Split-Cage Introduction Attempt #1

Well, we made our first attempt today to introduce Hallie and Cassie. At first the girls mostly ignored each other, but then it became clear that Cassie was scared of Hallie, and Hallie wasn’t particularly thrilled about having a new roommate.

A couple of good things happened before we had to split them, though. For instance, a couple of times, Cassie hid in a toilet paper tube with just her head sticking out and let Hallie groom her nose, neck, and forehead. However, if Cassie came out of the toilet paper tube, Hallie sprung at her.

We gave them a time-out for a bit and tried again, but the results were the same: Things were fine, and Hallie would even groom Cassie as long as she didn’t come out of a cardboard tube. But when Cassie tried to emerge from her hiding spot, Hallie fluffed up and sprung at her.

Both times, I had gloves on and got them out of the tank and into separate carriers before anyone was hurt.

The good news is that they did seem to recognize each other by scent. Both girls sniffed each other and then went about their own business without any aggression. The bad news was that Hallie just wasn’t willing to let Cassie walk around on her turf.

I think given enough time in the split tank, though, they’ll be ready to introduce. In my experience, females are only occasionally ready for an introduction after only two weeks in a split tank. I’ve also had better luck with intros when the girls are closer to the same size. Currently, Hallie’s quite a bit larger than Cassie, who is still a pup. So today’s intro was only an attempt and not something I thoroughly expected to work.

(Speaking of split-cage introductions, right now, I’m watching Gobo groom Smurf. You may remember that the boys were successfully introduced just last weekend! So there is hope for Hallie and Cassie to have a successful introduction as well!)

Please wish the girls luck in another week or two when we try to introduce them again!