CALLING GUINEA PIG PEEPS! Advice needed pleeeease!

HorseBird

HorseBird

loves her hosses x
Dec 22, 2008
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Essex
Bought my little girl two female guinea pigs today - one is 10 weeks, and one is 6 months. Bought them home and put them in their v large cage (takes up most of the spare room to hubby's disgust :p). They did about 20 manic laps of the cage then hid in the corner and haven't moved since - for four and half hours :eek:. We've left them alone so as not to stress them but they're still huddled together looking petrified. They've got a little house to hide in but they're too scared to use it.

I don't know anything about piggies, but I've been told they're very nervous at first, but will they be ok?? When are they likely to start venturing out to eat and drink? And how many days should I leave them before handling them?

Poor little mites :eek:
 
do you have lots of things for them to hide in? ours aren't pets, they're just residents in the garden, but we have lots and lots of drainage tubes etc for them to hide in. They're quite nervous so will appreciate lots of places to escape!
 
Its been years since i had guinea pigs but we always brought them home and next day would start handling them. They can seem nervous forever so just get on with it!

My 2 that lived together seemed petrified and would hide when people appeared, yet open the door and were quite happy to be handled!

Did they come from a breeder or a shop?

Mine came from a breeder who showed us how to hold them to make them feel secure so we didnt get peed on!! Also told us to give them a little raw beetroot everyday - they loved it and gave them purple faces :D:D:D

Sorry got a little carried away........:eek:
 
Thanks guys. They came from a breeder and she did help me pick them up when I was there and showed me how to hold them. They went berserk when she put her hand in the cage but calmed down and sat happily against her when she got hold of them.

They do have a little cave thing to hide in and this morning the bigger one is in it, but the little one is still hiding behind it - she doesn't run away when I go in the room, just sits there frozen and won't make eye contact with me! :rolleyes:. I'll leave them alone again today and start handling them tomorrow. I just feel so sorry for them :eek:
 
I really wouldn't worry, they are very nervous, (and lazy) little things. Leave plenty of fresh food in their bowl and I bet itll move when you're not looking. They think with their tummies
 
Well, casting my mind back to 1983 when I got our first guinea pigs, I remember I spent the whole evening keep peering into their cage and they just hid amongst the hay and straw I'd put down!!! I didn't try and handle them for ages - I thought they were too scared. Eventually if I remember correctly, sometime in the middle of the night I heard shuffling and they did come and timidly eat some dry food from their food bowl, and it wasn't long before they were tipping it up regularly! (It might be different now but we had a water feeder that you hung on the cage door). They took a while to use that but they got the hang of it. I cannot remember exactly how old they were - not very, as they were quite tiny!
 
This is totally normal they're suspicious little critters :D

I've had quite a few piggies and at times they come across as quite stupid animals but don't let them fool you, there awesome pets!!!

It's really hard but I'd leave them alone for the first few days except for feeding to give them time to settle in. The best way to befriend a gunea pig is through it's stomach, try handfeeding them some green beans or celery leaves. It might take a few weeks before they're confident enogh to take the food but it works.

I might get shot down in flames but once they're calmer (maybe after the first week) I'd take out anything they can use to hide in during the daytime. This means they have can't panic and hide when you come close to their cage and will gradually realise that you won't hurt them. Once they're more used to you the toys can go back in. Not everybody agrees with this but I think It causes less stress in the long run for them.

Hope that helps :)
 
My guiena pigs were nervous for ages, but eventually learnt that I brought the food, and were straight up at the front of the cage screaming for food. They definatly are noisy and greedy little animals.

But they do take a while to settle in and get used to everything :)
 
Echo the advice given.

They need time to settle and come out of themselves. One piggie i had didnt stop talking as soon as i brought him home. But another i had it took ages for them to come out of themselves.

They will soon be chirping, wheeking and purring before long.

Try jingling a cat bell (i've got reindeer antlers for the dog which i shake) the pigs purr at the noise.
 
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