Tiny
Teenage Guinea Pig
I think I've created a monster! 
So, ive had my two girls about 3 weeks ago and they are both around 11 weeks old, in a nutshell Marble has always been shyer and more timid, where we've got to so far is she'll be comfortable for no more then ten minutes lap time then get fidgety. She'll eat from me both in lap time and come up to the bars when in the cage. I respect this and won't be consciously trying to extend lap time as I feel strongly that handling should work around the pig's comfort and enjoyment, not mine!
Willow, on the other hand, had lots of 'enforced' handling - at 8 weeks she had an abscess removed and since then I've been stringing meds twice a day and checking her regularly. Initially, it was a real battle, being small and feisty, she was very squirmy and resistant! She's totally used to it now - we have a good system worked out to get it over with quickly. This was helped by a tasty treat (greens/kale/spinach) before and after meds/check. However, in the last two days I've cut back on these as I know they're quite rich and shouldn't be fed every day. But for the purposes of persuasion, they really did the trick! However, I think this feels to Willow like I'm cruelly starving her, and I don't think it's a coincidence that she's started chewing the roof bars (she gets on top of the carrot house). Also, demanding wheeks have increased in occurrence and volume (which then sets Marble off!). Basically, I think I've indulged this pig a bit too much and she's having none of it now I've tried to regulate things!
With the roof biting, my only concern is she gets her teeth caught - although the bars are only an inch wide, she has a narrow face and when she's chewing the roof her nose and mouth stick out the top. She doesn't do this on any of the wall bars, just the roof. What I've done is drape fleece on the inside so she can't get to the bars.
This is from the outside.
Inside.
Proper stink-eye (non-demanding piggy grazing in the background - she's no trouble!). Willow's learnt very quickly that me = food, think she's gonna have trouble unlearning that a little
Can anyone tell me how long this attention seeking behaviour will last? Is it just until she gets used to the harsh reality of life?
So, ive had my two girls about 3 weeks ago and they are both around 11 weeks old, in a nutshell Marble has always been shyer and more timid, where we've got to so far is she'll be comfortable for no more then ten minutes lap time then get fidgety. She'll eat from me both in lap time and come up to the bars when in the cage. I respect this and won't be consciously trying to extend lap time as I feel strongly that handling should work around the pig's comfort and enjoyment, not mine!
Willow, on the other hand, had lots of 'enforced' handling - at 8 weeks she had an abscess removed and since then I've been stringing meds twice a day and checking her regularly. Initially, it was a real battle, being small and feisty, she was very squirmy and resistant! She's totally used to it now - we have a good system worked out to get it over with quickly. This was helped by a tasty treat (greens/kale/spinach) before and after meds/check. However, in the last two days I've cut back on these as I know they're quite rich and shouldn't be fed every day. But for the purposes of persuasion, they really did the trick! However, I think this feels to Willow like I'm cruelly starving her, and I don't think it's a coincidence that she's started chewing the roof bars (she gets on top of the carrot house). Also, demanding wheeks have increased in occurrence and volume (which then sets Marble off!). Basically, I think I've indulged this pig a bit too much and she's having none of it now I've tried to regulate things!
With the roof biting, my only concern is she gets her teeth caught - although the bars are only an inch wide, she has a narrow face and when she's chewing the roof her nose and mouth stick out the top. She doesn't do this on any of the wall bars, just the roof. What I've done is drape fleece on the inside so she can't get to the bars.
This is from the outside.
Inside.
Proper stink-eye (non-demanding piggy grazing in the background - she's no trouble!). Willow's learnt very quickly that me = food, think she's gonna have trouble unlearning that a little
Can anyone tell me how long this attention seeking behaviour will last? Is it just until she gets used to the harsh reality of life?
