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[Rachael29]

Hi guys
Thanks for taking the time to look at my post.

So my 2 chins coco and onyx as you may know already onyx is the dominant one. So they had play time as normal back in the cage and an hour or so later I hear them clattering about the cage normal for them being nocturnal and sometimes I let them out again as I don't sleep well anyway. I thought this is what was happening however when I went into the room coco had a chunk of fur hanging out loose from his coat like plain as day hanging out of his side behind his right hind leg so I let them out again just to try take the loose fur off of coco and I did eventually get it out which has left a noticeable line in his fur.

So after i got it out they played for a while and again the mounting thing happened me feeling sorry for coco tried to stop onyx but it made him more determined to do it and it's as if coco has had enough because it was different tonight they were more face to face struggling with each other rather than trying to mount one another. They might have been trying to mount but no one was giving in so I broke it up.

Keeping an eye on coco and pretty annoyed with onyx thinking how he could rip out his "brothers" fur so he started trying to pull the carpet up chew the paint try jump on me for a treat I'm going to assume this is because he wasn't getting the attention he normally gets because I was preoccupied with coco making sure he was ok so I'm not exactly worried about this behaviour but thought I would give a proper account of what happened.


So has anyone ever experienced this? Could it be dominance mounting in the cage now? Could it be coco has maybe got a fright and fur slipped?

[GrayRodent]

My chinchillas do that. Their relationship with each other is more turbulent than I am comfortable with but it doesn't happen every day and it is better than it was. Chinchillas are active mostly at night so that is when it will occur. It is common for paired chins to get into tussles and sometimes fur gets slipped and pulled. Make sure your food bowl is constantly full and your hay is fully stocked. You always have the option of separating them. There is always a risk that it can turn into something. It is part of having two chins in a cage.

[Rachael29]

So would you say it's anything to worry about? Like picking them up as mentioned in a previous post onyx is fine with it he gets picked up jumps up for treats sits nicely in your hand and eats it even a clap but coco will stretch over your hand to try get the treat in your other hand. Won't sit on our hands or sit when he is picked up I don't know is this is maybe a knock on effect from what onyx is doing or maybe he just doesn't want to be lifted? Maybe he's just a grumpy chin? Any help is appreciated.

[BLS Chins]

What you are describing is the precursor to a fight. Chins that stand up and face each other, excessive mounting and the hair tuff pulled are all signs they are not getting along well. You should separate them before it gets more serious. Your can try slowly reintroducing them after a few weeks. Sometimes time apart helps

[GrayRodent]

I absolutely agree this can be the preconditions for a serious fight. You may be better off separating them for a time and re-introducing them. It is completely your call.

As far as your interaction with them chinchillas usually don't like to be handled starting out and you have to work with them until they tame down. I consider this to be a different issue. Work with them each day and handle them in short sessions and you should see improvement over time.