Chloe B
Junior Guinea Pig
Hi,
I was wondering if anyone can give me advice regarding a few things...
I have two male Guinea pigs, they are 4 months old and I've had them about two months. They are my first pigs. They are in a 5x2 c&c cage and so far I've been getting them out most days for a quick handle - one of them is a bit of a biter and I can't hold him for more than 60 seconds! He gets very agitated. He won't take veg, however he will take it from my hand whilst in the cage. The other is lovely and will sit happy on my knee so long as I'm feeding veg. I stroke him constantly during this 5-10 min lap time. I routinely feed veg by hand am and pm, confident one runs to the side for it, the other has only just started coming out of his hidey to get from my hand. So making progress.
My bf has just made an indoor run so we can get them out and put them down in a safe secure floor area for "floor time". I haven't tried it out yet as we only did this today ... I'm hoping my stressed piggy will be happier when I hold him if I can put him down. My question is, am I ok to sit in this floor space with them and offer them veg by hand and try move away from feeding in cage? Or will I scare them by being right there with them? Should I sit outside of the area? Please see my picture below of the set up so far...
Handling them hasn't been an easy task for me. I'm concerned that I haven't clipped their nails, I know I wouldnt be able to do it with the skittish one cause holding him still is a nightmare and he bites hard I feel like I can't do anything with him really.
Final query is that they appear to be bickering more than ever just the last two weeks. Much more vocal with each other and lot of rumbling. At first it was just quiet chasing and nudging but seems more heated now. Does it sound like I may need to separate them or should I give more time?
All advice appreciated, thank you!
I was wondering if anyone can give me advice regarding a few things...
I have two male Guinea pigs, they are 4 months old and I've had them about two months. They are my first pigs. They are in a 5x2 c&c cage and so far I've been getting them out most days for a quick handle - one of them is a bit of a biter and I can't hold him for more than 60 seconds! He gets very agitated. He won't take veg, however he will take it from my hand whilst in the cage. The other is lovely and will sit happy on my knee so long as I'm feeding veg. I stroke him constantly during this 5-10 min lap time. I routinely feed veg by hand am and pm, confident one runs to the side for it, the other has only just started coming out of his hidey to get from my hand. So making progress.
My bf has just made an indoor run so we can get them out and put them down in a safe secure floor area for "floor time". I haven't tried it out yet as we only did this today ... I'm hoping my stressed piggy will be happier when I hold him if I can put him down. My question is, am I ok to sit in this floor space with them and offer them veg by hand and try move away from feeding in cage? Or will I scare them by being right there with them? Should I sit outside of the area? Please see my picture below of the set up so far...
Handling them hasn't been an easy task for me. I'm concerned that I haven't clipped their nails, I know I wouldnt be able to do it with the skittish one cause holding him still is a nightmare and he bites hard I feel like I can't do anything with him really.
Final query is that they appear to be bickering more than ever just the last two weeks. Much more vocal with each other and lot of rumbling. At first it was just quiet chasing and nudging but seems more heated now. Does it sound like I may need to separate them or should I give more time?
All advice appreciated, thank you!