My guinea pig is misbehaving and chewing his cage

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Kimmy1606

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I am a New Guinea pig owner and would like some advise please because I really don’t know what to do for the best.
So one of my two male guinea pigs is starting to act a little bit mischievous of an evening. He is only 5 months old and he is like a little stroppy teenager when it’s time to go to bed.
All day long, they have the run of the dining room whilst myself and my boyfriend are working from home. Then of an evening they are either in a large play pen in the living room or they have the run of the Living room! They have so many toys, hideaways and chew things that they really are spoilt.
They get put back into the cage when we go to bed, and again, they have lots of toys and hideaways to play with.
But this one little munchkin Neville, has started pushing on the bars of the cage and then biting it, literally within 1-2 minutes of him being in there. He cannot be bored because he gets so much attention and he is generally a happy guinea pig making all of the good guinea pig noises. And again he started biting literally within 1-2 minutes so there’s no way it is boredom as he wasn’t in there long enough.

Seeing him biting the cage has really upset me, so I have taken them out of the cage and I have set them both up for the evenings temporarily in the playpen. This is not ideal but the best solution I have at the moment when he doesn’t want to go in the cage! It’s the only way to keep him happy.
It is important to note, the playpen is not much bigger than the cage, so it’s not that the cage is too small before anyone says this, it’s actually a good size cage and meets all necessary standards. Plus they are only in this cage whilst we are in bed so that we can set the house alarm.
I do not know what to do for the best?
Am I making a rod for my own back giving him what he wants? Or am I being too soft and I should leave him in the cage, even if he bites it? Will he give up? Why is he acting like this?
Any advice is welcomed because I don’t know what to do for the best? Thank you in advance 😊
 
Kimmy1606 said:
I am a New Guinea pig owner and would like some advise please because I really don’t know what to do for the best.
So one of my two male guinea pigs is starting to act a little bit mischievous of an evening. He is only 5 months old and he is like a little stroppy teenager when it’s time to go to bed.
All day long, they have the run of the dining room whilst myself and my boyfriend are working from home. Then of an evening they are either in a large play pen in the living room or they have the run of the Living room! They have so many toys, hideaways and chew things that they really are spoilt.
They get put back into the cage when we go to bed, and again, they have lots of toys and hideaways to play with.
But this one little munchkin Neville, has started pushing on the bars of the cage and then biting it, literally within 1-2 minutes of him being in there. He cannot be bored because he gets so much attention and he is generally a happy guinea pig making all of the good guinea pig noises. And again he started biting literally within 1-2 minutes so there’s no way it is boredom as he wasn’t in there long enough.

Seeing him biting the cage has really upset me, so I have taken them out of the cage and I have set them both up for the evenings temporarily in the playpen. This is not ideal but the best solution I have at the moment when he doesn’t want to go in the cage! It’s the only way to keep him happy.
It is important to note, the playpen is not much bigger than the cage, so it’s not that the cage is too small before anyone says this, it’s actually a good size cage and meets all necessary standards. Plus they are only in this cage whilst we are in bed so that we can set the house alarm.
I do not know what to do for the best?
Am I making a rod for my own back giving him what he wants? Or am I being too soft and I should leave him in the cage, even if he bites it? Will he give up? Why is he acting like this?
Any advice is welcomed because I don’t know what to do for the best? Thank you in advance 😊
Click to expand...

Hi!

Your boy doesn't think that confined to the cage is fun after you are giving him so much space during the day.

Please use the advice in these guides here to deal with the problem in ways that make eminent and instant sense to your piggies.
I have also found it helpful to keep their most favourite veg back from their dinner and serve it in the cage to get my own day time free roamers to turn themselves in at night. It was very effective - with the exception of Cariad, who was not the brightest star in the sky even though she lived up to her Welsh name, which means 'Darling'...
How To Pick Up And Weigh Your Guinea Pig Safely
Who is the boss - your guinea pig or you?
 
Wiebke said:
Hi!

Your boy doesn't think that confined to the cage is fun after you are giving him so much space during the day.

Please use the advice in these guides here to deal with the problem in ways that make eminent and instant sense to your piggies.
I have also found it helpful to keep their most favourite veg back from their dinner and serve it in the cage to get my own day time free roamers to turn themselves in at night. It was very effective - with the exception of Cariad, who was not the brightest star in the sky even though she lived up to her Welsh name, which means 'Darling'...
How To Pick Up And Weigh Your Guinea Pig Safely
Who is the boss - your guinea pig or you?
Click to expand...
Thank you very much
 
They really can be quite mischievous! Mine do the same when they want to have some floor time, even after they have just had floor time already. they bite on the bars too. I attached an apple branch in the exact place that they bite the bars. This way they don't harm their teeth.
Also I have learnt that if I respond to something that I dont want them to do, like biting on the bars they quickly learn that this works for them. Í imagine they were saying ''Run human run, get us a treat!'' or "Let us out of here now" Sadly I did, until I learnt better.
 
Thank you. Do you just leave them in the cage anyway even if they are biting? that might be where I am going wrong because he is getting away with murder. He knows if he just stares at me he gets more veggies for looking cute! He’s got me wrapped around his little finger! 😂
 
Kimmy1606 said:
Thank you. Do you just leave them in the cage anyway even if they are biting? that might be where I am going wrong because he is getting away with murder. He knows if he just stares at me he gets more veggies for looking cute! He’s got me wrapped around his little finger! 😂
Click to expand...
LOL! Yes cute will do it every time. I have to admit to doing this myself too. The one thing that concerned me about the bar biting was that they could break their teeth so I never respond to something where they could hurt themselves doing. Although I have to admit looking cute gets me too although it can result in more and more demands from them. I found that they caught on really quickly when I no longer responded to the bar biting. Underneith I would be cringing and wishing they would stop it but tried to look calm as though it didn't bother me at all and I didn't react or respond in any way and what do you know they quickly stopped doing it.
 
thanks everyone. I tried to feed at bed time and it did settle him a little. I have also tried ignoring him when biting the bars and he stops when i dont pay him any attention! What a little munchkin he is! haha he has got me wrapped around his little finger ! lol thanks for your advice!
 
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