hola, fuzzie fanatics.
 
i'm in dire need of assistance from any owner of multiple fuzzies. allow me
to present my current situation.
 
i am the proud owner of a 1 year old female (spayed, descented) fuzzie named
Samantha.  i've had her since she was 10 weeks old, and she's had the run of
my apartment ever since.
 
3 days ago, i adopted a 2 1/2 year old male named Ozzie.  his former owner
had acquired too many pets, and his landlord forced him to get rid of a few.
i saw this as the perfect oppertunity to get Samantha a friend to keep her
company while my wife and i were at work.
 
the introduction went great.  they sniffed a bit, explored each other's
cages and toys, wrestled a bit, and got along wonderfully.  of course i'm
only allowing them together under supervision for the time being.
 
the next day, i noticed Ozzie (the male, who is considerably larger than
Samantha) was playing a bit rough.  this didn't alarm me because i was told
to expect this.  he began chasing Sam around the room, going behind shelves
in the process.  i heard them wrestling, and the Sam squealed (she's always
been very quiet).  i looked behind the shelves, and Ozzie had her pinned
down and was biting her neck hard enough to cause her to squeal, which is a
sound i've never heard her make.  i seperated them for a cool down period,
and chalked it up to rough play.
 
i let them out to get acquainted later that day, and right away Ozzie
started chasing Sam around again.  i kept a close eye on them, and sure
enough, Ozzie chase her into a corner, rolled her on her back, pinned her
down, and attacked again.  at this point i'm getting a little concerned.
 
in the past 3 days, this cycle has repeated every time i let them out
together to get acquainted.  Ozzie even attacked her and pinned her down
while she was eating in her own cage.
 
i've been told by some that this behavior is normal when introducing 2
fuzzies from different litters, especially when both haved been in a 1
fuzzie home all their lives.  am i worrying myself over nothing, or is this
relationship bound for disaster?  Ozzie is the most laid back, friendly
fuzzie i've had the pleasure of knowing, except when he's after Samantha.
is this just rough play?  is this common when 2 strange fuzzies meet?  is
there anything i can do to alleviate this, or will it just play out over
time?  i just get so freaked out when Sam makes that squealing sound.  i
really love them both, and i'm willing to do whatever it takes to provide
the right setting for them to get to know each other.
 
if anyone can offer any help, i'd greatly appreciate it.  i've been worrying
myself sick thinking that i've created this awful mess by taking on another.
i'd hate to have to keep them seperated, or worse yet, give up Ozzie.  if
anyone can offer any help or advise at, please e-mail me as sson as you get
a chance.  thanks for listeneing.
 
doug
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[Posted in FML issue 1638]