Chinchilla Community Forums
Chinchillas => Q & A => Topic started by: momofminizoo on July 09, 2014, 01:39:52 PM
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Hello fellow Chin owners, I need some advice.
I recently got my 2 chinchillas a few months ago. Sam and Dean are 4 year old brothers, and are very close and bonded. Up until a few nights ago, they were perfectly fine and were treating each other great. However, they've started to chase each other around the cage and I thought that was fine. They were chirping (not barking) and acted like they were playing. Ive noticed now that there are tufts of fur from Sam all over the cage, and Dean is acting very territorial whenever his brother is around. Ive even seen Dean biting at Sam's ears and keeping him away from the food. I separated them (in a ferret nation cage, one on top and one on bottom) last night because Sam was acting very frightened, was making screeching noises, and avoided Dean at all costs after he chased him. Should I buy another cage and keep them separated? Is it just a little fight that should clear up? I need some help before one of them gets hurt.
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Wish I knew what to say about how to fix that but that is somewhat beyond my area of expertise. I do recommend having 2 inches of separation between them if you feel they can fight through the bars.
Sometimes males will fight if they smell a female chinchilla in heat thinking they are competing for the female. If it is that or something similar (I'll just leave it at that) you may end up with that situation.
Unfortunately, from what I understand, sometimes chinchillas can just turn on each other and require separation for no apparent reason although it is somewhat uncommon. Make sure the one that is acting territorial is healthy and not in pain from a hidden injury or sickness.
Perhaps someone can comment soon.