Rescued a lone guinea pig

[Michaeldeebear]

Hello,

I just rescued a guinea pig from someone who had been keeping her for two years alone. I think he was just quite misinformed and didn't know that she needs company. Now I'm worried about how best to care for her. I'm not sure if it's the best idea to try to introduce a new guinea pig at this stage, given that she has definitely not been used to other pigs for her whole life, I worry she'll respond aggressively or unhappily. In the meantime, I'm trying to give her lots of time, lots of enrichment, and I put a mirror just outside her cage which she seems to like or be somewhat interested in.
What advice do you all have? How could I go about seeing whether she would be open to meeting a friend? If it's too far gone for that, are there any ways to keep a pig happy in isolation? Thanks.

 

[Freela]

It's always best to keep guinea pigs with other guinea pigs... even though she hasn't had a friend of her species, that doesn't mean she will react badly to having a friend. I'm also in Canada (Ontario though) and I know in my province guinea pig rescues can be few and far between. I would start by trying to find any rescues in your area. Sometimes rescues will help you to match up an existing pig with a new friend, although this is not something I have ever been able to find in my area. The other option, if a 'meet and greet' for a new friend isn't possible, is to acquire another guinea pig, read up on how to introduce pigs and how to read the situation (there are really helpful stickies and video on the behaviour/bonding page), and allow them to meet somewhere neutral to see how they do. In this case, you'll have to have some backup plan in case a bond fails... like living in adjacent cages with interaction through the bars. And first, be very sure of the sex of your guinea pig and any additional companions, people have been known to misindentify them and you really do not want an unintended litter! Hope this helps a bit, and good for your for rescuing this pig and giving her a better life!

 

[Piggies&buns]

and well done for taking her in.

Any piggy can be bonded with a new friend at any stage and just because she’s been alone doesn’t mean she needs to stay alone.
If you can’t find a rescue who will help you with finding a new friend, then if you buy a new piggy friend for her, then you will need to try the bonding yourself. I’m going to link guides below which will help you with lots of information about bonds and bonding. There is no way to tell if a bond will work until you try and if you have had to buy a pet shop piggy for example rather than bonding through a rescue then you do need to have a plan b in mind in case a bond doesn’t work and that will be two separate piggies living in separate cages but so they can interact through the bars only. However, even living as neighbours provides interaction and stimulation and is still much better than living totally alone.

Bonding and Interaction: Illustrated social behaviours and bonding dynamics
A Closer Look At Pairs (Boars - Sows - Mixed)
Moody Guinea Pigs: Depression, Bullying, Aggression, Stress, Fear and Antisocial Behaviour
Sows: Behaviour and female health problems (including ovarian cysts)

I’ve also included our sexing guide here so you can be sure that you have same sex piggies before you attempt any bonding
https://www.theguineapigforum.co.uk/threads/illustrated-sexing-guide-for-all-ages.156297/


New Owners' Most Helpful How-To Guides and Information

 

[weepweeps]

Hello and welcome to the forum. I really hope you can find a friend for her soon.