I Got To Hold My Piggies!

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GPcrazy

GPcrazy

Teenage Guinea Pig
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Ive had my guinea pigs for 2 weeks 1 day now and have been really struggling to pick them up and hold them. Last week I started with lap time, but I have to wait for them to run into the snuggle sack or tunnel and then put them on my lap in that. Every time I tried to pick them up they seemed terrified and ran away too much, so I stopped rather than traumatising them (rather making do with just stroking them in the snuggle sack).
Yesterday I had them out for floor time and actually managed to hold Nia for a few min before putting them back in their cage. Tonight I held nia again, for slightly longer, and actually managed to hold Patches for a few minutes too! Cant tell you how excited I feel. Feels like a major breakthrough.
 
GPcrazy said:
Ive had my guinea pigs for 2 weeks 1 day now and have been really struggling to pick them up and hold them. Last week I started with lap time, but I have to wait for them to run into the snuggle sack or tunnel and then put them on my lap in that. Every time I tried to pick them up they seemed terrified and ran away too much, so I stopped rather than traumatising them (rather making do with just stroking them in the snuggle sack).
Yesterday I had them out for floor time and actually managed to hold Nia for a few min before putting them back in their cage. Tonight I held nia again, for slightly longer, and actually managed to hold Patches for a few minutes too! Cant tell you how excited I feel. Feels like a major breakthrough.
Click to expand...

Be patient, and they will learn to trust you!

PS: I used to have a Nia, too! (2008-2014)
Nia-avatar-02.webp
 
It is so exciting when you first get to hold them isn't it?
Not to mention how hard it is to be patient sometimes.
It sounds like it is going well.
 
This is exactly how it''s going for our girls too. We stroke them in their cuddle igloo but one goes daft. The other will be held but would definitely run off if we let her go. She did take apple from us when we were holding her.Hopefully that'she a good sign. The other one is however not been held yet. We'very had them 2 weeks. Any advice?
 
Not much other can keep doing what you're doing? I'm hoping that even just by stroking them gently in the cuddle sack they get to learn that my hands are fine and safe and won't hurt them and so in time they'll become more trusting. The one (Nia) is definitely more trusting of me than the other (Patches). Patches does a deep grumble and squeals if I try to pick her up so up until yesterday I hadn't been able to pick her up at all other than when I first checked her in the shop, as I haven't wanted to freak her out. To me if they grumble or squeal like that whilst trying to burrow deep into the sack it's a definite sign that they're terrified and not happy so I rather stop trying to pick up and just stroke a few times whilst talking to them. Nia is slightly more obliging and doesn't make those sounds so I pick her up slightly more easily, but I wouldn't go as far as to say she enjoys it yet. I think just respect their limits and take it slowly.
 
GHoney doesn't make much noise when we lift her out the sack if any but she did in the pet shop so hopefully that''s good and she'll eat from our hand when holding but Sweet pea bites the cuddles acknowledged and tries to jump out and is more vocal. Worried we"recommend stressing yer but the longer we leave it, the harder it gets...gggrrrrr.
 
I tend to try for about 2 or 3 minutes and no longer if they seem stressed. Talk to her all the time and if she's really resisting being picked up then just stroke her and talk to her and see if she calms down again. That's what I do. It's hard trying to find the right balance between not stressing them out too much but still getting them used to hands they don't want to be in.
 
Didn't manage to hold them tonight but had the most awesome lap time. Took them out imdivisually again and both of them just lay there chatting to me! Usually they're burrowing as deep as possible into the corners of the snuggle sack.
This time Patches immediately just lay down in the middle, so I could lower the edges all around her, and she just lay there chating away to me for what felt like ages.
Then came Nia's turn and at first she tried to hide, but after a bit of reassurance she too lay down more in the middle and started chatting. Was super cool :D
 
They are clearly learning that we humans aren't so bad. Sounds like you are doing a great job with your happy piggies.
 
Great. Hubby is going to bring ours in tomorrow for a bit of quiet time when he's on his own. (He thinks Sweetpea's mad at him for trying to pick her up this morning when she took a leap out of her cuddle sack)...luckily I caught her but her loud squeak told us to "buzz off". (This is the guy that said he had no interest in getting guinea pigs but is the worst out of all of us for fussing over them
 
@squeakyclean - my hubby's very similar. Was totally against getting gp's but now I find him checking in them and chatting to them daily and hes the one that remembers to switch the radio on for them every morning as well. Never goes to work without doing it. (I heard a tip to leave the radio on a chatty station when youre out to get them more used to voices etc).
 
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