New owner

[Susanaky]

Hi. Thank you for having me. I'm a new guinea pigs momma i have 2. I got the babies maybe 3 days ago. I have a question 1st day they were good as gold. 2nd day Lucy was showing her authority kicking her little feet, going crazy, and 3rd night Lucy tonight is acting the crazy Ethel is fussing to.

 

[Piggies&buns]

How old are they?
What do you mean by fussing?
What do you mean by acting crazy.

What do you mean by good? They were likely too scared to do anything on the first day, but now they are starting to venture out a little bit. They will now be in a two week period of restablishing their relationship, sorting out their hierarchy by showing dominance. This is very normal and something they do throughout their whole lives.

If you could provide us with more information about what you are seeing from them, information about their set up (cage size, how many hides etc) then we may be able to offer a bit more insight.

The guides below will also help you as a new owner

New Owners' Essential Information and Practical Tips Starter Collection

 

[Wiebke]

Hi. Thank you for having me. I'm a new guinea pigs momma i have 2. I got the babies maybe 3 days ago. I have a question 1st day they were good as gold. 2nd day Lucy was showing her authority kicking her little feet, going crazy, and 3rd night Lucy tonight is acting the crazy Ethel is fussing to.

Hi and welcome

This is normal behaviour. Guinea pigs are territorial, so when they are separated from their big family group at the commercial breeders and their age mates at the pet shop branch and then come into a totally new complex home environment with lots of different smells and noises, of course they are scared.

Once they get over that, they face the task of estblishing a hierarchical group in a new territory. If they are insecure in themselves - being still at an age where they rely on the guidance of their elders to learn to master their environment - then they tend to overdo the dominance a bit. Please remove any houses with just one exit and avoid any dead angles. Do not use bowls but sprinkle feed pellets and veg around the cage. This minimises food bullying but also encourages natural foraging behaviours. Only feed as much as they can eat in one go in order to encourage them to eat as much of their main staple - hay, which should make over three quarters of the daily food intake - in between feeding the extras (pellets, veg and any treats all together only replace the supplementary role that wild forage used to have).

Please take the time to read these very practical links here in order to understand where your piggies come from and what they are doing in order to help them best but with least upset for yourself and any unrealistic expectations of yours. You will find them very helpful.

New Guinea Pigs: How to Best Manage Arrival and Settling In
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 Pigs Safely (videos)

New Guinea Pig Problems: Sexing & Pregnancy; URI, Ringworm & Parasites; Vet Checks & Customer Rights
Illustrated Sexing Guide

A - Z of Guinea Pig Behaviours
Sows: Behaviour and female health problems (including ovarian cysts) (see the chapter on sow dominance behaviours and also that on season - things are bound to crank up even more when that happens for the first time)

All the guide links above are part of our very useful new owners information collection, which specifically addresses all the most common little and large unforeseen issues that come with new ownership and also helps you to learn what is normal and what not. You may want to bookmark the link for easy access at all times: Getting Started - Essential Information for New Owners

All

 

[weepweeps]

Hello and welcome to the forum. It will take at least 2 weeks for them to settle down into their new surroundings. They will be very nervous and scared. You can try covering one end of their enclosure to give them a bit more security.

Good luck. I hope they settle down soon.

 

[Merab]

Welcome to the forum.
Hope you enjoy being here and find it helpful
We look forward to pictures

 

[Bill & Ted]

It sounds like they are just settling in after probably been very scared. Give them time to sort their hiarchy out, (who will be the boss) It usually takes around 2 weeks. Enjoy your piggies!