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[Socrates399]

So, I am just thinking about breeding chinchillas right now (even if I decide to do it it wouldn't be until next summer) but I have a question.

I have two males currently.  If I were to buy a female, would she and one of the males have to become permanent cage mates?  Or could I mate them, and then put the male back with his buddy?

[Debbie.nl.ca]

If I were to buy a female, would she and one of the males have to become permanent cage mates?  Or could I mate them, and then put the male back with his buddy?

Now that's a mouth full of a question and Jo Ann is so much better with all the details than I am.
But for starters it's quite possible that if you add a female to the same room and she goes in heat, that the boys could fight to the death to get at her.

Are you willing to take that chance?

As it stands your males have never gotten the scent of a female in heat and don't know what they are missing. Once they do they become men in chin land, and will never forget that feeling   So the short answer is NO.
Your going to hear all kinds of reasons why not, and MAYBE one or two whom have had something like that work, but I've been breeding for 12 years and I wouldn't even bother trying.
There are routs you could take to breed them like putting her with one of them for life. You could keep introducing her back and forth with both. Or if you want to keep these two boys together, buy a new breeding pair.
You have to decide if you want breeding pairs, runs or colonies, and if you wish to sell kits or just breed a few more pets for yourself?
There's so much to think about and learn, I'm so glad your doing your homework first.

[Jo Ann]

    ONLY if you are willing to take the chance on one or both being severely injured or killed.

I had two chins (father and son) living together for 9 months, no problem ... then, one morning I found what is in the photo below, but much worse ... in the photo, he is already healing.  There were permanent scars left on both the father and the son.  I could have easily lost one or both, had I not found them when I did.  It was a long haul in the recovery of each one of the two.

This one incident was enough to make sure I never allowed males to stay in the same cage when there was a female on the premises.

Some seem to do it successfully, I did to, too, for quite a while, but, to me, it will never be worth the possibility of a repeat performance to chance it again.

Jo Ann

[Socrates399]

I  never meant them to be in the same room.  I was more asking--if I had the Chinchillas in different rooms, could I put one male in with the female, let them mate, and then put him back, the way you might do if you paid a stud fee for a stallion?

[Debbie.nl.ca]

Again that would be tricky. Once separated you may never get the two males to live in the same cage again.
And the one who was bred may only want females from then on.


OOhhhh that's nasty Jo Ann

[Jo Ann]

   There is also a possibility that the male chinchilla that did visit the female chin would/could bring back the smell of the female chin on his fur (the smell of a strange chin he does not know) and mistake his for her and get into a fight.   Chinchillas do recognize many by smelling of them.  If you notice, a chin will sniff of you or another chin every time they meet.

Debbie, that looks good compared to what it was when I found them ... there was also damage to the face and ears ... they were both a mess, but both survived.   At first I thought it was something else ... like maybe they just got mad at each other for some odd reason ... it was my first incident, and I did not realize what was going on at the time.

About a year later two brothers did the same thing.  I did loose one of them, as a matter of fact, he was already gone when I found him.  Hence, that's why I would never house two males in the same cage again, if there are females in the house.

    Jo Ann