Few Little Queries

[Becca32]

I have two guinea pigs (not entirely sure of ages) but one is about 5/6 months old and the other up to a year old. I introduced them when the baby one was about 4 months old and they seemed to get along just fine. They have a big cage, plenty of room and their own tube each however the bigger piggie is starting to pick on the smaller one. Nothing too serious but sometimes she will chase the baby away, nip her and push her around. I understand there is usually always a dominant piggie but I don't want the little one to be picked on constantly.

Also, I keep them in my room and they go crazy at night, squeaking, purring and running around constantly but during the day when I'm in my room they are quiet. Is there any way to make them aware that it's night/sleep time.


Finally, I'm worried they are becoming very picky. They enjoy pellets and hay and their water just fine but when it comes to fresh veg they only seem to be interested in cucumber and corn on the cob. Other vegetables are left to rot. Is there any problem with just giving them what they always eat and to stop introducing new vegetables as I've tried everything they are allowed and they are just left to rot. They love fresh dandelion leaves but I can't always get out to pick them, is there any type of leafy veg they can eat as I know lettuce is a no go.

These queries aren't urgent I just wanted another opinion on their behaviour thanks.

 

[Wiebke]

I have two guinea pigs (not entirely sure of ages) but one is about 5/6 months old and the other up to a year old. I introduced them when the baby one was about 4 months old and they seemed to get along just fine. They have a big cage, plenty of room and their own tube each however the bigger piggie is starting to pick on the smaller one. Nothing too serious but sometimes she will chase the baby away, nip her and push her around. I understand there is usually always a dominant piggie but I don't want the little one to be picked on constantly.

Also, I keep them in my room and they go crazy at night, squeaking, purring and running around constantly but during the day when I'm in my room they are quiet. Is there any way to make them aware that it's night/sleep time.


Finally, I'm worried they are becoming very picky. They enjoy pellets and hay and their water just fine but when it comes to fresh veg they only seem to be interested in cucumber and corn on the cob. Other vegetables are left to rot. Is there any problem with just giving them what they always eat and to stop introducing new vegetables as I've tried everything they are allowed and they are just left to rot. They love fresh dandelion leaves but I can't always get out to pick them, is there any type of leafy veg they can eat as I know lettuce is a no go.

These queries aren't urgent I just wanted another opinion on their behaviour thanks.

I would give your girls perhaps a bit more in the way of housing that just two tubes.

What you are witnessing is dominance behaviour and it is nothing to worry about, as it is in fact not painful. Nipping just lets the underpiggy feel the teeth without breaking the skin. It is simply a gesture of power. Chucking an underpiggy around is also par for the course. Sow behaviour

it is not easy to get two piggies to broaden their appetite when the top piggy will eat only very little and had no opportunity to learn from her mum just how many veg were safe to eat. All you can do is try and try again. You could try to rub a bit of cucumber juice over some new veg to make them a bit more worth investigating, but as piggies have nearly double as many taste buds as we humans and a multiple of cats, it is not an easy undertaking. You can serve a small amount of Romaine or little gem lettuce or a mix on a daily basis if necessary, but it is not going to contribute much towards a nutritional input.

Hopefully, your girls will settle down more as they get older and reach adulthood at around 12-15 months old. Guinea pigs are most active in the morning and later afternoon, but they tent to mostly sleep (and digest) or just quietly browse throughout the day and be up once or twice in the night. Could you give your piggies some run time in the evening, so they are a bit more tired?
Here is our diet thread: Recommendations For A Balanced General Guinea Pig Diet
https://www.theguineapigforum.co.uk/threads/edible-and-forbidden-veg-and-fruit-list-with-vitamin-c-grading.42/

 

[MomoMura]

Only iceberg lettuce is a no go. For my piggies I switch between romaine lettuce and red leaf lettuce.

I would say just keep trying. Maybe during the day serve basic veggies (like lettuce, carrots, and bell peppers - veggies most guinea pigs like) without corn or cucumber.. And if they haven't eaten anything by nightfall then add their usual. Hopefully their hunger pulls them to trying the other veggies. I agree that you should keep trying because only feeding them cucumbers and corn wont give them the nutrients they need from a more diverse diet.

Helpful link: What Can Guinea Pigs Eat? – The Guinea Pig Safe Food List

I give my piggies 4 hours of run time at night before bed (usually my TV time or study time) and they're pretty wiped once they're back in the cage! Of course you don't have to do it for that long, but perhaps an hour or two before bed might help

 

[Freela]

It does sound like normal dominance behaviour. The top pig can give the bottom pig a bit of a hard time sometimes. Some dominant pigs are pushier than others. It's also possible that they are both still adolescents and full of hormones and will settle down as they get older.

I would keep introducing new foods in the hopes that it is eventually accepted, but being picky is not abnormal, particularly if they haven't experienced those foods before. When we got Hadley, she clearly had not really been exposed much to vegetables and didn't seem to know what they were. She eventually figured out that carrots were food, but continued to ignore other vegetables, or to sniff them and not eat them at all. Eventually when we paired her up with Sundae, she began to eat more veggies after seeing that Sundae ate them. They do seem to learn by watching other pigs, so if you can convince one to eat a new food, the other may follow.

 

[Becca32]

It does sound like normal dominance behaviour. The top pig can give the bottom pig a bit of a hard time sometimes. Some dominant pigs are pushier than others. It's also possible that they are both still adolescents and full of hormones and will settle down as they get older.

I would keep introducing new foods in the hopes that it is eventually accepted, but being picky is not abnormal, particularly if they haven't experienced those foods before. When we got Hadley, she clearly had not really been exposed much to vegetables and didn't seem to know what they were. She eventually figured out that carrots were food, but continued to ignore other vegetables, or to sniff them and not eat them at all. Eventually when we paired her up with Sundae, she began to eat more veggies after seeing that Sundae ate them. They do seem to learn by watching other pigs, so if you can convince one to eat a new food, the other may follow.

Sorry for the late reply I completely forgot to check this. Thanks so much for your advice I have started to introduce tomatoes, cabbage etc and use less of the food that they like the most and it has worked well

 

[Becca32]

Only iceberg lettuce is a no go. For my piggies I switch between romaine lettuce and red leaf lettuce.

I would say just keep trying. Maybe during the day serve basic veggies (like lettuce, carrots, and bell peppers - veggies most guinea pigs like) without corn or cucumber.. And if they haven't eaten anything by nightfall then add their usual. Hopefully their hunger pulls them to trying the other veggies. I agree that you should keep trying because only feeding them cucumbers and corn wont give them the nutrients they need from a more diverse diet.

Helpful link: What Can Guinea Pigs Eat? – The Guinea Pig Safe Food List

I give my piggies 4 hours of run time at night before bed (usually my TV time or study time) and they're pretty wiped once they're back in the cage! Of course you don't have to do it for that long, but perhaps an hour or two before bed might help

I persisted and gave them a wider variety of more veg and a little less of what they are used to and it seems to be working well, they now particularly enjoy a little bit of tomato and cabbage. Any suggestions on where to let them have some run time? Most rooms in my house have wires on the floor, thanks so much for the advice!

 

[Becca32]

I would give your girls perhaps a bit more in the way of housing that just two tubes.

What you are witnessing is dominance behaviour and it is nothing to worry about, as it is in fact not painful. Nipping just lets the underpiggy feel the teeth without breaking the skin. It is simply a gesture of power. Chucking an underpiggy around is also par for the course. Sow behaviour

it is not easy to get two piggies to broaden their appetite when the top piggy will eat only very little and had no opportunity to learn from her mum just how many veg were safe to eat. All you can do is try and try again. You could try to rub a bit of cucumber juice over some new veg to make them a bit more worth investigating, but as piggies have nearly double as many taste buds as we humans and a multiple of cats, it is not an easy undertaking. You can serve a small amount of Romaine or little gem lettuce or a mix on a daily basis if necessary, but it is not going to contribute much towards a nutritional input.

Hopefully, your girls will settle down more as they get older and reach adulthood at around 12-15 months old. Guinea pigs are most active in the morning and later afternoon, but they tent to mostly sleep (and digest) or just quietly browse throughout the day and be up once or twice in the night. Could you give your piggies some run time in the evening, so they are a bit more tired?
Here is our diet thread: Recommendations For A Balanced General Guinea Pig Diet
https://www.theguineapigforum.co.uk/threads/edible-and-forbidden-veg-and-fruit-list-with-vitamin-c-grading.42/

I planned on getting them some more cage accessories however I have just started back at college and equipment costs are high so I just need to do some more looking about for some purse friendly accessories as most that I have seen are a little out of my price range.

I'm glad that the dominance issue isn't as bad as I thought and since posting this query they have actually become a little closer with eachother,

I got my piggie from a local pet shop so I'm unsure what they were feeding her while she was there but I'm guessing it wasn't a huge variety which is probably why she is quite picky, the baby piggie was got from a breeder (lesson learned- she had ringworm and needed vet treatment at such a young age so I would never buy in that way again) so I'm guessing she picked up her bad habbits from Pippa (older piggie). I've started introducing a wider variety one vegetable at a time. So far a little tomato and cabbage have been a good hit so I'm trying to introduce a new vegetable every so often to slowly ease them into it. I must try the cucumber juice theory that sounds good thank you!

I want to give them some run time in the evening but most of the rooms in my houses have wires on the floor such as extension leads etc, where would be a good place to let them run safely? Thanks so much for all suggestions and advice

 

[Wiebke]

I planned on getting them some more cage accessories however I have just started back at college and equipment costs are high so I just need to do some more looking about for some purse friendly accessories as most that I have seen are a little out of my price range.

I'm glad that the dominance issue isn't as bad as I thought and since posting this query they have actually become a little closer with eachother,

I got my piggie from a local pet shop so I'm unsure what they were feeding her while she was there but I'm guessing it wasn't a huge variety which is probably why she is quite picky, the baby piggie was got from a breeder (lesson learned- she had ringworm and needed vet treatment at such a young age so I would never buy in that way again) so I'm guessing she picked up her bad habbits from Pippa (older piggie). I've started introducing a wider variety one vegetable at a time. So far a little tomato and cabbage have been a good hit so I'm trying to introduce a new vegetable every so often to slowly ease them into it. I must try the cucumber juice theory that sounds good thank you!

I want to give them some run time in the evening but most of the rooms in my houses have wires on the floor such as extension leads etc, where would be a good place to let them run safely? Thanks so much for all suggestions and advice

Have you tried the bathroom floor (provided it is not carpet)?

 

[Becca32]

Have you tried the bathroom floor (provided it is not carpet)?

That's a great Idea thank you

 

[MomoMura]

I persisted and gave them a wider variety of more veg and a little less of what they are used to and it seems to be working well, they now particularly enjoy a little bit of tomato and cabbage. Any suggestions on where to let them have some run time? Most rooms in my house have wires on the floor, thanks so much for the advice!

It can be anywhere really anywhere with enough room to actually run around as fast they can. Is it possible to remove the wires? Or you can block the wires out of the way with objects. Could be anything, bags, books, whatever that'll keep them from getting to the wires. They also sell these wire proof things that protects them from pets chewing on them, though I've never tried one