Afraid. How long?

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Gust

Hi guys, I got a guinea pig as a present in my birthday.
It's been a week and he stills afraid of everything, I read that they usually take 1/2 week to adapt to a new place, but mine doesn't show any advance, every time he hears someone goes running to his house...
If I pick him up he doesn't try to escape just stays quiet till i let him in his cage again...

Is there anything I can do to help him get used to me?
I'm trying to spend as much time as I can in his room so that he can hear my voice, but so far nothing changed...
 
I've not had my 2 girls for very long so I'm certainly no expert but I think every piggie is different. One of mine became used to me much quicker than the other one. I think the key here is time, they are prey animals and a new environment must be quite scary and feel fraught with potential dangers. There's loads of people on this forum with a wealth of experience so I'm sure you'll get lots of advice, but all I can say is patience.
 
Hi, welcome to the forum :)

My suggestion would be to try and spend as much time as you can with your pig so he can get used to your voice and general movement noises. As elle100 said, they are prey animals so are naturally very nervous.

I found that my girls liked to hide (as they felt safer) even when out of their cage. Try and sit your pig on a blanket when he's on your lap and allow him to snuggle underneath. Stroke him through the blanket so he gets used to being touched.

The other thing which brought my girls round was food. Try hand feeding him his favourite treat when he's on your lap. Parsley seems to work really well for this :) At first he may not take it from you but he will come round eventually.

Keep at it. It'll be worth it! ;)
 
Greetings. Some pigs may take many weeks to become tame. There are even some who never become completely tame.
How old is the pig?
I gather that he is your first and only pig. It is not advisable to have just one pig, they need the company of other pigs, that is something you may like to think about. Two pigs does not necessarily mean the cost doubles. However, your enjoyment of them and their own pleasure at having a companion would increase tremendously.
Please keep us posted on your progress.
 
i got my piggies in september and its only now that they seem comfortable and fully settled with me, it takes time.spend time sitting by the cage talking to him.is he on his own or does he have a friend?
 
I adopted my most recent piggie, Lady Penelope' in February. She has only recently stopped automaticaly fleeing for cover when I go in their own room. My girls have always been much shyer than my boys. Patience and perseverence is the key. My boys allow me to pick them up but with my girls they still try to evade capture...Good luck.
 
Single guineas are much sadder and more scared than those in pairs. Consider a friend, it will transform your guinea pig.

But they take months to tame anyway - but serioiusly they need to be in at least pairs.
 
The person that gave him to me said that he was 4 month old and yes he is alone till I get a bigger cage, it shouldn't take long by the end of the week I will have his mate :P
He is male btw.

And I tried tame him using fruit and vegetables (tried banana, orange, and carrot), but so far he didn't like anything, everything he does is bite them a bit and goes eat more hay...
 
Try giving him (in a bowl not your hand) fresh herbs like parsley, dill, coriander, basil. Also spring greens, apply slices, stuff like that.

Glad you are getting a friend - read up on 2 boars together as it's important to make sure they get on.
 
I got my 2 at the beginning of October and they do still get scared but I can see a difference now. In a morning when I go to make a brew, they have started to run to the front of the cage peeping out and wheeking. This morning I brought their veg over and they didn't run off like they normally do, they waited for me to put it in then ran straight to it. :)

Time and patience, I know it is frustrating but it is so worth it in the end. :)
 
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