Update!

Jun 12, 2006 21:26

This started out as a response to delennamachoo, but kind of grew long and I figured to make it an entry. What the hey.

Yeah, I've been neglecting my journal a bunch...didn't feel like posting for a bit after the last entry, and then work and other issues set in. It happens. :(

Since then, we've had the good fortune of re-rescuing the two chinnies from my wife's employer. Amazingly, aside from some runny/green poo they were doing ok (physically anyway). The girl we don't think is pregnant, and gave to my mother-in-law (since she misses the 'grandkids' since she moved north to Melbourne). The little boy we've kept...he's pretty aggressive to other chins, but considering the environment he's been in I suppose that's par for the course.

He's been out of quarantine for a few weeks and the cage has been next to the other boys. They have quite animated dominance shows from 6 inches away...eau de chin musk has a while before it goes mainstream, I think.

We tried putting them in a neutral area (we got one of those small animal wire fences) and we tried putting DJ (the rescue) in with one of the other individual boys. So far DJ is undefeated in what I've (only half-jokingly) called their "chin steel cage matches"--Gizmo and Dusty have both slipped a bit of fur from those sessions.

We're probably going to wait another week, and then try the "smoosh" method of introduction...hopefully that will move DJ past his territorial issues. He's really a sweet boy--he's very gentle with us, and he calls out every so often....we feel horrible that we split him and his sister (I think, anyway) up, but a pairing like that is just a bad idea in the long run.

I've also mostly finished building a melamine cage, split in half vertically. There's less horizontal room, but a lot more vertical room to jump, plus the wheel is mounted against a solid wall, so it's also much quieter. Gizmo seems to be enjoying his new home...just need to finish the other side and mount the flying saucer, and Dusty can move in. Hopefully DJ will be paired up with one of the boys so we can simplify our cages! :)
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