Hi Mike and welcome to the Chinchilla Club Forum!
I am assuming Rose is a female. How old is she?
Is your other chin a male or a female? How old is it?
There are several varying times for isolation and introduction ... depending on who you talk to ... some are people are more cautious than others.
In my opinion, 30 days would be a minimum time of isolation before introduction of a new chin. Most of the time, I wait 90 days with most chins, regardless of where I got them.
One steadfast rule I have, when leaving two chins together for the first time ... I will do this
only when I will be right there with them
for the first 24 hours ... regardless of how they seem to be with each other. Often, chinchillas will react differently to each other when you leave the room ... always be within hearing distance and ready to go right back into the room should there be any sounds such as, fussing, chasing and/or fighting. If I should have to leave for any reason within the first 24 hours ... they go into separate cages.
The time between the first introduction of two chins will often vary according to the reaction of each chinchilla to the other, with each meeting. I have found there are usually 4 reactions chinchillas have when introduced for the first time.
1)
Friendly They sniff and after a few minutes even seem to want to snuggle or be side by side. This is an excellent sign! More than likely, they will get along with no problems. This can usually be an
instant and successful introduction.
2)
Indifferent They sniff and then seem to ignore each other or just ignore each other without even sniffing. This is a pretty good sign, they will
probably get along, but I would wait until they act a little more favorable to each other, before leaving them together in the same cage ... regardless of the amount of time it might take.
3)
Sizing-up Without Contact One or both will stand and/or one or both will fuss at each other. Standing is a way of physically being 'over' or taller than the other chin, a way of showing/boasting size or being intimidating. Fussing (verbally) is also a way of 'non-contact' intimidation. In either situation, the question is ... will they ever get along as cage mates? It's a tossup, with doubt, if both have the 'alpha chin' personality or if one is very dominate and the other is very timid. the dominate one my even refuse to allow the timid one to eat, or in extream instances beat-up on him.
4)
Fight One or both size each other up, then one or both start/attempt to fight. I would never put them together again. Why stress them out or take the chance of injury or death? One would, more than likely, eventually injure or even kill the other one or both could die from the wounds.
Please check out Michael's Chinchilla Home Page for some excellent recordings of chinchilla sounds and the explanation of each.
Here is the URL: http://www.chinchilla-sounds.de/index_en.htm
I have found it to be one of the best on the net.
Hope this helps a little.
Jo Ann
Author
Topic: Question (Read 4437 times)