Fighting Guinea Pigs, I'm Scared. Please Help!

CavyIris

CavyIris

Junior Guinea Pig
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Hi
I'm new to guinea pigs and I'm really worried they arent getting along at all.
They are Female and 7-8 weeks old. I brought them home 2 weeks exactly from now.
They are biting each other how ever there hasnt been any blood drawn so ive never interupted them (good or bad?) They chase each other for about 20 minutes and chatter their teeth at each other. They have been screaming when one lunges at the other however they have stopped with that couple of days ago and now it sounds more irritated and watching them really gives me anxiety on a major level.
I read that they might just be deciding dominance, and so i was convinced a week ago. I'm not so much anymore...
Their cage is
150cm long
60cm wide
and connected to another cage which is
100 (L) x55cm (W)
Is that to small?
Please, Please help me.
Should i do something? and what!
 
Hi, i believe i posted in the wrong "thread" so I'm reposting under Behaviour.
Incredibly thankful for any reply!

I'm new to guinea pigs and I'm really worried they arent getting along at all.
They are Female and 7-8 weeks old. I brought them home 2 weeks exactly from now.
They are biting each other how ever there hasnt been any blood drawn so ive never interupted them (good or bad?) They chase each other for about 20 minutes and chatter their teeth at each other. They have been screaming when one lunges at the other however they have stopped with that couple of days ago and now it sounds more irritated and watching them really gives me anxiety on a major level.
I read that they might just be deciding dominance, and so i was convinced a week ago. I'm not so much anymore...
Their cage is
150cm long
60cm wide
and connected to another cage which is
100 (L) x55cm (W)
Is that to small?
Please, Please help me.
Should i do something? and what!
 
CavyIris said:
Hi, i believe i posted in the wrong "thread" so I'm reposting under Behaviour.
Incredibly thankful for any reply!

I'm new to guinea pigs and I'm really worried they arent getting along at all.
They are Female and 7-8 weeks old. I brought them home 2 weeks exactly from now.
They are biting each other how ever there hasnt been any blood drawn so ive never interupted them (good or bad?) They chase each other for about 20 minutes and chatter their teeth at each other. They have been screaming when one lunges at the other however they have stopped with that couple of days ago and now it sounds more irritated and watching them really gives me anxiety on a major level.
I read that they might just be deciding dominance, and so i was convinced a week ago. I'm not so much anymore...
Their cage is
150cm long
60cm wide
and connected to another cage which is
100 (L) x55cm (W)
Is that to small?
Please, Please help me.
Should i do something? and what!
Click to expand...
I can't help you with the behaviour but your cage is definitely big enough so that's not the problem.Ill tag @Wiebke for you.
 
CavyIris said:
Hi
I'm new to guinea pigs and I'm really worried they arent getting along at all.
They are Female and 7-8 weeks old. I brought them home 2 weeks exactly from now.
They are biting each other how ever there hasnt been any blood drawn so ive never interupted them (good or bad?) They chase each other for about 20 minutes and chatter their teeth at each other. They have been screaming when one lunges at the other however they have stopped with that couple of days ago and now it sounds more irritated and watching them really gives me anxiety on a major level.
I read that they might just be deciding dominance, and so i was convinced a week ago. I'm not so much anymore...
Their cage is
150cm long
60cm wide
and connected to another cage which is
100 (L) x55cm (W)
Is that to small?
Please, Please help me.
Should i do something? and what!
Click to expand...

Hi and welcome!

It sounds like they are not getting on well; normally the nipping and chasing should have died down to a large extent by now unless one of your girls is just coming into season and it all comes up again.

1) Have you double checked the gender to make sure that yuo haven't got boys? Mis-sexing is a lot more common than people would expect. Sexing Guinea Pigs: How to Sex a Guinea Pig

2) The cage size is plenty. Cage Size Guide

3) Is this happening all the time or is it on and off? When the dominance is very closely matched, piggies can decide to not agree with each other as to who comes top. This becomes particularly bad when sows comes into season about every 2 weeks.
Illustrated Bonding / Dominance Behaviours And Dynamics
Sow Behaviour

4) If this is ongoing and constant, you can try to do a trial separation in the adjoining cages and see whether one of the girl is suddenly a lot happier if she is on her own. In this case, I would think about alternative options. If they both want to be back together, then I would leave them to sort it out between them.
Try the tricks we usually recommend for teenage boars that are struggling: Boars: Bullying, Fighting, Fall-outs And What Next?

New Owners' " How To" Starter Kit
 
Thank you @Wiebke !
They are both females, as i see it when i look at the pictures in the guide and them.
They are pretty much always acting like this. for short periods of time when sleeping they are calm however they never sleep close to each other and in two different houses.
i put a barrier between the two cages and i think they are looking for each other? they are squeking loudly and looking around. should i put them back at once or keep them separated. if i should keep them separated, then for how long?
they have really been going at each other biting and chasing, but now when they are looking for one another i feel sad instead D: I appricate the help
 
PS. Also should the cages be next to each other so they can see oneanother or away so they cant?
Thanks
 
CavyIris said:
PS. Also should the cages be next to each other so they can see oneanother or away so they cant?
Thanks
Click to expand...

I think you have got your answer - they may be squabbling, but they have bonded... so you have to just live with it!

Give each girl her own "territory" with her own hidey or two (ideally ones with two exits until things calm down more), a bowl that you space well apart and access to hay that cannot be blocked. Things will hopefully eventually calm down, but you will see some dominance behaviour when you put them back together again.
Feed pellets and veg in small portions that can be eaten in one go 2-3 times a day in a bowl each per piggy and remove the bowls in between meals to prevent food hogging. Hay should make up to 80% of the food intake, so they are not going hungry in between. Basically, treat them like you would boars - you have at least got the space for a 'queendom' for each girl should they decide so. ;)
 
Should i then put them back at once and establish territories or, keep them separated and give them territory in own cages?, i didnt quite catch it :'D @Wiebke
 
I have also been having some problems with my four guinea pigs as two have been fighting and it has been really bad. I have a YouTube channel and I made a video explaining things you can do to stop the, fighting and some have really worked for me. Here is the link to that video
 
Hi Tom, welcome to the forum.

We don't advocate the use of Vicks as a way of stopping boars arguing and dampening down dominance behaviour.

I know it is a trick that has been used in the past, however there have been a few horrific injuries documented in the past using this method. One Guinea Pig got it on their nose and seriously injured themselves getting away from the smell. As a forum we can't have this technique advertised here and condone i'm afraid.

It is lovely to have you on the forum however and I do hope you enjoy your time here

Lee
 
Tom's Pets said:
I have also been having some problems with my four guinea pigs as two have been fighting and it has been really bad. I have a YouTube channel and I made a video explaining things you can do to stop the, fighting and some have really worked for me. Here is the link to that video
Click to expand...

Hi and welcome

Thank you for your contribution.

Please be aware that vicks contains substances that are noxious for guinea pigs and that masking the smell works for about half an hour at the best - after that the gloves are off again. It is one of the old bad breeder tricks that we emphatically do NOT recommend; it has more often than not ended in serious fights. When the chips are down, it is the boars that either want to live together or not. Nothing you can do will change that.

You can find a summary of what really works and what not after years of experience with boar bonding on this forum in this guide here: Boars: Bullying, Fighting, Fall-outs And What Next?
 
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