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[chinchillalover101]

So i recently bought a new baby chinchilla for my 1 year old. My 1 year old chinchilla was very interested in the baby so i let them meet. At first she was just chasing her and jumping on her back. However, they just started barking and fighting and rolling all around. I separated them instantly. I have my older chinchilla in the upstairs part of the cage and the baby at the bottom. My 1 year old always tries to jump out of the cage but as soon as they go nose to nose through the cage, they bark and attack. This is my second day of having them & I'm hoping they will eventually get along. I think dominance is the main problem.

Do you have any suggestions on how to get them to stop fighting and be friends? How should i reintroduce them? & Why do they keep watching each other? Thank you!

[GrayRodent]

First off I just want to state that when introducing a new chinchilla like that it's good to keep them in separate rooms the first three weeks. If the new chin for whatever reason has an infectious disease this minimizes the risks. I'm not saying that to be critical though but to point out a good practice.

Secondly most breeders recommend to introduce chinchillas slowly. You should put them in separate cages in the same room, at least 2" apart so they can't injure each other through the bars. Then just take care of them and interact for a 2-3 weeks. The new chin will be more comfortable with its environment. Then dust bath together and see how they do. If it doesn't work then repeat the cycle.

And don't be terribly disappointed if it doesn't work out. Not all chins are compatible with each other. Mine didn't like each other first. There was a big age difference and I tried to introduce them all at once. Today they don't live in the same cage but I let them together supervised and they normally do okay.
I discovered two problems. One is that the age difference was too much. The younger chinchilla was not settled down. It can take over a year for a baby chinchilla to act more civilized but they do settle down. The other problem is the older one is extremely dominant and the younger will take it for a little while and lash out when he's had enough.

Typically fighting is considered to be dangerous when fur is pulled out. If one ever gets bitten or bloodied do not ever try to reintroduce them as this is extreme aggression. Some chinchillas have been known to kill their cage-mates with one bite. Also be warned even a bonded pair can turn on each other unexpectedly with fatal results. It is rare but there are usually signs leading up to it. Also females can harder to pair than males.

Please remember this process can take months, not just days. Be patient and you might succeed.

[GrayRodent]

Also note I have removed duplicate posts from other threads.
To answer some of the questions:
Why do they keep looking at each other?
   Because they see each other a potential threat. Chinchillas communicate visually with body and tail movements. This is normal.
Will this change the baby's personality?
   Unless there's some kind of extreme problem, no. I know from other accounts that even chinchillas that have succeeded at killing cage-mates can still make exceptional pets. They are animals you must work with skillfully if you wish for them to become tame. I've had three now, one started out as a wild beast and he made a good pet after 6 months of working with him and handling him regularly. You have a great opportunity with an 8 week old. Take full advantage and handle him every day.

[chinchillalover101]

Thank you so much!!!! I just split up a ferret nation cage using a chin-chiller. I don't own another cage so i just did that. Will that help the get used to each other?  My older chinchilla is on the top however she keeps dumping her food dish and it all falls down to the baby.

 When they were fighting, it was very scary actually. But i did the wrong thing introducing them to each other right away. My baby female chinchilla will wag her tail. I saw that thats something common in males... What does that mean in females?

Is there anyway i can predict if my chinchillas will like each other like are there any signs? I'm really hoping they will be able to get along so i don't have to keep them separated.

[chinchillalover101]

Also, when you say dust bath together, should i take two dust houses out or just use one?

[GrayRodent]

I mean when they have been acquainted for several weeks and you want to test to make sure they'll tolerate each other I recommend putting them in the dust bath together where you can quickly pull them away if it doesn't go well. The dust bath itself is a nice distraction and they may be as aggressive.

I think it's fine to keep them divided in the FN cage. That is pretty much what I have now with my two. One thing I like to do is hold one and put him up to the other one at times and they'll interact. Of course I don't recommend letting them touch each other for at least 3 weeks.

Having a macaw you probably have seen the seed cups with the ring around them You can get these that bolt to the bars of your FN cage for medium sized parrots. At my house we have two chins and an red-sided eclectus. I have two stainless seed cups in my cage and they work great. Sometimes one of them may work it out of the ring but it's very rare.

Wagging tails is a sign of aggression towards intruders. It is territorial behavior. I think it's too early to tell if they'll be compatible. I've found chinchillas are creatures of habit. If you can form good habits between them and desensitize them to each other you might get somewhere. With my two I think I'm pretty much there but I'm not still comfortable leaving them together unsupervised. Most chins prefer solitude and there is nothing wrong with keeping them separate. Even cagemates will get into tussels. With females usually they'll shoot each other with urine before it gets bad. It's hair pulling, clawing and making hair fly you really have to be careful of.

[chinchillalover101]

Thank you.. My older chin is always so curious to see the little one. She will jump out of the top part and go down my arms to go see it. She will jump onto the cage like spiderman just to watch the other one. I'll hold her to see it but they're both so interested in each other. The baby will start barking, which may scare my older one. I'm not really sure who starts the fighting first. I'm pretty sure my older one does. She is starting to take her fleece on the bottom of the cage and bunch it up. She just sits and watches the other chinchilla. My baby will go to the top of her ramp where the cage is separated and lay there. I'm not sure if they want to play or what. I think they just need to get used to each others scent. My baby one was in the same cage as her mother when i got her. She is probably still nervous.

[GrayRodent]

Scent is important too but they just need to get used to each other being there. That's another thing about chins they act like they want to be together. Sometimes not for good reasons and it can be hard to tell what is what.

[chinchillalover101]

Could my older one be jealous of the baby?

[chinchillalover101]

Whenever I am at the bottom of the cage talking to my baby chinchilla, my other one goes to the cage bars and shakes it. She puts her nose up against it and goes crazy! She will then take the fleece and move it all so she can watch

[GrayRodent]

My white mosaic does that when he wants out of the cage. Make sure the door is snapped completely shut or it makes a lot of racket.