New owner...lots of questions!

[disneymad]

Hi, we picked up our 3 new male piggies 8 weeks old (brothers) on christmas eve. They are adorable!
My children named them Goofy, Daisy (yes i did say they were all male poor thing!) and I named the last Elf.
We handle them daily and they have one of the ELC playpen runs which today they have been haring round!
1)They seem more confident in their cage and their run but leg it as soon as they catch sight of anyone coming in the room. They have become more vocal which I presume is a good sign BUT Goofy seems to be chattering his teeth and chasing his brothers. That does not seem like a good sign to me. What does it mean?
2) Can you recommend a bedding for them? I bought some from P@H, small squares of white paper stuff, but it is sooooooooooooo messy! And is proving almost impossible to remove from the fleece!
3) Should I introduce a routine to tame them? Such as time in the run in the morning where vegetables are given, and again in the eve? Or should veg be given in their cage?
I am sure there are more questions I could ask but will leave these for now!
Thanks! Look forward to hearing your experienced tips and advice!
Sam

 

[flintstones]

Hi Sam,

Welcome to the world of Guinea Pigs.

As Guinea Pigs are prey animals they take alot of time to come round. A routine is good for them (Veg ie morning and night). They need unlimited hay and pellets as they are growing, also weigh and note there weight weekly (always weigh at the same time preferably before pig). Piggies hide illness very well and the first sign are normally the weight and change in behaviour.

Now Boy need lots and lots and some space especially 3 Boys, it is only normally recommended to keep boys in pairs (Trio can work), as they get hormonal and sometimes may fallout. The Boy teeth Chattering and Chasing is going for dominace, what age are they? This is normal behaviour but fallouts can happen if they all go for dominance, if Blood is drawn the general rule is to separate. There is a boar sticky in behaviour perhaps have a read.

As for bedding, there are so many types it's whatever suits you at present I use fleece (like the throws) with incontience pads underneath. Have a look in housing for some idea's.

Boar Sticky: http://www.theguineapigforum.co.uk/showthread.php?t=28949

This site is also very useful and tell's you whats normal and whats not healthwise http://www.guinealynx.info/normal.html

 

[clairelove]

defo need massives amounts of space for 3 boars:...:...:... talking 8ft+4ft and even then you could still have fall outs:... which can start from around 16wks old sometimes younger x


teeth chattering means he is getting a bit pi*sed off with them really keep a close eye on it any mouth opening and jumping into the face is NOT good at all! and is a fight waiting to happen!

 

[Cat&ThePiggies]

1) Give them time, they'll become more confident around you in time, they just need to get used to all the comings and goings. They'll still be settling in. Also, the teeth chattering thing, is normally them working out the dominance issues. As long as he's not actually going for his brothers, biting them or anything, it's ok. If blood is drawn though, you'll need to separate them.

2) Instead of bedding, maybe get some fleece beds for them, that way they can snuggle up in them and there's no mess with bits of paper sticking to the fleece.

3) I find a routine is beneficial, you don't need to stick to it to the minute but continuity will help them to adjust and settle in.

It might be worth picking up a couple of books on guinea pigs, I found them quite useful when I first got my piggies. Also, just reading threads on here and other sites will help you find tips and advice. Good luck with your piggies!