Griff's nasty little secret - he's a biter.

[Castaway]

Hello all,

I'm looking for a bit of advice. Griff will be 6 months old on 11 January. He's cute as can be and as you can see from the photo (he's the fluffy one), he looks the picture of innocence.

However, since I first met him at 2 weeks old (he was bonded with Celyn at 3 weeks), he's been rather "opinionated," and very vocal and anything but shy. He can be sweet and cuddly and gets on with Celyn very well. They have had a few "arguments," probably due to hormones and asserting dominance, but it's usually just posturing, at a distance, with no actual contact.

In the past month or two, he's picked up the habit of biting - and hard! I've had piggies who nip when distressed or by accident when you're holding food. I even had one who seemed to enjoy wrist chewing and occasionally, got carried away. But with Griff, it seems to be a combination of biting when he's angry (like when I put him in the bath) and just random biting. Last night, as he was having a bedtime brush and cuddle, he just reached out and bit my right index finger, which bled like crazy and still hurts this morning. It didn't seem to be in response to anything in particular. He did this a few weeks ago with my partner as well.

I just wondered if any other members here have had piggies prone to biting and any successful strategies you employed to stop it. I'm concerned about letting anyone else handle him, in case he bites them, which is a shame as 99% of the time, he's a cuddle monster.

Thanks in advance for any ideas!

Castaway Kim x

 

[Wiebke]

What I did with my biter Minx was to tell her first "uh,uh!" in a calm, but firm voice.

Then I would (gently!) tug her in the neck like a pigy mummy who chastises a youngster, hereby telling MInx that a) she was misbehaving in her own language and in no uncertain terms and b) that I was the more dominant!

It didn't help 100%, but she confined herself to mostly just tweaking, and only when she had good reason for complaining (like another dose of baytril which took about 2-3 people to get into her, she was such a wiggle monster!).

 

[Sarah from Chucklebunnies]

Wiebke is totally right, you have to use the piggy language they understand. Noises are an essential part of their lives so noises can work. Load the tome of your voice with upset when you have been bitten to make sure they understand. The actual words are immaterial.

Mummy dominance includes stroking/cleaning ears (use your own finger if you can bear it), licking bottoms (use a warm damp flannel) and placing your chin firmly on top of their head. Use the dominance tactics during a cuddle to make sure that Griff knows he isn't boss. His biting could be demonstrating his dominance. Then if he does bite the very best approach is Wiebke's.

You have to move quickly and be confident, also be consistent. Bad behaviour is difficult to unlearn once established.

Very best of luck, Sarah

 

[Castaway]

Thank you both for your advice. It's really helpful.

I've only ever had men piggies, two at a time, so I've never actually observed how the mother pig "controls" the babies. It's really helpful to have those tips. I'll especially try putting my head on his. He's the only pig I've had who will hold a stare as well, which makes me thin4kg HE thinks he's boss pig. I'll take care of that! :-)

Glad you mentioned the alternative to licking his bottom though! I'll keep you posted on his progress.