Thinking about adopting a companion for Rio

Chinchilla & Hedgehog Pet Forum

Help Support Chinchilla & Hedgehog Pet Forum:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.
JazzshabammAndRio

JazzshabammAndRio

Active member
Joined
Apr 15, 2014
Messages
28
Location
Western Pennsylvania, United States
I have been debating adopting/rescuing a companion for Rio, he is a two year old light ebony chinchilla. He gets really lonely and bored at times. I play with him and let him run around the room every day and he has tons of toys, but he still seems bored. Here is the problem though: I'm not sure what kind of chinchilla I should look for to be his companion. Awhile back I rescued a 7 year old standard gray and I couldn't even keep their habitats in the same room, they loathed each other and would do just about anything to get my attention anytime I was near the other. I ended up giving Clyde to my sister because he started to get mean after being housed near Rio. I don't want another dilemma like this, all I want is what's best for Rio and I don't want him to be lonely. Is there a certain breed/mutation of chinchilla I should look for? A certain age or gender? And how should I go about introducing them?

Thank you,
Jaz
 
Chins don't always get along. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't. You have to be prepared to always have a 2nd cage before you decide to get another chin. Do not get a female. If you think you don't spend enough time with one chin breeding isn't something you want to deal with. I would suggest a young male who has been caged with others.
 
I'm in and out of the house all day, I always play with Rio and bond with him in the evenings though, he still seems to get bored and lonely though. I love him more than anything and I definitely don't want him to get bored or lonely. I don't have time for breeding, so I was hoping that a male would be my best bet. I have extra cages, I've somehow managed to accumulate tons of them lol. I'm for sure going to look for a young male to adopt/rescue. Does their breed/mutation have any impact on chinchilla pairs? Even though I've had Rio since he was 4 months old, I'm still learning about chins and I want to be the best chinchilla mother I can be.

Thank you
 
Color or anything else is not going to determine whether they get along. If you get another one and it doesn't work out again, what are you going to do? Are going to just dump one of them off on someone again? Chins don't get bored or lonely as long as they have toys and attention from you. Get him a cuddle buddie to snuggle with.
 
If Rio and the other chin would happen to not get along, I would house them separately in my house and be sure to give them both equal amounts of attention and affection. I would NEVER "dump" a pet on someone else, ever. I had given Clyde to my sister because she had wanted a chinchilla, I would never just abandon a pet. Its disgusting that people do that. In response to Rio not having enough toys, he has tons of toys, a wheel, a chummy buddy, fleece balls to roll around, hanging wood and loofa chews, pumice stones, chew blocks, and a huge cage with plenty of room to hop around and play. I spend at least three hours a day giving him my undivided attention plus he has his own special chinchilla safe room to run free and play in daily under my supervision.

It's when I spend a few hours out of my house or I'm working all day that he seems lonely when I get home. He sits in his fleece bed staring into the mirror and just looks lonely. For the last year he has had my attention 24/7 because I was on manditory doctor ordered rest for a severe knee injury (i probably should have noted that in the original post). I can only imagine that he is used to seeing me constantly and is confused by me not being home as much. I just want what is best for him and I am more than willing to take on the responsibility of loving and caring for another chinchilla.
 
I've heard it's easier to introduce younger chins to adult chins. As far as color, that doesn't matter.
However, some chins just prefer to be alone so always be prepared to end up with 2 chins in 2 different cages.

Also, if it doesn't work out and you get him a friend, I highly suggest keeping a back up cage in case they get into a fight down the road and have to be separated.
 
Thank you, I think I'm going to see if getting him another chinny buddy will help. This is going to require a lot of thought, I don't want to make any decision on impulse. He does seem to like company, I always leave my tv on for him when I leave the room, he watches it and makes cute little happy noises from his cage. And he adores kids and guests in most cases. This is really hard though, I want to take on the responsibility of another chinchilla to love and care for, but I don't want them to hate each other. I tried to introduce Rio and Clyde for months and neither of them wanted anything to do with each other. But thank you for your help. It's answered a lot of my questions.
 
Just because a unhappy chin is rehomed, does not mean the owner is a jerk. She did what was best for both chins, I was in this same situation, got the same trashing. Don't worry about what others say Jazz, you did what was needed for both chins.
 
Thank you, it was best to get them as far apart as possible because they hated each other so much, my sister loves Clyde dearly and was so happy when I told her she could have him. Separating them was probably the best decision I could have made regarding them, Rio is less grumpy and Clyde has gotten more outgoing with my sister and doesn't bite anymore. I think Clyde is definitely much happier now, same with Rio. I was so disappointed after months of slowly and carefully introducing them and it not working out.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Latest posts

Back
Top