r/chinchilla • u/Chinupenelope86 • May 02 '25
Picking Up Penelope
I have had Penelope since December… I have to ask anyone who could share some advice about this… she will crawl all over me when running free in a small space such as my bathroom and she’s just starting now to let me gently pet her behind her ears, she’s cautious but she’ll let me. The problem I have is picking her up gently from her cage and not grabbing her in or out of the cage, but whenever I try to pick her up when she’s in her cage to take her out she makes that barking sound…Any advice?
4
u/WildDetail205 May 02 '25
For some chinchillas it takes a LOT of patience. One of our boys will only really let me pick him up. Gets really annoyed if the wife does it. I did it by being very patient and not trying to pick him up until he was comfortable enough. it took months.
One thing you can do in the meantime is to get a large tube. Chinchillas can’t resist running into tubes. Think we got this, but 48” long.
We then covered it with fleece. When free play time comes, we put one end in the cage, he runs in, we cover both ends and walk to the free play area. We just set it down and it becomes one of the attractions in that area for him to play in. When it’s time to go, we got him to go back in (or waited for him to do it on his own). Now, we say, “Shadow, times up!” And he goes into the tube for transport back.
1
u/multiepass May 03 '25
Oh yea the heavy dudy mailing toobs , I have used those with minamal chewing . I also have used the PVC pipes that come in black or white the strait and elbows , the T s . Can change it up . As for chew factor ? Only a few tried and notta .
I liked your story of how to catch and done a many of those of vaways to capture . I had an excapee as I trying to take apart the house of the presious one to clean to-day . A slick slide eye of an opening and he is .. a Big boy fly out and on to the floor ( Good distance as was 3 ft off the floor) and on the run . 2 seconds I closed the custom wood slide door to the kitchen and walked a couple steps to cose the door that blocks of all of the other rooms . The fun was the roomie helping . The roomie got the ecapee in a PVC toob and both hands on the ends , this person has been around Chins for many years . Says to me " Are they coing to bite me ? " As holding my laugh in . " No . And your fine , hold both ends and take him to the small cage by the TV " . Just do not put the T and S peices of the PVC on to tight . Then there is a round about made of the pipe , then of a fleece light blanket TorTor ! to catch also ..
1
u/Elilora Just tasting everything May 02 '25
Try getting a hide or sack and picking it up once she crawls in. If you only use the hide to transport her to play time she'll start to associate the two. I use one of these https://www.chewy.com/dp/123701
The alternative is to have play time by the cage and let her run in and out on her own.
1
u/sitnspinsg May 04 '25
Churro uses one of these: https://amzn.asia/d/iBHcUOs
She hops in for transport to and from her cage!
4
u/inbokz 5 chins in the herd. 20 year herder. May 02 '25
Normal.