Help I can’t keep hold of my pig!

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Pigmum14

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I got my first female piggy almost a year ago now. For the first few months she loved being held, cuddling up to us on the sofa and falling asleep on our laps. Once she got bigger and realised she could jump off the sofa and run around the floor, this was all she would do. I’d pick her up, put her on my lap and she would immediately run off and jump on the floor.
Ever since, I have been completely unable to keep ahold of her. She’s still quite tame when inside her cage, she’ll come up to the edge of the cage to see us, lick our hands etc. but as soon as I try to hold her she does everything she can to escape - even biting. She looks visibly distressed and erratic too, she once jumped from quite high up to escape when we couldn’t keep hold of her.
Does anyone have any tips on how to get my calm loveable piggy back?
 
It’s quite normal for them to not want to be held. If she is happy to chat with you while she is in her cage then I’d say that is a great place to be. You can’t force her to want to be held if she no longer likes it.

Does she live with another piggy?
 
Yes she does, we have 2 females in a nice big cage!
I suppose it may be a case of me just accepting she doesn’t want to be held anymore, but with her loving cuddles previously I just wondered what changed
 
Some piggies just don’t enjoy cuddling or sitting with humans. I have several of those. I’d say over the years I have had fewer that enjoyed cuddling with me than those that simply tolerated me on their own terms. It’s part of piggy ownership, really.
 
One of mine Brownie try with all her might to get out of my arms when i pick her up... and she only gets picked up to be taken to the scales to be weighed lol! The other are a bit more calm, one just wants to climb on me if i put her on the table for a health check and the other is just so good all the time!
 
Must just be her new personality then! At first I thought it was her teenager phase but it stayed lol, I have to distract her with lots of veggies when clipping her nails!
My other is quite scared of everything but shes very still whenever I pick her up and hold her.
I’m thinking of getting another too so we’ll see what her little personality is :)
 
Pigmum14 said:
Must just be her new personality then! At first I thought it was her teenager phase but it stayed lol, I have to distract her with lots of veggies when clipping her nails!
My other is quite scared of everything but shes very still whenever I pick her up and hold her.
I’m thinking of getting another too so we’ll see what her little personality is :)
Click to expand...

This thread may help you with what works and what doesn’t when adding new piggies to an already bonded sow pair.
Remember character compatibility is vital for a successful bond so dating your girls at a rescue centre is the safest way of finding a new friend for them and not risking a failed bonding and then having a single piggy
Adding More Guinea Pigs Or Merging Pairs – What Works And What Not?
 
Is it possible that when you first got her she was to afraid to move when you picked her up, but now she's more confident with you she's happy to express her desire to roam around freely?

Not sure if you have read the thread on guinea behaviour and prey animal instincts: Understanding Prey Animal Instincts, Guinea Pig Whispering And Cuddling Tips

One suggestion of a way to perhaps encourage her to sit still for lap time would be to give her something to eat like a sprig of coriander or mint or another food she likes. If she still won't stay though, I think you might have to accept she just doesn't want to!
 
I wouldn’t make her by giving her veg to munch on. She seems to prefer roaming so I would do it on her own terms. Three of my four piggies like lap time. The fourth more tolerates it than anything. So when I have her out (on rare occasions) I’ll just put her in their cat bed and she can come out to take a look see or just sit in there munching. She seems to be starting to like it but I still don’t make her sit on me.
 
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