Just got 2 new piggies

JJW&Pigs

JJW&Pigs

Junior Guinea Pig
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Hello everyone! I just rescued 2 new piggies and am planning on bonding them to my other 2 soon. They are both 18 months and females. One of them has overgrown feet skin that is dry and cracked so I will have to get that taken care of first. Any tips to make sure their bonding goes smooth?
 
When I bonded my three female guinea pigs I did this:

When I first received my guinea pig, I put her in a small cage just to calm her down about being in a new environment. The next day I wrapped my old guinea pigs up in one blanket and the new one in a separate one, they then took a few minutes to let them eat some lettuce. One guinea pig was on one side and the other 2 were one the other side. Since they were all very curious about each other the blanket restrained them all from doing anything like humping, rumbling, or biting. I did that a few time during the day, by then they were used to each other and knew who the other guinea pig was. By the third day I monitored them all in a large play pen that I had set up for them to use and again I feed them all some veggies.
The fourth day I I split my old guinea pigs cage in half and let let them each use on one side all day.
Please note: your Guinea pig may chew on cage bars due to stress. Mine only did this for five minutes before the old guinea pigs stoped and realized that they could not get to the other side. I only know this because I work in the same room my guinea pigs cage is in. If they keep chewing it could mean that you should repeat day three. By the fifth day, I let them all stay in the same cage unseparated.
Another note: when adding a new guinea pig to the herd there my be some bullying.
Ex: -You may notice that your Guinea pigs eats feel slightly crusty, this is biting
-You may hear your new guinea pig squeaking due to the other guinea pigs bitting hair
- the new guinea pig might be bullied and be scared to eat next to the old guinea pig

Also, whenever adding a new guinea pig the guinea pigs pecking order is going to change, and it may not always be relevant to you. It always takes time, bonding in guinea pigs. I’m sure you’ll do great!
 
Congratulations on your new piggies.

The correct way to bond is to put them all in a neutral territory bonding pen for several hours with no hides, only hay and water, so they can form their initial relationship.
After those few hours in the bonding pen, if all goes well, you can move them into their thoroughly cleaned out cage together to begin their life as a new herd!
It will take them a further two weeks to fully form their hierarchy and during that time you will see dominance.
Bullying is a very different thing and means the relationship has failed.

Bonding is not something to be done over several separate sessions, it should be just a one time event seen through to conclusion on that one day. Piggies should not be separated repeatedly as this interrupts their process and means they have to start from the beginning each and every time. This is stressful to them. The only time a bonding session should be ended and restarted is in cases of fear aggression in sows.
Any interactions when being held or when in a separated cage is not bonding. They need to be able to rumble and mount each other etc to form their relationship and hierarchy.
What you can do is have them live in a side by side cage for a few days prior to the actual bonding day to get to know each other.

Make sure the cage is big enough - that is a 180x60cm (minimum) or a 6x2 c&c - and that you have four of every item.

If the new piggies did not come from a reputable rescue centre, then they should be quarantined in a separate room for two weeks before bonding day. You should also get a vet check.
Also make sure, if you haven’t already, to double check they are definitely both sows.

We can’t know what is wrong with the feet, given we cannot see it, but any open wounds are of concern for bumblefoot and require urgent vet care.

Bonding and Interaction: Illustrated social behaviours and bonding dynamics
 
Congratulations! Good on you for giving them a lovely new home, hope the bonding goes well!
 
The Pig said:
Also, the guinea pig foot problem is most likely a foot spur.
Click to expand...
Nice to have you on the forum @The Pig , however you may not realise that because this is a UK based forum we are bound by UK law.
We are not permitted to diagnose piggies. We cannot as we don’t have the possibility of a hands on examination.
If there is a problem the advice is always go the vet.
We also have a dedicated Health and Illness section staffed by people known to have experience and knowledge- they still can’t diagnose though.

The best most of us can do is share our personal experience and offer support.

Thank you for being so caring and wanting to help.
 
Piggies&buns said:
Congratulations on your new piggies.

The correct way to bond is to put them all in a neutral territory bonding pen for several hours with no hides, only hay and water, so they can form their initial relationship.
After those few hours in the bonding pen, if all goes well, you can move them into their thoroughly cleaned out cage together to begin their life as a new herd!
It will take them a further two weeks to fully form their hierarchy and during that time you will see dominance.
Bullying is a very different thing and means the relationship has failed.

Bonding is not something to be done over several separate sessions, it should be just a one time event seen through to conclusion on that one day. Piggies should not be separated repeatedly as this interrupts their process and means they have to start from the beginning each and every time. This is stressful to them. The only time a bonding session should be ended and restarted is in cases of fear aggression in sows.
Any interactions when being held or when in a separated cage is not bonding. They need to be able to rumble and mount each other etc to form their relationship and hierarchy.
What you can do is have them live in a side by side cage for a few days prior to the actual bonding day to get to know each other.

Make sure the cage is big enough - that is a 180x60cm (minimum) or a 6x2 c&c - and that you have four of every item.

If the new piggies did not come from a reputable rescue centre, then they should be quarantined in a separate room for two weeks before bonding day. You should also get a vet check.
Also make sure, if you haven’t already, to double check they are definitely both sows.

We can’t know what is wrong with the feet, given we cannot see it, but any open wounds are of concern for bumblefoot and require urgent vet care.

Bonding and Interaction: Illustrated social behaviours and bonding dynamics
Click to expand...
They came from another fellow guinea pig owner who could not care for them. They have no medical issues and are not sick (they were given a check up before, although, i guess the foot spur was just overlooked) the same guinea pig does have a harmless eye abcess though so thats really my only concern.
 
JJW&Pigs said:
Sure was! I simply cut part of it off with nail clippers without any issue
Click to expand...

Please don’t ever cut off a spur. They are harmless and need to be left alone. Only a vet should remove them if they become a problem and get caught in bedding.

Your original post said dry and cracked feet.

A spur forms only on the side of the foot.
If there is any cracking on the sole of the foot then it won’t be a spur and does need a vet check.
 
JJW&Pigs said:
They came from another fellow guinea pig owner who could not care for them. They have no medical issues and are not sick (they were given a check up before, although, i guess the foot spur was just overlooked) the same guinea pig does have a harmless eye abcess though so thats really my only concern.
Click to expand...

What do you mean by harmless eye abscess?
 
Piggies&buns said:
Please don’t ever cut off a spur. They are harmless and need to be left alone. Only a vet should remove them if they become a problem and get caught in bedding.

Your original post said dry and cracked feet. That’s it quite the same thing as a spur
Click to expand...
understood. Its only in one area and its like overgrown skin, thats why I said spur
 
JJW&Pigs said:
Okay, ill try to. It may take me a few weeks to get the money though, but ill definitely do that.
Click to expand...

A actual abscess won’t wait for a few weeks.
We obviously don’t know what is actually wrong in this case (it might not be an abscess) but this is why we always urge caution when getting piggies from private sellers - you don’t actually know what you might be dealing with.

Make sure to start to save a vet fund big enough to cover four piggies.
 
This is the eye abscess, its the size of a pin top.
 

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Piggies&buns said:
A actual abscess won’t wait for a few weeks.
We obviously don’t know what is actually wrong in this case (it might not be an abscess) but this is why we always urge caution when getting piggies from private sellers - you don’t actually know what you might be dealing with.

Make sure to start to save a vet fund big enough to cover four piggies
Click to expand...
Will do. Ill be putting everything into a vet fund
Piggies&buns said:
I would definitely get that checked by your own vet.
Click to expand...
Okay, Ill put in extra hours this week to make sure I can afford this
 
Great advice about bonding given by @Piggies&buns above, please do take the time to read the threads properly. I would not attempt any introductions until you’ve had the new arrivals seen by a vet. If they need any treatment then ideally you would not carry out the introductions until recovered, as bonding is incredibly stressful for piggies and can exacerbate any health issues.
 
The Pig said:
When I bonded my three female guinea pigs I did this:

When I first received my guinea pig, I put her in a small cage just to calm her down about being in a new environment. The next day I wrapped my old guinea pigs up in one blanket and the new one in a separate one, they then took a few minutes to let them eat some lettuce. One guinea pig was on one side and the other 2 were one the other side. Since they were all very curious about each other the blanket restrained them all from doing anything like humping, rumbling, or biting. I did that a few time during the day, by then they were used to each other and knew who the other guinea pig was. By the third day I monitored them all in a large play pen that I had set up for them to use and again I feed them all some veggies.
The fourth day I I split my old guinea pigs cage in half and let let them each use on one side all day.
Please note: your Guinea pig may chew on cage bars due to stress. Mine only did this for five minutes before the old guinea pigs stoped and realized that they could not get to the other side. I only know this because I work in the same room my guinea pigs cage is in. If they keep chewing it could mean that you should repeat day three. By the fifth day, I let them all stay in the same cage unseparated.
Another note: when adding a new guinea pig to the herd there my be some bullying.
Ex: -You may notice that your Guinea pigs eats feel slightly crusty, this is biting
-You may hear your new guinea pig squeaking due to the other guinea pigs bitting hair
- the new guinea pig might be bullied and be scared to eat next to the old guinea pig

Also, whenever adding a new guinea pig the guinea pigs pecking order is going to change, and it may not always be relevant to you. It always takes time, bonding in guinea pigs. I’m sure you’ll do great!
Click to expand...
Hi, I just want to let you know that biting and bullying is not normal. These are signs of a failed bond.
Please be careful with what information you share, as you would not want to accidentally cause an issue or a fight in piggies.

There has already been correct bonding advice given above, but I will attach the forums bonding guides, and I would urge you to have a look through them incase you wish to bond again in the future.
Bonding and Interaction: Illustrated social behaviours and bonding dynamics
Dominance Behaviours In Guinea Pigs
Bonds In Trouble
 
Hi, sorry this is a late update, I’m not gonna bond the 4 piggies because their personalities clash too much and I think it would just be super stressful on all of them. The guinea pig with the eye and foot issue was fine, I can’t remember exactly what it was but both are just genetic problems, I’ll have to find out about it later
 
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