Run Terror!

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Banana

Banana

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Can I pick your brains about my Piggies fear of their run?

My piggies are 8-9 weeks old and when I collected them from the rescue I was told to give them a couple of weeks to settle in before trying them in the run.

Well they've settled in really well, and have been having regular high speed squeaky races around their cage and showing quite a bit of interest in the world outside their cage.

Tomorrow they'll have been with me 2 weeks and the weather was so warm and sunny when I got home from work I thought I'd pop them in their run and let them really stretch their legs. It's a toblerone shaped one with a bedroom at one end, so I put a fleece in there and put their little wicker houses in it and popped them in.

Oh dear, they didn't like it at all. They just huddled together in a corner the whole time. I was expecting Podge to take the lead as he usually does and go and investigate the food, but no, he didn't shift.

Clearly I've overfaced them. They're back in their cage now, stuffing their faces and running around none the worse, but I was wondering how long I should leave it before trying again. 2 more weeks? A month?

I've never experienced such an extreme reaction to the run before. Previous babies I've had, I had the mum too and she was used to the run so they took it all in their stride.

Advice on introducing them to the great outdoors would be appreciated!
 
They were just living up to their prey animal status - in a totally new environment. Give them some cover over the end nearest the home bit - I am assuming that one end of the run is solid and the rest is wire. That gives them a chance to venture out a little way without fear of attacks from above.
Talk to them in a soothing way, put a radio out near them after having it near them indoors for familiar noise and do whatever you can to reassure them.
Don't worry at all, they are simply behaving instinctively and won't be free and easy in their run until they are certain they are safe. So just give them time, if the weather is nice tomorrow then put them back into it again with a bit of extra cover, put them in again the following day and so on and watch them slowly learn that it's ok.
 
Right now, I'm in the same boat as you with Taffy and Tegan.

Plaster your run with as many hides as you can (boxes, towels draped over corners etc.) so they can start dashing from one to the other - and be patient! Some take a lot longer than others! But don't be afraid - in the not too far future they will be popcorning as well!

Right now - its foreign = hostile territory!
 
Thanks guys, that's very helpful.

What worried me is that they seemed significantly more freaked out then when I brought them home, and that was to a completely strange place after a 40 minute car journey!

I guess they haven't seen the outside world before. I don't know the details of where they came from but I understand the conditions weren't fabulous and there was some overcrowding.

I have an indoor run on order, should be here in the next couple of days, so hopefully that will be less of a scarey experience than open sky!

I will make sure I fill the run with lots of cover next time they go out in it. The warehouse at work always has about a million cardboard boxes so I'll pinch some of those to make safety tunnels.
 
PS: I forgot to say - put old bath towels over the mesh.

Most guinea pigs are at first frightened of the open air and the sky. Predator birds are one of their main dangers; and that instinct runs deep! If a piggy has never been outside before, the assault of new scents, sounds and wind is overwhelming!
 
It is a totally normal reaction that they were frightened. Despite your best efforts, your pigs still felt 'exposed' so sitting huddled was their way of trying to protect themselves. All you can do is persevere with it - put your pigs in the run every day if the weather permits, perhaps twice a day, for ten minutes each time? They will also be reassured by your voice, or just hearing that you're around, so try speaking to them and letting them know you're there. The fact that they are babies will work in your favour. I have had rescues here who take weeks or even months to get used to the run. By exposing them to the grass and open air from a young age, you're likely to get them used to it very soon. Best of luck!
 
Thank you for all your advice.
I have persisted with putting them in the run and have turned it into Cardboard City! They have reached the point where they will mow all the bits under the boxes and flit speedily between them. So it'll take a while, but I think we'll get there in the end.

Cardboard City - piggies completely invisible inside the boxes!
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Peg an old twoel over the top, and they will come out!

PS: my new piggies are at a similar stage - they still prefer to hide in all the covers I've dotted around.
 
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