Guinea Pig In Season Advice

[Jo S]

Hi

We have had our two sister piggies for just over a year – they are now about 15 months old. They have always got on well.

About 3 months ago we got a new cage with two levels. It has a ramp which neither of them will go up but one of them (Peanut) will go down. In the mornings we feed both up the top and Peanut makes her way down pretty much straight after eating. They are together in the bottom at night but seem happy separate in the day. Until recently…

For about a week now, Peanut has been staying up the top all day with Oreo. Today we heard a lot of noise and came in to find Peanut mounting Oreo and Oreo not liking it very much (I think?). My hand then got sprayed with urine when it was near Peanut’s behind and the penny began to drop…

I have moved Peanut to the bottom of the cage even though she is not happy about it – is this the right thing to do? What about tonight – should I keep them separate? And how long does this go on for…?

Any advice on how to get them to go up the ramp would be welcome too – although it’s quite useful that they don’t at the moment!

Thank you

Jo

 

[Wiebke]

Hi

We have had our two sister piggies for just over a year – they are now about 15 months old. They have always got on well.

About 3 months ago we got a new cage with two levels. It has a ramp which neither of them will go up but one of them (Peanut) will go down. In the mornings we feed both up the top and Peanut makes her way down pretty much straight after eating. They are together in the bottom at night but seem happy separate in the day. Until recently…

For about a week now, Peanut has been staying up the top all day with Oreo. Today we heard a lot of noise and came in to find Peanut mounting Oreo and Oreo not liking it very much (I think?). My hand then got sprayed with urine when it was near Peanut’s behind and the penny began to drop…

I have moved Peanut to the bottom of the cage even though she is not happy about it – is this the right thing to do? What about tonight – should I keep them separate? And how long does this go on for…?

Any advice on how to get them to go up the ramp would be welcome too – although it’s quite useful that they don’t at the moment!

Thank you

Jo

Please do not separate unless seasons are nonstop for weeks, cause weight loss and require medical intervention for ovarian cysts. Sows are pretty tolerant about the odd strong season; the shared experience acts to deepen the bond between them.
When Sows Experience A Strong Season (videos)

 

[Janice C]

Hi

We have had our two sister piggies for just over a year – they are now about 15 months old. They have always got on well.

About 3 months ago we got a new cage with two levels. It has a ramp which neither of them will go up but one of them (Peanut) will go down. In the mornings we feed both up the top and Peanut makes her way down pretty much straight after eating. They are together in the bottom at night but seem happy separate in the day. Until recently…

For about a week now, Peanut has been staying up the top all day with Oreo. Today we heard a lot of noise and came in to find Peanut mounting Oreo and Oreo not liking it very much (I think?). My hand then got sprayed with urine when it was near Peanut’s behind and the penny began to drop…

I have moved Peanut to the bottom of the cage even though she is not happy about it – is this the right thing to do? What about tonight – should I keep them separate? And how long does this go on for…?

Any advice on how to get them to go up the ramp would be welcome too – although it’s quite useful that they don’t at the moment!

Thank you

Jo

I had a youngster who ran about squealing and mounting anyone who’d allow it! It sounds awful but will stop in a couple of days! Don’t separate them as they would really miss each other plus can cause dominance problems when you reintroduce them!
Is your ramp quite steep that they are still wary of it? You could try adding another small piece of wood under it to change the level or put a piece of fleece on the length of it to encourage them to go up.Also try putting them both up there and letting them discover it’s not scary! It can take a few tries until they get the message!

 

[Jo S]

Thank you both.
I came home and they’d swapped over so can clearly use the ramp when they really want to!
They seem to like being together at night but separate in the day so I’ll leave them like that for now - at least they’ve chosen it rather than being forced.
Thanks for the ramp advice - it does seem very steep. Felt sounds good.