Is my Guineau Pig Depressed?

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jacksmylad

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Hello, i have had Jack my guinea pig for almost three years now and he has always been quiet and shy. He was with another Guinea pig who wasnt shy but died over a year ago. Jack is lovely and i love him with all my heart. He lives indoors at the moment and gets to go in his run most evenings after work unless its raining. He used to live outside too but seems happier inside.

When i put him in his run he rarely comes out of the closed bit into the open, it takes hours till he sneaks out. When he is in his cage he always hides under his little house. He is fine when handled and loves a good rob under the chin but i am wanting to know if he is depressed or lonely? Am i a bad Mum?
 
Aw bless him - he may just be lonely. Piggies are highly social animals and need the company of their own kind. Would it be possible to try and find him a friend? There are many lonely single boars in rescues, and some rescues even let you take your pig to let him find his own friend. A friend of mine who only had the one piggie was worrying about hers too as he was shy etc - she put a new friend in with him and it was like he was a new pig! Popcorning, jumping, happy squeaking almost immediately. As your boy is no longer a stroppy teen he may take well to another mature boy, if you have a rescue near you, they usually know the personality of their piggies before they will rehome them out, so may be ideally able to help you :) If you are able and willing to take on another, we may be able to help you locate a rescue in your area.

Living inside is always a huge bonus as well, if you can I personally would keep him indoors so especially if you can't take on another pig, he will still be able to hear, see and smell you and know he is not completely alone.

I'm sure you are not a bad piggy mum, or else you wouldn't be worrying about him.
 
Thank you for your reply, i do worry as i get ill so often i cant always handle him daily, but he does call for me when he is hungry and has never had an issue eating , so thats something. I have been thinking about getting him a mate for a while but partner keeps saying he's fine. But i do want to try it. I have two other piggies but are so young i only let them in with Jack outside, but they love him. Especially the teeny one i have called Indiana, they have the same fluffy hair and i think he looks up to jack. He is absolutley fascinated by Jack.
 
Awww, that is sooo cute. Could you not try and bond Jack with the other 2? I have heard that older boars are easier to bond with babies than they are with a male the same age. If they seem ok in the run together and the little ones look up to him, maybe they see him as a father figure and Jack may take them on as his 'adopted' sons. I think it is worth a try O0
 
Whilst it is possible to bond 3 piggies, it often doesn't work out and can leave all three fighting and ultimately seperated. Problems can often arise when the baby boys reach adolescence and start stropping. If your other two piggies are just fine at the moment, I personally don't think I would want to mess with that myself.

Is it worth having a chat with a local rescue to see if they have a boar who is suitable for your Jack? Single boys are unfortunatley plentiful in rescue as they are hard to rehome, so you may have a reasonable chance of finding a lovely older boy for Jack if you want to go ahead and try and find him a pal :)
 
I am def gonna give it a try, I'm away for a week so will try upon my return. Excited now. The other two popcorn is it? i would love to see jack do that, he's my little man. I miss him when I'm at work he he. Have just got two baby bunnies so i will see if he enjoys running with them in the garden under supervision. Wont put them together in a cage but just in the garden when i can see them all.
 
That's great that you are considering a pal for Jack :) However I would resist puitting them with buns in the garden even with strict supervision and bunnies can often get carried away with the joys of life bounding about which often leaves an unintentionally injured and terrified piggie. Perhaps you can put him in a run next to the buns so they can interact through the safety of the wire until you can find him a friend?

Whereabouts in the country are you, there may be a good rescue close by? :)
 
I'm in Cheltenham, there is a Cheltenham Animal Shelter where i got the other two piggies from (but in the Adoption section at Pets at home) ive inteneded to go there for a while as i donate a percentage of my ebay items to them and i know they have loads of piggies. Roll on next week so i can get another Piggie.
 
Good luck finding him a friend! Don't forget to ask the rescue if they will let you bring Jack to choose his own friend, they may be up for it!
 
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