Need help taming my chin

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GahhItsLee

Lee
Joined
Mar 16, 2010
Messages
425
Location
Upstate New York
Ok so ive had my chinchilla for two weeks and he is still very skiddish and he seems utterly afraid of me... I give him a dust bath daily... If not a few times during the day (depending on if he seems to want it or not) and i let him run all around my bedroom and i attempt to pick him up and give him treats to show him im safe but he usually just freaks out and runs back into his cage... He also wont use his "house" (which is an Igloo thing from petsmart where i bought him) Nor will he use his toys... What is a good way to tame him?
 
Two weeks is nothing. It can take months to a year or more for your chin to really settle in and get used to you.

First, don't offer a dust bath every day. 2-3 times a week is plenty. Any more than that, and you can dry out his skin.

Second, chins are not cuddly, clutchy animals. You may never be able to hold him and cuddle with him. Each chin has their own unique personality, and he just may not be the type of chins that is going to want a lot of close contact with you. If you want to at least get him used to you, I would let him run in the bathroom (make sure it's clean, the toilet lid is closed, and there are no chemicals anywhere that he can get into) and sit on the floor and read a book. Just ignore him while he plays. Chins are really curious. Eventually he'll start coming over and bouncing off your body. You can also start talking to him and reading to him while he's in his cage, getting him used to your voice and your smell. Read a book out loud, the newspaper, a magazine, whatever you have handy.

What kind of treats are you offering? If they are from a pet store, they are probably junk, and if he's under 6 months of age, he shouldn't have treats anyway. I usually recommend bite sized, nonsugared shredded wheats, dried rosehips, organic rose buds, a pinch of old fashioned oats, the occasional cheerio, and lots of chin safe wood chews. Other than that, he really doesn't need treats, especially sugary ones.

What kind of toys did you get him? Again, if you got them from PetSmart, they are probably inappropriate for him anyway. Check the classifieds section here to see what kind of toys folks give their chins so you know what's safe. I would also consider getting him a wood house instead of the Igloo for the chew factor. A wood house will get gnawed on and will help keep his teeth worn down and at a healthy length.

You are most likely not going to "tame" your chin in the way that you are thinking. But most people can get their chins to tolerate them.
 
Hi, and welcome to the forum. First off - you need to let your chin settle in and adjust to his surroundings. Sit by his cage and talk to him, and work up to letting him sniff your hands when you change his bedding and feed him. I'd also get rid of the plastic igloo - he may or may not begin to chew it - and it's just not a great house for him. You can use a plain cardboard box and cut a hole in it for temporary housing, and he can shred and create his own windows, etc. It will take time for him to settle in - and learn his new home, his new surroundings and learn you....in time you'll also learn him and his behaviors.

Peggy (Tunes) offered wonderful advice *(as usual) and you should try her suggestions.

Best of Luck & again...WELCOME!!
 
Hi. I got a chin about 2 weeks ago also. She's very tame but I have noticed some differences in the way chins act as opposed to other animals when you're trying to bond with them. I am a firm believer that you can bond with any animal, just on their own terms. Being a new owner, you get wrapped up in the excitment and want to develop a realtionship with your pet asap. But the trick with chins is to go very slow, like others have said.

Whenever I take my chin, Chloe, out I lay/sit down on the floor in a position where I can see her at all times. I am pretty still, and I may talk softly and turn my head slowly when I need to get a better look at her (use your peripherals when you can and when your chin can see you so you wont freak him out by whipping your head around). Remember, chinchillas are prey animals and sudden movements=predators. Think of a predator stalking its prey. They move slow so they don't trigger that flight response that your chin does. At first, Chloe didn't really come up to me much but now she treats me like I'm a piece of furniture that she hops on and jumps around. A piece of moving, talking furniture...And whenever I move I do it very slowly and talk softly at the same time.

I think one of the most stressful times when letting a chin out for play time is getting them back in their cage. Bribing with a small treat (if they haven't had any that day or better in a couple days) or dust bath works well (again if they haven't had one for a couple days). If you need to catch them and don't have either of those things, I usually wait til Chloe jumps on me and I scoop her up there I think she stresses less because I'm not just some pair of huge arms coming towards her from above, we're at the same level when she's sitting on my knee or lap. This may come in handy when your chin realizes he doesn't want to scurry back in his cage and wants to explore EVERYTHING, which he will, including you.
 
I got my first chin about 7 weeks ago and it took him around a month to get really comfortable with me. We have daily playtime in the bathroom, and now that he is comfortable with me, he will not let me read a book in there anymore. Now if I try he chews up my book & bookmark while I try to read! Catching him after playtime can still be hard but he pretty much will always go for the dust bath and then I can get him.
Joining this forum was the best thing I have done for him since the people here are very knowledgeable and will give the best advice for your chin's quality of life. Since I joined I have gotten better treats, thrown out the exercise ball, and ditched the plastic-bottomed cage for a wood one. My favorite place to get chin stuff now is www.qualitymutationchinchillas.com They have great safe treats, toys, pretty much everything.
So welcome and good luck bonding with your new friend! They are really special animals and likely will steal your heart!! :grouphug:
 
welcome!
i agree with everything already said...........especially the part about sitting in the bathroom with a magazine. my chins LOVE that. they jump on my knees, shoulders and sometimes head, they try to nibble the pages. but if i make a quick move they do scatter.
my chins also love apple wood twigs........it is their favorite treat besides a unsugared mini shredded wheat! some of my chins are plastic chewers, so they all have wood houses instead. maybe use the igloo during playtime? 2 weeks is a short time.......it took one of my chins months and months and months before he trusted me. now i open his cage and he literally jumps into my arms! he is a pita to catch tho.......he hates when playtime is over.
 
i used the dust bath to get my chin back in his cage last night... and he WOULD NOT get out. it scared me because of the chance of overheating... he was literally in there, just sitting for a good 20 minutes... i had to take the top off and pick him out... which he did not like. how do you entice them out... when treats wont work?
 
Yea well he HATES his igloo he doesnt even go near the thing... He now tolerates me picking him up to let him run around my bedroom (Very happy about this) and he eats mainly dried fruits but honestly i have absolutely no idea how old he is...
He old had one toy its like a hanging treat holder with a bell on it... He also has a stone to chew on idk why but i was told its good... and he has stopped wanting constant dust baths now he only tried to get in there like every other day
Thanks everyone
 
My chin comes out of his dust bath if you put it near his cage i assume he takes it as a time to go back in gesture but it works for me... Perhaps try that
 
GahhItsLee said:
Yea well he HATES his igloo he doesnt even go near the thing... He now tolerates me picking him up to let him run around my bedroom (Very happy about this) and he eats mainly dried fruits but honestly i have absolutely no idea how old he is...
He old had one toy its like a hanging treat holder with a bell on it... He also has a stone to chew on idk why but i was told its good... and he has stopped wanting constant dust baths now he only tried to get in there like every other day
Thanks everyone
Click to expand...

Read up on healthy treats. Chins should not be getting dried fruits on a regular basis, none is better.

With dust baths they shouldn't have access to them all the time. A few times a week is good and let them bath for 10 minutes or so. Then take it out and change the dust regularly as it gets soiled (dirty).
 
Yea i found out hes been eating rose hips and not raisins... I feel dumb for that one...
And its humid by me so he gets a dust bath whenever he is out and starts trying to get into it...
He has yet to soil it which im happy with since i probably put way too much in there to begin with
 
It is tricky to try and eye ball dust going into a dust bath container. One trick is to clean out a re-usable scoop like the kind you might find in a powdered drink container. That way you can add one or two scoops and not have to worry about wasting to much or putting in to little.
 
Yea lol i put it in a good pound... He seems to be happier with it if there is more
He uses the plastic bath "house" and he doesnt chew so i put like a quarter inch worth in the house
 
Even though it's been mentioned quite a few times, i'll repeat it clearly again. He should not have constant access to his dust buth every time he's out for playtime. even if it's hot where you live, he will still get dry skin from dusting too often.

There should DEFINITELY not be dust in his cage either, if he doesn't like the igloo just try getting him a wooden house that he may enjoy more. Don't use dust to lure him into the igloo.
 
Oh no your misunderstanding he has no dust bath in his cage i know that is bad.
Although i messed up ive been giving him dust baths whenever he comes out to play.
I guess i should stop that but i thought people meant you just shouldn't leave it in the cage.
 
Yes dust baths should ONLY be given 1 or twice per week unless you live in a high humidity area where they made need to be done 3 times per week, however humidity and heat are not good for chins so if that's the case you would need to look intoa dehumidifier to keep the air dryer. Dust dries out their skin as it does out so it's not good for them to get dust baths daily or even more than once a day.
 
I agree with the above. It is all a waiting game. I have one chin who I have had just over a year now and he still is skittish and doesnt really like people. He will climb on me at playtime but wants no loving from me, and I am the only one he will climb on.
 
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