Aggressive Piggie

Status
Not open for further replies.
Howard&Vince

Howard&Vince

Junior Guinea Pig
Joined
Aug 24, 2009
Messages
312
Reaction score
11
Points
255
Location
London
Hi, I wonder if I can have some advice. I am unsure what to do about my black piggie Vince. Unfortunately I had to separate my boys about 2 months ago as Vince made Howard bleed. I have not had them neutered as I have heard this is not a 100% successful and I did not want to put them under such an operation. However, Vince is still very aggressive, even towards me and I am unsure what to do. Any advice would be good as I hate to see him so aggressive and upset. Howard is fine and very friendly, but Vince is the polar opposite. Any advice would be appreciated. Thanks, Amy
 
He chatters at me all the time and runs around his cage. I try to reassure him by speaking softly and offering cucumber which does calm him down and I am able to pick him up with ease. But even if I go near the cage he chatters. He does not like to be held very much either and I try and handle him as much as I can, but he still is not relaxed. He about 10 months old.
 
We have the cages next to each other so they can see and smell each other.
 
Does he chatter before you go near the cage? Or is it after you spend so long trying to catch him?

Could you maybe look into an alternative way of picking him up? He is probably scared, and the more you chase them with your hand the more likely they are to chatter at you! Maybe use a box or something? When picking them up use the same phrase so they know whats going on!

He could just be a timid piggie, do you give him goodies when he is out like veg?
 
I try and be patient with him and am aware a hand in his cage can be stressful for him. I will try and use a box and I also say the same thing when I pick him up so lets hope it helps. I am still unsure why he chatters when I am even near the cage - is this normal? Do you think he maybe in pain?
 
How old is Vince?

Have you got space for more piggies?

It may be worth thinking about having Vince neutered and after a suitable wait, putting him together with a girl.
 
It might be possible that having his enemy so close by is stressing him out try keeping them in the same room so they can talk if they want to but a bit further apart. Have you tried just sitting next to his cage but not actually doing anything with him, looking, talking etc just read the paper out loud and ignore him or something that interests you he may just associate you with being picked up and hence the prechatter warning of leave me alone! How big is his cage if it is not big enough and he is not getting enough exercise this might also contribute to the problem. Try hand feeding the first few bits of veg to him whilst in the cage that way he will associate you more with food. Does he have a hidey hole to hide in?
 
He chatters because he knows your coming to get him :)p lol.. It's possibly to warn you, he may think you a predator! Is it possible he could be chattering at the piggies next door, because if they don't like each other they maybe chattering at one another?

I have a young boar and he chatters at me but infairness it is after I have stressed him out trying to catch him. I now sit and wait patiently... patiently being the word by the door, talking to him and when he trys to get out to get away from me he jumps on the bridge were he can be caught easily! He doesn't like being lifted either. Patient and keeping with it is the key.

Like Weibke says maybe neutering him and getting him a lady friend is worth while?!
 
Yeah, he has a place he can run and hide. I will try and move the cages apart to see if this calms him down. He should have enough space and he gets plenty of exercise. Thank you for your help - I will try this out when I get home tonight! Thanks again. It is upsetting for both me and Vince!
 
I think poor Vince is partly upset because he can't see why he is being "punished".

You can always try and reinforce good behaviour the way you do with a dog. Lots of praise at the least sign that he does something right (even NOT chattering at you) and little treats! Just remember that "no" is not a piggy concept.

Ps: He seems to a very territorial boy, and your hand in the cage is an invasion in his view. Nothing personal!
 
Last edited:
Not all piggies are "cuddle pigs." Most of mine will run from me when i want them out & some give me the odd "love nip" too. I have ane extremely laid back 4.5yr old boy who chatters at me every night at veggie time - it's as if to say "hurry up, i am waiting!" & as soon as i open his hutch door he legs it :))
 
He may not actually want you to go away. Sometimes mine chatter if I am late with the food!
 
I had boars who only had to be near to one another and the teeth chattering went up !
I would recommend the neutering and sow option its so fab to see a happy boar pop corning with his lady friend !
Look at greg and toffee opposite !
Helen xx>>>xx>>>
 
My very dominant sow, attacked her sister, when her sister had returned from an operation! We tried everything to bond her back with her two sisters but it did not work. In the end we put all three of them in a completly neutral cage and we were cleaning a cage out with a presure hose! We think it was the noise that made them get on again! They get on fine now and the domiant sow has not changed.
 
We had a similar problem - we'd had Skunk and Fudge for about a month when they'd been in the run for a while and Skunk completely turned on Fudge. It was completely out of character for him as Fudge had been the larger and dominant one of the pair. I'm not sure if they were being territorial about the little cardboard house I gave them or that Skunk just wanted to be the dominant one.

When we put them back into their cage, the chattering and fighting just didn't stop - they never drew blood but they couldn't be around each other and poor Fudge was scared to come out of his house when Skunk was about, or Skunk would try to steal his house. We put Skunk in another cage for 3-4 days near to Fudge where they were both fine, but would chatter if they saw each other.

I decided to try and re-introduce them, and leaving a bath as the last option (well, without putting them in seperate cages indefinitely), I decided to try and scrub down the main cage to get rid of any smells. We put them in their run in the living room at exactly the same time and they did chatter a bit. When I turned on the hoover to clean the sawdust up, they both ran to each other trying to hide from the hoover - after that, they've been completely fine! I really think they rebonded over the hatred of the hoover so it's really funny what SRH said!

They've been fine ever since; some strutting from Skunk, but no real chattering for a while now. They did chatter when I tried to reintroduce the cardboard house back into the run for floortime, the chattering started again so I quickly took it out. I think they were both trying to claim the house for their own. We've now also given them 2 food bowls rather than the one, and everything we buy, we buy 2 of - like the Chubes for example.
 
Just so you know Vince (my black piggie) is much better behaved now. He seems to have calmed down and does not chatter quite so much. He still does not like being held but I am being patient with him and maybe one day he will be like his brother who sits on you for hours loving being stroked. Thanks again for all the advice!:))
 
Thanks for the update and glad vince is beginning to be a good boy!
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top