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Author Topic: Help  (Read 896 times)

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tram900

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Help
« on: July 03, 2015, 08:57:26 PM »

So I decided to clean my chinchilla cage and let my 2 chins run around in the toilet. When I caught them the first one was the fine yet the other chinchilla lost hair on his forehead as if he bumped his head on something. He's eating well and seems okay yet this doesn't look normal at all. Any suggestions? Did he injure himself? Sorry I can't upload picture file to large.

Thanks guys
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GrayRodent

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Re: Help
« Reply #1 on: July 04, 2015, 06:13:54 AM »

How long have you had your pets? How tame are they?
I suspect what you encountered is fur slip, which is a defense mechanism in chinchillas to make them slippery if a predator attempts to grab one. This is more prevalent in chinchillas that are not tame and are not comfortable with being handled or held.
If just got your pets and they are not well socialized I recommend leaving them in their cage for at least a week if possible and let them get bonded to you before you remove them from the cage to interact with them. This should have a calming effect on them.

If the skin underneath looks irritated or red then you could be faced with an injury or a fungal infection and you should get it checked out. Otherwise instant hair loss on chasing and grabbing a chinchilla is most likely fur slip. I don't consider this to be normal because it indicates your chinchilla may be highly stressed. It does happen on occasion with my pets that are tame but it is rare and usually there is a good explanation for it.
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I'm a programmer not a chinchilla breeder. I learn by asking questions just like you.

BLS Chins

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Re: Help
« Reply #2 on: July 04, 2015, 10:10:26 AM »

Check the skin. If its red, flaking or looks irritated then it may be the start of a skin infection. If the skin looks fine then it might be just a fur slip. Chins can release hair as a safety mechanism. Its possible the other chin may have pulled out the hair. Watch closely for any sign of fighting.
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BLS Chins
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specializing in ebony, tan, goldbar, standard and black velvets
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