Chinchilla Community Forums
Chinchillas => Health => Topic started by: Russbiker on March 19, 2016, 10:44:49 AM
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Hello,
Not a happy post im afraid but really need some advice.
Ive had to have one of my chinchillas but to sleep today and she was very strongly bonded with her sister who we still have. Our vet advised that it may be a good idea to let our existing chinchilla see her sister before we bury her so she understands she is gone forever and not lost.
I dont know if this would cause more stress to our existing chinchilla who at the moment is blissfully unaware or if by not showing her she might pine.
Anyone have any experience in the situation?
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Very sorry to hear that and so sad when you have a pair separated like that. I have no experience with this in chinchillas but my intuition about animals in general tells me there is some merit to that concept but I don't think it's a certainty by any means. Chinchillas can have very different personalities. Usually you don't have serious problems separating pairs unless they are opposite-sex breeding pairs but it's not unheard of for same-sex pairs. I've seen problems arise even when they put into separate cages in the same room. More commonly they'll be upset for a day or two and then prefer to be on their own and sometimes you won't be able to pair them with another chinchilla.
So I would say if you don't have a problem with it it may be worth a try but there's no guarantees it's going to change anything and may relate more to wild animals that experience death on a regular basis than pets. I do highly recommend monitoring the other one's health and syringe feeding if there is a problem. Chances are highest that your other pet will be mostly indifferent to the event.
I hope someone who's been through this will share their experience. Again I'm sorry for your loss.
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Chins dont grieve so there is no point in letting her see the dead sister. They adjust quite fine to being alone. As a breeder, I pair and separate chins on a regular basis. She may eat a bit less for the first week or two. This is due to the change in hierarchy, NOT due to missing the other chin. Why was the other chin put to sleep? Is it something thats possibly contagious?