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[Mcdoog7]

Hi everyone.

My little male just turned 8 weeks today and I separted him from Mom yesterday. I caught him mounting his mom and so, I separated them...don't need any little inbreds running around 

I put the baby in with the dad and the dad tried to make love to the baby... Then I tried putting Mom and Dad back together, but Mom thrashed Dad, so needless to say, EVERYBODY is in their own separate cages! It was pretty chaotic last night 

So I guess my question is, when is a good time for the baby to go to his new home? Thanks everyone!

[ABC Chinchillas]

Here is what I do
 At 8 weeks I pull baby from mom, Females can stay an extra week or two but males need to be out of there by 8 weeks.
 Then I keep baby on his own or in a same sex pair for a week (longer if I am keeping them) and watch to see that they are eating and adjusting well. Then after that they can go to their new home.

dad mounting the baby is likely dominance. Chinchillas will often mount each other not as a sexual activity but as a show of dominance so your male was not trying to mate with the baby

Sometimes mom and dad can never go back together..and if you are breeding what is the goal you are trying to achieve how is that pairing improving upon each other and do you have a pedigree and know genetic history (note that not all animals with a pedigree are breeding quality) otherwise maybe you should just leave baby and dad together and get mom a same sex cage mate

[1newChinmom1]

I agree with Starlomach, 8 weeks is best for boys.  And dominance is usually the mounting cause.
Now is a great time to spend extra time with your little fellow and help him grow into an extra loving chin!  Our little Sir actually comes when called, gives kisses and snuggles, and prefers cuddling to being alone. He is bouncey and popcorns a great deal, but often  is popcorning to my daughter, for hugs. 

Best of luck with your little boy. They are just bundles of love, aren't they?

The more I learn, the more I realize how little I know

[Jo Ann]

   Mom and dad were away from each other and "lost the scent" of the other mate.  If you would like to keep them together, they will need a whole new introduction between them.  Starting with swapping cages fairly often ... to help them remember the scent.

Here is what I do ... maybe you should just leave baby and dad together ...

   Please, do not house father and son together!  Anytime a female goes in season (namely mom or any other female chin), there is always the possibility of a fight (maybe even to the death) between the two males ... even if they are related.   They may go for months, some even years without fighting, but eventually the rule of  "survival of the fittest" takes over.  I found out the hard way.  I had father and son together for over 9 months, then one morning I found them both with deep bite marks.  We almost lost the son.  The picture of the son is posted below.  He lived, but with physical scars and some emotional ones, too.  He was afraid to even do the normal 'play fight' with other chins after that.  

I have never put two males together again ... for this reason alone ... I will not take the chance again.  

Two females in the same cage is usually OK.

   Jo Ann

[jmdebb]

oh wow, joann, i'm glad you didn't lose him. poor little guy.


but yah,  i tried to breed a few times, and ever since i did that, i can't put my boys back together.  and they used to live in the same cage before i tried to breed.  so please keep them sep so you don't end up with anyone that gets hurt.

[Jhenderson27]

Whats your opinion of 3 brothers that have never had anything to do with breeding.  Just 3 boys that have grown up since they were born together.  They are on the other side of the room, well acutally now I moved them into another room so they would get a little more attention/sound.  Please advise.

[jbcstratton]

Concerning the 3 brothers, if there is no female to go into heat around them, they could live happily together.  There are always a chance for fighting though and others may have more advise for you.

[Mcdoog7]

I am so late in replying, sorry everyone!

Awww, I'm so sorry what happened to your poor baby, that must have been devastating for you! How horrible. I didn't trust the dad with the baby, because the reason I ended up with him in the first place is because he got into a horrible fight with another male chinchilla and he took a big chunk out of the other boy's head    So, Coal's owner was happy to hear that I had a female and Coal and Goodie have gotten along so well! In fact, she's the boss of the cage (even though she's literally half his size)...that is, until the bath gets put in their cage, and then he really bullies her lol  I did end up keeping the 3 of them in their own separate cages though. And the baby is now living at my sister's house, and is being spoiled rotten, which is very nice to see    He is doing wonderful, and it's nice that we get to visit him still.

[Mcdoog7]

Oh, and also, Coal and Goodie are happily sharing a cage again! I felt so bad for him; he was actually quite depressed and lost weight when they were separated, and he would've taken her back with open arms but she was violent with him! So I put their cages side by side and slowly re-introduced them again. I am very happy that it worked because now Coal is back to his chubby self again, happy as a clam!