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[jdenney]

Hi all,

I am new to this forum and I am very excited to hear the advice you will have to give me!

My boyfriend and I adopted a black velvet chinchilla whose name is Chanel last August. She was caged with another chinchilla and seemed to pleasantly coexist but they were not necessarily bonded. However, we thought it was best to only adopt Chanel since we were new to being chinchilla parents. She has the best temperament and is very attentive to us - just like we are to her. I was weary of adopting a chinchilla since I am afraid of small animals but she is truly the most quirky, happy little thing. I absolutely love her.

About a week ago, my boyfriend found a beautiful, 3 month old violet wrap who needed a home. We picked her up from the breeders home where she was caged with her mother and one other sibling. We have her (Prada) set up in a simple, two tier cage which is placed next to Chanel's palace of four tiers.  The breeder said the best way to introduce our chinchillas was to put them on neutral ground with a dust bath out, along with hide aways the day that we got her. Chanel, who is about 3 years old now, seems thoroughly interested in the baby and has not being acting aggressively or making any noises at her. The baby, however, seems to be the aggressor.

The introduction process does not seem to be heavily documented on the internet or in the chinchilla books I have accumulated. My boyfriend reached out and sent videos of our girls vocally and physically interacting to a popular breeder in Europe and he says that they are making progress but I am skeptical. Prada still sounds terrified and runs from Chanel.

I just wanted to know if you all have any advice on introducing a young female to an older, laid back female. I have read the other forums about this but they did not seem helpful due to the different situations.

Thank you all!

[GrayRodent]

Are you doing this with the intent of breeding? Once they are bonded it will be very hard to separate them and neutering is not recommended. If you don't know how to introduce them properly I doubt you should be breeding. Is there a local chinchilla breeder that can mentor you?

[jdenney]

I believe I stated they are both females in my original post. I have no intentions of breeding ever - I am potentially going to medical school next fall and will not have time for breeding as it is. 

The breeder I got the baby chinchilla from tried telling us how to introduce the chinchillas but the baby is aggressive towards my older, laid back chinchilla. I tried contacting her but she has yet to respond to my questions. As I stated in my original post, my boyfriend reached out to another breeder in Europe and he says they are making progress but the baby chinchilla seems to be getting more aggressive/scared of or older female.

[GrayRodent]

Sorry about that. Obviously I wasn't paying close enough attention. For some reason I thought the first one was a male.

I'm not really the one to talk to about introductions but I know the most common way to do it is to put both animals in the same room about 3 inches apart (2" minimum) in separate cages. You should do this for about two weeks and let them meet in a neutral space (like what you have done). If they're not pulling each other's hair out and trying to bite I think you're doing well. Initial introduction is usually noisy, the dominant one may mount the less dominant.
With females it is harder than males. Maybe wait another week before trying again. Definately put them in the cage at a time where you can watch them. Not all chinchillas will bond but based on what you've said and the experiences others have had I think you have a good chance.
How large is the cage they are going into?
I hope others with experience will comment soon. We do have regulars here who are experts.