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Author Topic: Hiding and barking all day....  (Read 1056 times)

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Lapis

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Hiding and barking all day....
« on: February 19, 2017, 04:33:34 PM »

I've been trying some new things to bond with Dawn, but they don't really seem to be working.
I let her out of her cage and some days, she's perfectly happy. Bouncing around and such. Others, she's way more concerned with just hiding in the same spot for literally hours, and barking on and off while doing so.

I got/set up a nice playpen for her that connects to her cage, and she got out. She's currently hiding under the dresser, and keeps barking every so often. I have no idea why. Every time I approach her she just tries to run away. It's like I can't even get near her without chasing her. She seems very uninterested in treats too, even when I show her that I have them she's way more interested in running away from me.

Any tips? What should I do to get her out from under the dresser?
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Lapis

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Re: Hiding and barking all day....
« Reply #1 on: February 19, 2017, 07:13:13 PM »

Update: she's out from under the dresser, and i closed it off so she can't go in there again. She's now roaming the house (all other hiding places are also blocked off)

I'm sitting on the floor with her, talking sweetly to her and trying to entice her with treats. She seems to want to approach me but hasn't gotten closer to about 2 feet from me. I'm not chasing her at all though, which i think she likes. she also did something new today, that i thought was cute. She jumped up on the first step on my stair case (almost immediately jumped back down but it was still very cute lol)
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GrayRodent

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Re: Hiding and barking all day....
« Reply #2 on: February 19, 2017, 09:17:35 PM »

One thing that chinchillas like is to interact through the bars and the door of the cage. My chins love to get scratched and poked and messed with. I have a cage with nice big doors too and I'll just stick my head in there and they'll groom my hair.
I have one chin that will run and jump out of the cage so I have to be careful. Mine is on two levels so I can put him on the top level and he's not likely to jump out.
If you just go to the bars, or door and put your hand in there just wait and be still. Chinchillas are naturally curious and when they're awake they explore the cage. If your pet is running from you just be still. Do not approach from above. Start with scratching under their head. Most chins prefer that. Some chins prefer to be rubbed.
Spend a lot of time observing your pet and learning as much as you can.
I advise against using treats as a training aid. It is so easy to overdo them and it can cause humongous digestive complications that can be fatal. I've done this both ways and I've discovered that chins are trainable and usually prefer interaction even if no treats are offered.
Another good training aid is to sit in a bathtub or enclosed shower stall and just observe your pet. Don't do anything but observe, and then try different things. The more your pet gets used to you the more you can do. Eventually you'll be able to handle and hold your chinchilla. Training can take weeks. Do this regularly.
For example my chins are located right next to the doorway out of my room. When I come through the door I'll mess with them breifly, just for about 10-15 seconds. So we're talking 5-6 times a day. Now when I come through the door they'll press up against the bars to get scratched.
Don't expect immediate dramatic changes. You'll see gradual changes over weeks and months.
Always be very careful. I do not advise owners to allow their pets to roam the house.There are many hazards and many horror stories I can tell. If you insist, though, your worst hazards are getting stepped on and closed in doors, and electrocution from chewing electrical power cords. Your chins do not need to spend hours outside of their cage every day, and will be probably be friendlier and less flighty if they do not.
« Last Edit: February 19, 2017, 09:23:44 PM by GrayRodent »
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Lapis

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Re: Hiding and barking all day....
« Reply #3 on: February 20, 2017, 08:51:31 PM »

Thank you very much! You're always so insightful ^_^ she's doing better it seems, i just upgraded her cage today and last night she jumped up on my hand after i managed to get her back in.
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