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[opaldamour]

Ok, I'm stumped without getting a video camera on my chins...

We have had a barking issue ever since we got our girls from the breeder. Considering that they both had horrid breeding experiences (the males beat them up pretty good, and the breeder decided to take them out of the herd due to the stress), I figured at first it was just a fear thing, or the fact that it was a new environment... but they will randomly bark durring the day and evening hours (it doens't happen every day though).

We took them both to the vet, and Dharma had a nasty ear infection. We got drops, as well as arthritis meds for her, and i chalked the barking up to painfulness. But the infection is long gone, and we stopped the arthritis meds to see how she would do, and she's fine (she was fur chewing excessively, and she's doing that minimally now as well as moving around much more freely even without the glucosamine). But we still get the barking.

The minute it happens one of us goes to check on them. We don't have a dog or cat to terrorize them, and we keep loud noises to a minimum. Temp is usually 71 F, they have pleanty of stuff in the cage, and they don't fight. Anyone have any ideas? My boyfriend made a remark about it being a ghost.... and I'm starting to wonder (silly though it is). Does anyone know if chins dream? I'm wondering if it's nightmares...

[ABC Chinchillas]

Some chinchillas bark more than others. also if they are adjusting to a new envronment they may just be hearing something out side.

[dianah]

awww, they sound absolutely gorgeous! poor little things!

i do think that they dream, some of mine make sounds when they're asleep, it's usually a calling sound - you know, high pitched squeaking thing - rather than barking but still..

are they in separate places when the barking happens? i have three girls in one cage and even though the cage is massive with loads of ledges, because they tend to cuddle up all the time, when one moves and wants to get over the other two and go somewhere else, they complain.
is it definitely barking? (sorry if this sounds like a retarded question)

i wouldn't worry too much, especially as it doesn't happen every day. some chins bark every so often and yours have been through a lot, maybe it's just habit? unless it's constant barking or there are other changes to their behaviour, i think it's ok. barking isn't usually a sound they make when they're in pain from my experience.

also, i know you don't have noises etc but they can hear better than us so maybe they're hearing something you can't? i have three very large dogs and they do their fair share of barking - it doesn't bother my chins, they're used to it which is quite good for when we go to the vets!

[opaldamour]

Well, they have been with us last since last August, so if they aren't used to the place by now, they never will be!    However, the only other animal we have is a turtle so I don't think it's him that is making them bark. And no, it's not every day... just about every other though.

I'm thinking it's either them dreaming, or Dharma overcrowding Lily (she tends to sleep ON Lily, rather then beside her).  Neither of them seem particularly distressed when we come running in, but its hard to tell with them sometimes.

You're right, I'm not going to worry to much about it. Dharma's fur biting has improved (she's looking shaggier every day in the back end, which is much better then the bald patches she had a month ago), and Lily is a booger as always. However, I think I'm going to borrow a friend's static nightvision camera and record them for  day or two, just to be sure.

[dianah]

oh you know those turtles, they can be extremely noisy!

my fluffy makes this really alarming noise - she sort of sounds like a car alarm - and the amount of times i ran to their room in the middle of the night because i thought something was terribly wrong and everybody looked fine. then she did it a few times when i was in the room when the other two girls were climbing over her.

they also do it - i only found out yesterday - it would appear that when they're sleeping together, it's nicer for them to be the one that's draped over the other because my girls were wrestling for a good minute to be on top! and fluffy wasn't best pleased so she made that sound.

[opaldamour]

That makes sense! I'm betting that it what it is. It's either Lily telling Dharma to get off of her, or Dharma complaining because Lily wont let her lay on her! But i'm still going to record them over a few days just for giggles.

[Jhenderson27]

Ours do it to Gizzy makes a peeping noise than a bark when sleeping.  We will wall in to check and she will kack at us.  Odd chins.  Gotta love em though

[AnnieHank]

Mine do it too and it freaked me out for awhile. I'm not sure which of them does it, it's not exactly like a bark for mine, but it is very like an alarm call of some sort. They used to be in the same room as me during the day until we moved and I'd be sitting there doing my work on my laptop beside the cage and then I'd hear this noise out of the blue- I almost jumped out of my skin a few times! I could see there was nothing wrong with them and it would have been quiet enough to hear a pin drop, so I put it down to chinchilla dreams for lack of any better explanation.

[birdlady]

hello...we have a male chin...and he barks in the late mornings....and again right before he's up the first time of the day....he sorta of reminds me of a child(baby) to cry out , like testing the area. lil bark....nap. bark-bark, nap
then up funny critter, i just love him 

[Debbie.nl.ca]

Try turning on a radio, maybe it's too quiet. They so love to be part of the family.