Possible game..?

[Jill]

Mustafa plays this strange game with me. He doesn't love being petted, he just tolerates it. And only when I have him cornered. I try to pet him in his cage and he runs away, but then when I shut the door and walk away he runs over as if to say "hey! wait, don't leave". He likes to sniff my hand, nibble and kind of crawl on me, but he doesn't really like it if I try to pet him. I know he doesn't like his face of ears touched much, if I touch his ears on accident he immediately has to rub them and his face.
At night I lay on the floor reading and let him have outside playtime and run around. He comes over to me and sits on me and sniffs my face, but if I try to touch him he will run away. He always comes back, but still won't let me touch him. I know he likes me and he is curious about me, but he doesn't like to be held or petted.
Do you think it is because he is from a pet store and never had much human contact? Is it something he will grow out of? It's only been a week and a half for us, so maybe I am just hoping for too much too soon. I spend a ton of time with him and his trust in me has grown tremendously, I just wish I could pet him more. Also could it be because he is still young? Will he calm down?

[animalluver]

It is probably that he hasn't been held much, or had much human contact as you said. He will probably grow out of it with all the time you're spending with him. Just go day by day and he'll get better and better, and learn to trust you more and more. :)

[AmandaDi]

Actually I think just some chins do not like to be held. For example Misty has one that she had to hand feed and he does not like to be held even though he had all this human interaction. I think that sometimes the interaction helps, but it does not promise that the chin will like to be held or pet.

Chins by nature are very curious animals and want to explore everything.. but it is completely different if YOU are exploring their territory. They feel threatened, so I do not advice backing him into a corner to pet him. In the end it will only make him want to be petted less. I always suggest giving them supplement in the palm of your hand. They will learn to come to you and eat it and it will build trust. Then just try a little pet on the back.

Hopefully one day he will let ya pet him whenever, but some chins just dont allow it. Give it some time and maybe when he better adjusts things will work out!

[Jill]

Is it because he's from a pet store? I can't imagine he was treated well by humans. They probably got him from a...chinchilla farm or something. When bought from a breeder are chins more likely to enjoy human contact?

[AmandaDi]

Like I said, some are like that and some aren't. Some from ranches are rather mean where as some are calm. Some from pet stores are withdrawn and some arent. Some from breeders are sweet and calm, some are hyper and dont want touched. Human contact often helps, but it doesnt provide a SURE calm and holdable chin.

[Jill]

Also, is there a certain place/way they like to be petted? Maybe I'm doing it wrong. :confused: