I want to reintroduce the 4 of them again. I want to do it correctly. My main concern is my oldest chin because he was the one that was the brunt of the bullying a year ago. Hes very skiddish and thin to begin with. The other 3 have big personalites. He wont put up a fight against them he just runs away and would get backed in to a corner. Hes also the most accepting chin of them all. He really never cared who I put him in a cage with, afterall he welcomed 3 other in to his cage with him with no problem after being alone for a year. In fact he loved to cuddle and groom each one of them. I dont think he will remember being bullyed a year ago but who really knows. He was chased and bit. Nothing crazy or fatal but that was when I decided to separate out of caution.

So far I've been using the same dust to bathe them and for about an hour each day I swap their cages in hopes they will integrate their scents. I welcome any advice on how I can get them together again in one big cage. Yes, I realize this may never work out but I've heard of people doing it and I think its worth the try.

 

[AZChins]

What I always do when I want to reintroduce some chins that aren't getting along is start with a cage that has been freshly scrubbed so it doesn't smell like anyone. That way no one has claimed the space as his territory. I'll then snip off the whiskers of the chins. (No, this does not hurt them and they will grow back. It makes chins much, much less aggressive.)

Switching cages can confuse the chins and make them more cautious of other chins. It's usually better to use one fresh clean cage and put them right in together. I usually put in a few cereal/food boxes stuffed with hay, these are a great distraction. Dust baths are a good distraction, as well. New toys are good, hay is good...anything to get them from instigating in those first few hours is good.

If all else fails, do all of the above but also shove them into a carrier and take them for a long drive. I'll take them to the grocery store and have my husband wait in the car with them. After that they are so confused they bond over the traumatic event of going in the bumpy, noisy car!

Really, it's all about distracting the chins into not noticing the new friends. After that, they usually have already accepted each other. If they don't think that the other chins are a threat, they will leave them alone. Boys can be difficult sometimes just because they tend to be so active when they are only a few years old.

Also, bear in mind that the chins may never completely get along. Sometimes chins will develop a really strong personality and just don't get along with certain chinchillas.

I hope that you can get them to like each other. There really is nothing like a cage full of chins that adore each other. I have a few cages where the chins love one another so much and sleep in a giant pile of five or six chins. They put their little brains together to conspire against me during playtime and feeding time. Chinchillas really do like having friends to fill their time with constant socializing - some chins become even happier the more buddies they have around them!

 

[tunes]

Nick and Emily - I was going to write out this long-winded answer to your pm, but I'll just post it here instead.

I use a small cage in a larger cage. I have several show cages, so I place one of the chins in there (or two in them, or whatever), then let the other roam free in the cage. I'll leave them like that several hours, then switch them around and let the caged one roam free. I put hay on top of the show cage and in it. The one inside can munch, the one on top is forced to hang out closer to get the hay.

I've not had this fail yet. The ones in the small cage don't mind, they just snooze when it's their turn.

When you let them out, I pick a neutral cage (as mentioned above) to put them in -- one neither of them has been in before, with a new wood house. You can put a dab of vanilla on their noses and above their tails, and if you're really worried about it, you can also trim their whiskers back. I've not had to do that with an intro for a very long time, but it won't hurt them and the whiskers grow back.

Other than that - a fresh dust bath, lots of toys - Susan covered it. I also agree that with them being separated for so long, it may not be possible to get them back together again. When they were in one cage, usually one rules the roost. Now there may be two alpha's to try and put together. I'm not discouraging you, there's every possibility it can be done. I just don't want you to feel bad or that you failed if you can't.