Nervous about intoductions

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Ree

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I'm going to bite the bullet and try to put my four together today :... I'm so scared I can't tell you!

Can someone give me advice or just some moral support to help me do it?! I want to try the bath introduction as that is what I read works best, the only thing I'm worried about is that harry and heidi are long haired so are quite used to the bath, so will they see it as their territory because they're used to it?

I've had the cage divided since sunday and after a few inital chatters and rumblestrutting from both sides they seem to want to 'meet' eachother now. They poke their little noses through the bars and stay there for ages just sniffing :).

I can't bear the thought of them fighting so it's going to be real hard not to seperate them at the first chatter. What should I expect, and when should I separate?

Many thanks.
Ree x
 
My only advice - if it all goes wrong, DON'T put your hands in - they'll be high on adrenaline and likely to sink a good bite into you. I always have a towel to throw over them, or a dustpan to corner them with! :)
 
It's going to be a fine sight, me in the bathroom with 4 piggies, a bunch of veg and a dustpan! lol

Thanks for the links cherryredcutie and lovelygirl, I've read them already but it's good to read something like a that a couple of times just to get it all to sink in.

One more question (sorry!) would it work better if I introduced them 2 at a time or all at once?

I'm excited and scared witless all at the same time! Just want my husband to hurry up and come home so I can crack on with it.
x
 
They're 2 pairs.

I'm so sorry but I've got one last question, if just one of my piggies chatters her teeth (I'm thinking about heidi specifically as I've seen her do it before) will she attack the others if they back down?

Thanks so much x
 
ok well if they are in two pairs i would try for all together (you might need a bigger space). She shouldn't attack them if they back down but nothing is guaranteed.
 
Quiet teeth chattering can be a strong reminder not to invade her space; it can also be pure blustering when a guinea pig is actually quite afraid of the other!
Loud and really intense chattering is the dangerous one (usually with hair standing on end). You will notice a change in attitude (a tenseness) in the other guinea pigs when things go bad. This kind of chattering can precede a serious fight.

Things can be a bit lively at first, with a lot of squeaking, rumbling, chasing and chattering. However, you should get a feeling fairly soon whether there is real aggression or not.

Unless you already have had contest between the two parties in who can chatter the loudest at the other (with a really menacing intensity to it) and who's hair is standing most on end, you shouldn't be too worried! There is a completely different feel to it when things go really ugly. I had it happen to me only once, but believe me, you will know the difference when you see it!

Some head butting/nipping between sows can be part of the dominance ritual and is usually accompanied by some big protests from the "injured" party.

I tend to be a bit tense about it as well since things went so wrong with Olwen, but the next introduction with Nerys and Nia went completely the other way, and I could relax very quickly!

The chances are actually very good for the introduction going well. It's just better to be prepared for eventualities.

Best of luck! Don't hesitate to post if you got problems or questions! And please let us know how it goes.
 
Hmmmm...Heidi does chatter loudly when she gets going, and the other pigs (on the other side of the divider) did stand stock still and looked extremely wary. It only happened the first day after I put them in with the divide so hopefully heidi has got used to the idea of other piggies being around by now!

So just to make sure, (before I lose my nerve and prematurely scoop them out) as long as the new 2 don't challenge Heidi's dominance she will won't properly attack them? Even if she chatters her teeth loudly and acts aggressively?
x
 
As she has stopped after the first day, you shouldn't be too worried - she was just telling the others not to keep off her territory! She might chatter again at first, but will stop when she meets no counter challenge.

But as the others haven't answered back, I don't think there will be problems. Heidi will probably make a bit for dominance. She is the one with the most to lose in terms of status and it looks like she wants to keep her position.

As the others haven't risen to the challenge, they probably won't now, either. Make sure that you always serve her first and fuss about her before the others. If necessary, have girls-only bonding session later on (with a nice big plate of food). I did that with Dizzy and the new girls.
 
Thanks so much Vicky, I feel like I can relax a bit now if she does start chattering at them, if I hadn't posted on here I would've taken her away as soon as I heard her do it and blown the whole thing.

And I didn't know about feeding her first so thanks for the tip!

I'll let you know how I get on :)
x
 
It's the top girl's privilege to have first choice of whatever... if she so chooses to exert her right! I always try to respect the hierarchy amongst the girls, especially if I've got one of the more dominant top sows.
 
to avoid squabbles when i hand feed veggies, i hand feed furby (dominant sow) on the upper layer and cottonbud on the lower layer
 
of their two storey cage - sorry i forgot to finish typing the rest of the sentence oops
 
Well that was the most nerve-racking 2 hours of my life! My hands are still shaking and my legs feel like jelly!

I put them all in the bath (no chattering) then put them on the floor to dry them off (little bit of chattering from Harry which set Heidi off then Hermione but no fighting after I threw a towel over them) then an hour in the hallway with a mound of hay and no real chattering at all.

I cleaned out the cage and rearranged everything, I hope it ok to do this but I washed everything down with a water/white vinger mix to disguise the smells. This is ok isn't it?

I've put them all back in with loads of food and it seems to be ok touch wood. PHEW!!

Harry is humping the 2 new ones like mad though, and Heidi's chattered her teeth a couple of times.

When can I relax guys?! How long till I know for sure they won't fight when I'm not there?
x

Harry is very pleased with himself btw, every time he humps one of them (usually a head lol) he darts off popcorning like I've never seen him popcorn before! He's on the left of my avatar if your interested, Heidi is on the right.
 
You can relax! Everything is going well and you did the right thing. :))

We should have warned you that the boys usually goes overboard for a few hours to a few days.

The girls will sort through the fine print of the order of things in the next few days, before eveything settles down.
 
well done i am glad it went quite smoothly for you, and harry is obviously very happy!
 
Thanks for all the help :)

Hermione is sitting up one end of the cage now looking really sad, she'll be ok eventually won't she? She was the dominant one out of the 2 new ones so maybe it's just a shock not to be top dog anymore. Harry doesn't seem to like her too much, he's not chattering but he's chasing her the most and nipping her rather than just humping her.

Heidi just nipped Hoster (the least dominant one) too but theres no blood or anything, I keep having to look away when they get near eachother because I can't take the stress of it!

I'm exhausted! Is it too early for a glass of wine?!
x
 
The nipping is normal (it is bloodless). Guinea pig bonding is not subtle, and there is quite a bit of what we'd call bullying, which is simply dominance behaviour in piggy terms. Heidi is obvioulsy getting on with establishing that she is first lady, but not excessively so.

Hosta will get over feeling put upon, I'm sure. Just give them a few days. They've done the initial bonding without any aggression problems. Now they need to get to know each other and figure out where they stand in relation to each other.

It is not always easy for us to sit and just watch, as some of it is quite rough; it's worth to remember that this is normal behaviour for guinea pigs and that they accept it as that!
 
It's still a bit tense in there but not violently so, harry and Heidi are definitely asserting their dominance to the newbies with all the rumbling, chattering, humping and chasing. Breaks my heart a bit to see them scared but like you say it's normal piggy behaviour so I'll have to get used to it.

Very last question I promise, can I go out and leave them or should I stay here in case it all blows up? I was actually thinking about sleeping in the living room so I would hear if a fight broke out but my husband reckons it's a bit extreme. Can't get the thought of one being bitten to death out of my head though :(
x
 
They had a good night :) only one squabble which we all leapt from our beds to sort out, only to find they were all snuggled down in their beds! Maybe we dreamt it lol

Harry is still humping poor hoster like mad, she stuck up for herself this morning though so hopefully he'll calm down soon. Hermione is in the corner still looking very sorry for herself which is pulling on my heart strings a bit :( I'm sure she'll buck up soon.

So all in all things are going well, definitely better than I expected :)
x
 
I am glad it is going well for you! and your piggies i am sure harry will have to sleep soon and give hoster a break...
 
That is great news, your long haired guineas in your avatar are goregous, like little teddy bears, i want one of those. What type are they?
 
I am glad that all is going well; it will take a few days to shake it all down. It's good to see Hoster assert herself and tell the others to how much stiff she is prepared to take from them.

Hermione will come out of her sulk eventually and settle in. She will bond with Harry next time she's in season. Just give her time to come to terms with the new situation!
 
Thanks guys :) Things feel much calmer in there now, Harry's not feeling so sexy since Hoster gave him a nip so thats one thing sorted. He had a bit of a go at Hermione about 10 minutes ago but she's flat out asleep at the moment so it probably isn't bothering her as much as it's bothering me!

Thanks Rolo, I think their gorgeous but then I'm bias! I'm not 100% but Harry (on the left) is a sheltie and Heidi on the right is a merino? I think thats what the lady at the rescue said they were. I'll post some pics of Hoster and Hermione in a minute so you can see who's who.
x
 
Looking forward to seeing your gorgeous foursome!
 
Harry
piggy1.jpg


Heidi
heidi.jpg


Hermione
hermione.jpg


And Hoster
hoster.jpg


Do you think Hoster looks pregnant or just is she just chubby? I've been staring at her belly for ages trying to see if there are any squiggles but thankfully I can't see anything. I did ask the lady at the rescue and she said she wasn't but her back end is so chunky it does make me wonder!
x
Edit: Sorry Hoster's belly pic is on the next post
 
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