Failure to thrive

Wiebke said:
Because he has not actively refused Zeus; it rather looks to me like he can clearly smell something wrong with Zeus but the tossing in the air is not hostile, just the result of the baby being so small. Zeus's reaction is being submissive but not running away.
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@Pumpkinandmuffins I would have probably been totally freaked out by the tossing in the air and would have removed baby Zeus as well. @Wiebke has far, far more experience than me, so she will be correct in this point (and many others), but just wanted to let you know that I understand and sympathise with your reaction.

Is the guinea pig in IMG_7045 Mr Muffin?
I'm sorry the pet shop messed up the sexing so badly! Baby guineas are really adorable, but you wanted 2 guineas not 5.
 
Mrs Tiggy Winkle said:
@Pumpkinandmuffins I would have probably been totally freaked out by the tossing in the air and would have removed baby Zeus as well. @Wiebke has far, far more experience than me, so she will be correct in this point (and many others), but just wanted to let you know that I understand and sympathise with your reaction.

Is the guinea pig in IMG_7045 Mr Muffin?
I'm sorry pet shop messed up the sexing so badly! Baby guineas are really adorable, but you wanted 2 guineas not 5.
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Such a lovely kind message- thank you! There is so much to learn so quickly. Everyone has been so wonderful on this form. Yes I was really alarmed and I also understand that we will need to see it through next time we try. We are going to give lots of love to Zeus, but have him on his own until he gets to 200 g and then try again
 
Pumpkinandmuffins said:
Such a lovely kind message- thank you! There is so much to learn so quickly. Everyone has been so wonderful on this form. Yes I was really alarmed and I also understand that we will need to see it through next time we try. We are going to give lots of love to Zeus, but have him on his own until he gets to 200 g and then try again
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And yes, that’s Mr. muffins!
 
Zeus is slowly gaining weight. Still no weeking but he certainly tries with his sweet little sounds. We keep thinking once he reaches a certain weight we will start to hear him, but I know his siblings were already weeking by the time they were his weight. They were both louder than their parents at the end of week one lol He is up to 166 g as of yesterday we would like to get him to 200 g before trying with Mr. muffins again. Does that sound right? It would mean probably another week before Giving their bonding a full chance.
 
Pumpkinandmuffins said:
Zeus is slowly gaining weight. Still no weeking but he certainly tries with his sweet little sounds. We keep thinking once he reaches a certain weight we will start to hear him, but I know his siblings were already weeking by the time they were his weight. They were both louder than their parents at the end of week one lol He is up to 166 g as of yesterday we would like to get him to 200 g before trying with Mr. muffins again. Does that sound right? It would mean probably another week before Giving their bonding a full chance.
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All the best! Good that he is gaining.
 
CTWC said:
Where is he living now? Alongside the others? 💐
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He is actually living above mom and Sister. Mr. muffins and badger are on the floor still living in the octagon shaped bonding area. They seem to be having a blast. The plan was for the boys to all eventually live on top of the girls until Mr. muffins recovered from his neutering, and then I would bond him with pumpkin and his daughter for long-term and keep the two sibling boys together up top I will include pictures of our set up and of course I am open to suggestions.
 
Pumpkinandmuffins said:
He is actually living above mom and Sister. Mr. muffins and badger are on the floor still living in the octagon shaped bonding area. They seem to be having a blast. The plan was for the boys to all eventually live on top of the girls until Mr. muffins recovered from his neutering, and then I would bond him with pumpkin and his daughter for long-term and keep the two sibling boys together up top I will include pictures of our set up and of course I am open to suggestions.
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I should’ve mentioned that you can see the little blue soft sided cage next to the octagon bonding area. We tried putting Zeus in there the day before we did our first introduction to Mr. muffins, but we found he did not gain any weight that day. Once we moved him back up under the light and where we have a little heating pad for him on the top of the cage he started parking right up and gaining weight again so we were thinking we would get him up to 200 g and then put him down in the little blue soft sided cage for a day before introducing him to Mr. muffins again.
 

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I am hoping all works out well and he gains the weight quickly as I heard it's important for babies to be with other guineas but I appreciate you are in a very difficult situation and guess the priority is for him to gain weight and get healthy first. I love his name by the way 💗
 
Pumpkinandmuffins said:
I should’ve mentioned that you can see the little blue soft sided cage next to the octagon bonding area. We tried putting Zeus in there the day before we did our first introduction to Mr. muffins, but we found he did not gain any weight that day. Once we moved him back up under the light and where we have a little heating pad for him on the top of the cage he started parking right up and gaining weight again so we were thinking we would get him up to 200 g and then put him down in the little blue soft sided cage for a day before introducing him to Mr. muffins again.
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Could you divide the run (octogon cage so Zeus can spend some interactive time with the two boars every day. It will boost the chance of acceptance. It is also crucial for Zeus's socialisation needs.
 
CTWC said:
I am hoping all works out well and he gains the weight quickly as I heard it's important for babies to be with other guineas but I appreciate you are in a very difficult situation and guess the priority is for him to gain weight and get healthy first. I love his name by the way 💗
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Aww thank you so much! I’m
Wiebke said:
Could you divide the run (octogon cage so Zeus can spend some interactive time with the two boars every day. It will boost the chance of acceptance. It is also crucial for Zeus's socialisation needs.
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That is perfect! It gives them time to get to know each other without the pressure to bond and it gives Zeus the stimulation he needs without feeling stressed.
 
I feel like all I do is think about these guinea pigs. I also feel like the past month has really done a number on me and none of my non-guinea pig having friends would understand. I feel like all I do is talk to my partner about the guinea pigs and my 12 year-old twins Tell me that I don’t give them enough attention. I just feel like this all happened so fast and all of a sudden I’m responsible for five incredible little beings and all I do is worry about little Zeus. Does anyone relate or have any suggestions?
 
I'm sure most people have on here have felt overwhelmed at times it is probably all just hitting you now make sure you take some time to recharge. As you say you have been thrown in at the deep end for sure maybe similar to when you found out you were having twins? 💗
We are all here for you and someone will always try and offer support or advice as soon as we can, you are doing an amazing job. Do the twins like the guineas or are they yours really? 💗
 
Thank you for this warm and thoughtful reply. It’s funny you mentioned the twins because taking care of Zeus in the beginning reminded me of when I first had them and they were both premature. I guess having the guinea pigs is bringing up unresolved or unprocessed grief. I just love these little guys so much. Thankfully, the whole family is fully committed and adores the guinea pigs. Robbie, who you can see in the picture below is so thoughtful. He cannot sleep until he evaluates that they have everything they need and will call out to me as he starts to fall asleep and say little things like “ make sure there is a hidey with small openings for badger that he can get in and take a break from Mr. muffins if he needs to” or “ did you give Zeus a lovey?”. They rush home after school to wash their hands and take turns holding the boys first and then the girls.
 

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Well that is lovely to hear so you can all support eachother as well as your guinea guys. You will all be ok hopefully sooner rather than later and yes you'll look back and think how did I get through it, again maybe like with the twins but it will all be worth it. Take time to treasure these weeks as the babies grow up be wonderful to talk about once it's all calmed down 💗
 
So in addition to having Zeus spend time in the little cage close to Mr. muffins, we have tried having Mr. muffins and Zeus on our lap for shared time. Mr. muffins immediately started putting his nose under Zeus and flipping him over again. Should we hold off on lap time until next week when Zeus has gotten up to the 200 g and we are fully committing to the bonding?
 
Sorry for posting so much. A lot to figure out. Mr. muffins was originally scheduled for the 11th, next week, to get neutered so that eventually he could move in with pumpkin who he missed dearly during her pregnancy and his daughter. (6 weeks post neuter) with our plan to get Zeus up to 200 g and bonding with Mr. muffins next week, should we bump out Mr. muffins neuter appointment? Especially since it sounds like the boys still need some time with dad? They are four weeks tomorrow.
 
Pumpkinandmuffins said:
Zeus is slowly gaining weight. Still no weeking but he certainly tries with his sweet little sounds. We keep thinking once he reaches a certain weight we will start to hear him, but I know his siblings were already weeking by the time they were his weight. They were both louder than their parents at the end of week one lol He is up to 166 g as of yesterday we would like to get him to 200 g before trying with Mr. muffins again. Does that sound right? It would mean probably another week before Giving their bonding a full chance.
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Not all guinea pigs wheek. My boar Ted could never wheek, he was a big lad at around 1350 gm and never had a voice so don’t worry. Some piggies are very vocal and some aren’t

Good luck for the second try. Bondings of any kind an always scary and stressful, you are doing great! Zeus is such a little cutie 🥰
 
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