Bonding Or Bullying?

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Rach75

Rach75

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Hi, loving this site, I can't stop reading the vast information.

My daughters have 2, 9 week old sows who they've now had for 3 weeks. Even though they are sisters they have had a dominance issue going on since we got them, chasing each other, nose offs, that sort of thing but it always ends in Pixie backing off. I'm worring though because Pixie was always the calm piggie that, in the last 3 wks has always enjoyed lap time but now as soon as she comes out she is pulling at my daughters clothes constantly and fidgeting. Also watching them earlier, Pixie was popcorning at tea time but every time she bumped into Ivy, Ivy seemed to snap at her and Pixie ran away. Are they still arguing over dominance, because they came from a big family, or is Pixie being bullied? There's no snuggling up going on & they tend to sit at opposite ends of the cage. We really don't want to separate, we bought them to be together, but if it's changing Pixies personality that's not good.

Any ideas please.
 
I've just seen this post. It might also be worth considering that she could be in season. They dramatically changed the dominance displays for my girls (now 13 weeks old). It makes them grumpy (as it does for us human ladies!) and that might explain the fidgety behaviour out of character, as well as changes in dominance displays.

Cissy is my dominant and Bella the under piggy, when in season Bella starts rumblestrutting and trying to hump Cissy's neck... Cissy just kinda lets it happen or have a bit of a grumble at her XD Then after a few days they go back to normal.
 
Cavy Kung-Fu said:
I've just seen this post. It might also be worth considering that she could be in season. They dramatically changed the dominance displays for my girls (now 13 weeks old). It makes them grumpy (as it does for us human ladies!) and that might explain the fidgety behaviour out of character, as well as changes in dominance displays.

Cissy is my dominant and Bella the under piggy, when in season Bella starts rumblestrutting and trying to hump Cissy's neck... Cissy just kinda lets it happen or have a bit of a grumble at her XD Then after a few days they go back to normal.
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We're just keeping an eye on them at the moment, there's no injuries so fingers crossed they'll sort themselves out. Hopefully when they get older they'll realise how much they really love each other :hug:
 
I also live in hope! I don't think my girls will hurt each other though. Not always sure they like each other but they bicker like any sisters do, piggy or human haha.
 
Are you weighing the girls regularly? It would be interesting to keep an eye on weights in particular whether Pixie's weight is decreasing at all. If Pixie is being bullied it would be likely that Ivy would be preventing her from eating as much as she otherwise would and this may be evident through weight changes. I would probably say with them being young and everything still being relatively new that it is probably them sorting out the dominance especially as Pixie is displaying the ultimate sign of happiness (popcorning) but if it doesn't calm down then you might need to think about whether it is having a negative impact on Pixie's quality of life.
 
You see this is what I'm thinking, if Pixie is popcorning like a lunatic and showing these happy signs then surely she's not being bullied. Thing is to seperate them would mean more piggies! They can't live alone ...... :whistle:
We haven't weighed them yet but if anything Pixie is a bit bigger then Ivy. She's always first to eat, as she's the friendliest but as soon as Ivy approaches she starts making little 'chuckling' noises and if Ivy gets too close Pixie runs but is soon back eating food again, it's odd really.
 
Sounds like my sister's I actually got them for company after my neutered boar lost his companion. There is a dominant but Milo my neutered boar would hold his ground and the submissive definetly had a friend. Milo passed away and my girlie's although they get along one was certainly more dominant. I got another neutered boar and again the submissive sow had a friend. Sadly, Penfold is now very ill so he will be passing sooner rather than later. It's amazing to watch, the submissive grooms and looks for him. I'm not suggesting you get a neutered boar just that these dynamics are very normal and there will always be a dominant.
 
Rach75 said:
Hi, loving this site, I can't stop reading the vast information.

My daughters have 2, 9 week old sows who they've now had for 3 weeks. Even though they are sisters they have had a dominance issue going on since we got them, chasing each other, nose offs, that sort of thing but it always ends in Pixie backing off. I'm worring though because Pixie was always the calm piggie that, in the last 3 wks has always enjoyed lap time but now as soon as she comes out she is pulling at my daughters clothes constantly and fidgeting. Also watching them earlier, Pixie was popcorning at tea time but every time she bumped into Ivy, Ivy seemed to snap at her and Pixie ran away. Are they still arguing over dominance, because they came from a big family, or is Pixie being bullied? There's no snuggling up going on & they tend to sit at opposite ends of the cage. We really don't want to separate, we bought them to be together, but if it's changing Pixies personality that's not good.

Any ideas please.
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It is most likely that one of the girls has come into season. Babies can be very dramatic and vocal. Nipping is typical dominance behaviour; it is NOT painful, but a very carefully judge power gesture where the dominant piggy lets the underpiggy just feel the teeth. You are likely to see more dominance behaviour when your little girls are in season. it will all settle down eventually.
By far not all pairings are snuggling ones. make sure that they have got two of each and let them get on. Once dominance has settled(which can take a few weeks), they will work on getting on with each other even if they will never become the kind of close mates that you may have imagined.
Sow Behaviour
 
Ok, so I thought I'd just do an up date as to how things are going now with our two girls. Things did start to calm down and the girls were getting on a lot better, it looked like Ivy was going to be boss. We had them out for floor time though about two weeks ago and Ivy looked, shall we say, plump around her back end! Since then she has grown and we believe her to be pregnant. We're 95% sure Pixie is a girl, so we think she was caught before we got her. The issue we have now though is that Pixie just won't leave Ivy alone. She keeps sniffing her, it can be her sides, her face, her bottom, anywhere! Then Ivy will turn and snap then chase Pixie away. Do you think Pixie knows that something is going on? She seems quite obsessed and even though she gets snapped at and chased she goes back for more nearly straight away. The earliest Ivy could have her babies is Friday, is Pixie acting this way because it's imminent? They are both so young, I'm hoping everything will be alright.
 
Rach75 said:
Ok, so I thought I'd just do an up date as to how things are going now with our two girls. Things did start to calm down and the girls were getting on a lot better, it looked like Ivy was going to be boss. We had them out for floor time though about two weeks ago and Ivy looked, shall we say, plump around her back end! Since then she has grown and we believe her to be pregnant. We're 95% sure Pixie is a girl, so we think she was caught before we got her. The issue we have now though is that Pixie just won't leave Ivy alone. She keeps sniffing her, it can be her sides, her face, her bottom, anywhere! Then Ivy will turn and snap then chase Pixie away. Do you think Pixie knows that something is going on? She seems quite obsessed and even though she gets snapped at and chased she goes back for more nearly straight away. The earliest Ivy could have her babies is Friday, is Pixie acting this way because it's imminent? They are both so young, I'm hoping everything will be alright.
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Please open a thread in our pregnancy section for information and ongoing support if you suspect a pregnancy. There are ways you can influence some of the risk factors during birth long before. Our guides at the top of the pregnancy section cover the whole span from the pregnancy, pregnancy and nursing diet for mum, birth, baby care, sexing and when to separate. Please read these guides carefully; it is really important!

It can well be that Pixie is feeling something is going on, but it is always tough to say when a birth is imminent. There are no surefire signs.

How long have you had your girls and how old are they?

In order to sex Pixie, please check her gender with the help of this link here. You need to make absolutely sure that she is not male. Sows come into season again within hours of giving birth. Back-to-back pregnancies REALLY take it out of a sow and increase the risk factor. Sexing Guinea Pigs: How to Sex a Guinea Pig
 
I have read all the posts and have decreased the amount of food we're feeding them, much to their disgust! We have had the girls for 5 weeks and they were 11 weeks old yesterday. We've had a really good look at the sexing a guinea pig guide, both my mum and I turned pixie over & went oh no! But on closer inspection nothing popped out and it just looked like a slight raised lump but a definite Y ... I think? Maybe I could post a pic tomorrow, get another opinion?
 
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