My guinea pigs won't come near me

[RichC]

Hi everyone,
I've recently got 2 female guinea pigs, they're 11 weeks old and I've had them for just over a week.
They seem happy in their cage, but will run into their house or den whenever I go near the cage or if I'm nearby and make a movement.
I've spent the last week trying to offer them treats from my hand as they hide in their house, but they won't move until I leave them alone.
I've read some advice about picking them up and handling them regularly to get them used to me, but that seems impossible.
Should I just be patient and keep doing what I'm doing? Or should I take their house and den out of the cage when I'm trying to bond with them so that they can't just hide from me until I leave?
Sorry, I know this is a common problem that people seem to have but I'm not sure how patient to be!

 

[Piggies&buns]

This is very normal and a week is only the very beginning of the process but you also need to prepared for the fact that they may never like it.
We recommend that you cover the cage for the first week and don’t do anything other than put in fresh hay and water. In the second week, sit by the cage and talk to them. You can then start to offer food from your hand but this part of the process could take a long time - if they are still running aaay when you go to the cage, then they are unlikely to take food from you for a few more weeks yet. You can then build it up slowly and at their pace. It’s important you announce your presence though and do so from a distance. A predator would creep up on them so anybody approaching silently is going to be very scary for them.

Please don’t take their houses out the cage. They are their safe place and removing them will just frighten them.

Try herding them into a carrier and then picking them up from there. Again, this could take a long time and they may not like it but it is so important that you don’t chase them around the cage.

Do be aware that running away and hiding is very normal, piggies are prey animals and most don’t ever like being handled, they may become comfortable with interaction in time but may never enjoy being held. They will come around and be less nervous in time but you could be looking at that taking weeks, months or even years before that happens.

My Dexter was braver quicker than Popcorn. It took Dex six weeks to take food from me, but it took Pops a year and a half before he take food from my hand. He would just freeze Whenever I went near (a sign of fear), if I tried to approach him slowly with my hand, he would run off. It took him 18 months to get over that. Three years down the line neither of them run away from me anymore but it has taken a long time and Popcorn is still the most nervous and is the first to dash away if something spooks them. Still, neither of them will let me touch them or pick them up. They simply hate it, so we don’t do laptime, cuddle time. I sit in their shed with them and let them come to me if they want to.
I personally don’t believe in picking them up to get them used to you. I feel you need to let your piggies guide you and if they don’t like it, then don’t force it. They are most likely going to be happier with each others company than they will be being held.


Arrival in a home from the perspective of pet shop guinea pigs
Understanding Prey Animal Instincts, Guinea Pig Whispering And Cuddling Tips
How To Pick Up And Weigh Your Guinea Pig Safely

 

[RichC]

Thanks, that's really helpful. I was worried that going slowly with progress could be detrimental, but I'm happy being patient with them knowing that's the right thing to do. One worry I have though is clipping thier nails, how do I do that if I can't hold them? I don't want to traumatise them, so will I need to get a vet to do it regularly or just leave them until one day when they are comfortable for me to do it?
Thanks again.

 

[Piggies&buns]

Thanks, that's really helpful. I was worried that going slowly with progress could be detrimental, but I'm happy being patient with them knowing that's the right thing to do. One worry I have though is clipping thier nails, how do I do that if I can't hold them? I don't want to traumatise them, so will I need to get a vet to do it regularly or just leave them until one day when they are comfortable for me to do it?
Thanks again.

You still need to do weekly body health checks, they both need to be weighed every week also as it is part of routine care (any weight loss can be the first sign of an illness).
In terms of nail clipping, it’s best to get a vet to do it if you aren’t confident. It cant be left until they don’t mind being handled though because that might not happen quickly enough.
As I said, mine hate being handled so in terms of their weekly weigh ins and routine nail clipping, it is a case of herd into a carrier, pick them up from there, be quick and be careful but make it as low stress as possible (with a coriander bribe to help!).
The guides I linked in explain the piggy whispering tips and how to weigh your piggy in as low stress way as possible.

 

[RichC]

Perfect, thank you for all your help.