new chinchilla owner

[Cvega7]

Hello,
Does anyone know if dried baby's breath is bad for chinchilla's? My chin managed to jump on top of the desk and ingested some...
Also, she will climb/jump on me but she won't tolerate me touching or picking her up. She will squirm, cry, and clean that area when I pet her. The breeder allowed her kids to play with her and she was pretty accustom to human hands. Therefore, I am very confused why she won't allow me to do that.

 

[Godofgods]

i have absolutely no idea what 'dried babies breath' is.

How long have you had this chin? They require a good bit of time to adjust to new ppl, new surroundings, new cage, new smells, new sounds, etc. If she hasnt had time for that, then she probably has no trust for you at all. Its something that builds over time. Also if they are not adjusted, then letting them out might only scare them more. As such they can act quite defensively.

Also worth noting that some chins just hate to be picked up, or hate to be touched in certain places. Iv had some that loved me but would freak out if i tried to pick him up. He also loved having his head and stomach scratched, but hated have the back half of his body touched. And his son was the opposite. He hated having his head touched, but would tolerate having his back half touched. Each chin is different.

 

[Amethyst]

Well baby's breath is toxic to cats and dogs, so I would say not good for chinchillas either. I would keep a close eye on her and it she seems at all sick rush to the vet, I would even consider phoning the vet to see if they know what to watch for. In cats and dogs it can cause vomiting (something chins can't do) and diarrhea.

As for the not letting you pick her up, that is pretty normal chin behavior. Also it does take time to build a bond with a chinchilla, you need to earn their trust. From the sounds of it the chin has been handled, so it shouldn't take too long. You don't say how long you've had her, but it does take most chins at least a week to settle in to a new home.

Another thing to mention in case it applies, chins can be very sensitive to smells, so if you wear perfume or cologne, use smelly lotions, or anything like that the chin may not like the smell, so that could be why they are cleaning where you touched.