Stories Showing How Far You've Come...re Assure Us Newbies

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Jojessgaz

Jojessgaz

Junior Guinea Pig
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Hi all. Just thinking how many owners help us newbies out with their experiences. ... my biggest godsend is knowing I'm not alone. Could anyone post their experiences on new piggies and taming ...how they did it and time it took ... I find it most helpful when others post a step by step guide on what they did. Everyone's different so it's so handy picking out the ones you can relate to.thx
 
It varies from piggy to piggy. The most difficult time were our first two piggies, this was before we had found out about the forum also so we were on our own.... We spent ages trying to hand feed them in their house and then coaxing them to thew bars eventually. Luckily one of the piggies Pitch was very laid back and chilled her sister Putt was not so and would do anything to avoid us. Fast forward 4 years and Putt was the only piggy we have ever owned that adored laptime (she would climb up on my lap for it)

For tips on settling have a read here How Do I Settle Shy New Guinea Pigs?
 
When I brought my piggies home a week and a half ago they would hide the second I would come to the cage and ran away from my hand during feeding or floor time. Now the older one is sniffing my hand and taking food from my hand. The younger one came over to my hand for a pat last night and then climbed into ther cuddle sack for lap time! It seemed as if they would never like me and now just over a week later we are already bonded!
 
Well i have one piggy really calm aged 4yrs - had him from a baby. He was never very pushy compared to his brother stan who we sadly lost recently.

Now I'm a newbie again with a new baby boy mike.

I don't know if my approach is right or not but it seemed to work for stan and benson so I'm just doing the same again.

I have them both living in a large c and c in my kitchen but i don't use hideys. well not boxes anyway. There are 2 short tunnels only. They have the beds to sleep on and i do throw a fleece over the cage at nights - more to deter the cat!

so i am around the house all day and i don't make any particular effort to be quiet or anything. Benson is totally chilled with all noise (i don't have young children so it is a fairly calm house!)

Mike initially was skittish of course but as there's no real place to hide, he seems to have quickly got used to everything and doesn't really startle with noises or movement.

at least 3 times a day they come out onto our laps. Benson just sits and waits to be picked up
Stan used to run to us ( he was megga friendly) mike now runs to a specific place in the cage which i block off and then lift him. He would run away without the blocking off.
i haven't spent any time coaxing him I'm the cage but he nearly fell asleep on my son's knee today. He will come and take food from my hand in the cage but won't eat when he is on our laps yet.

This is his third week at ours at he's coming up 8 weeks. It does take time and patience. Some pigs are chilled from the start. Like stan. He was very bold from day one. The two i have now are much quieter.
 
When I first got Mabel and Amber they were terrified of me. With time and patience they eventually came around.

It can be a bit frustrating at first when you try with no success. However one day I promise you they will take you by surprise.

Mabel now.climbs up my arm asking for veggies and Amber will do the same. Weird to think they were so timid now! :)
 
I have had my babies for just over two weeks now and I can already see a huge difference in them. They are no longer in the ferplast cage as that was too small and causing fights, at the mo they are in a huge run on the living room floor but tomorrow is the c&c cage build yay! Anyway the first week and half they would run as soon as I entered the room and hide when I was replenishing food/hay or doing spot cleans, but honestly since I have given them both belly/bum baths due to them living in the plastic tube aka sewer pipe they are like totally different piggies. Ted is so friendly towards me feeding from my hands out in the open, running around the dustpan when I'm doing spot cleans it's amazing! Chewy is slightly more hesitant and picks and chooses when he feeds from my hands but he lets me pick him up for a fuss with no problems! I really cannot believe what a belly rub can do for piggies lol
Love my babies to pieces and I wouldn't change them for the world! Just a little patience and getting to know each other works wonders.
Oh I recommend sitting by the cage singing or talking gently so they get used to you not been a threat that has worked for me but They still run from Hubby :D
 
Anarchybmc said:
I have had my babies for just over two weeks now and I can already see a huge difference in them. They are no longer in the ferplast cage as that was too small and causing fights, at the mo they are in a huge run on the living room floor but tomorrow is the c&c cage build yay! Anyway the first week and half they would run as soon as I entered the room and hide when I was replenishing food/hay or doing spot cleans, but honestly since I have given them both belly/bum baths due to them living in the plastic tube aka sewer pipe they are like totally different piggies. Ted is so friendly towards me feeding from my hands out in the open, running around the dustpan when I'm doing spot cleans it's amazing! Chewy is slightly more hesitant and picks and chooses when he feeds from my hands but he lets me pick him up for a fuss with no problems! I really cannot believe what a belly rub can do for piggies lol
Love my babies to pieces and I wouldn't change them for the world! Just a little patience and getting to know each other works wonders.
Oh I recommend sitting by the cage singing or talking gently so they get used to you not been a threat that has worked for me but They still run from Hubby :D
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My piggies still run from my wife too! I do all of the cleaning and feeding of the pigs, they will come out when they hear or see me and now come looking for food and a pat, so I guess they just know who "momma" is!
 
cassybaby89 said:
My piggies still run from my wife too! I do all of the cleaning and feeding of the pigs, they will come out when they hear or see me and now come looking for food and a pat, so I guess they just know who "momma" is!
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:lol!:
They are so loyal aren't they!
Ted makes me laugh so much he loves the dustpan and brush running around it and popcorning everywhere, I'm sure he thinks his a dog :))
 
Thanks sport Billy. So even though one of mine is like putt there is hope...it's so nice to hear never give up as there is always hope that they will get there
cassybaby89 said:
When I brought my piggies home a week and a half ago they would hide the second I would come to the cage and ran away from my hand during feeding or floor time. Now the older one is sniffing my hand and taking food from my hand. The younger one came over to my hand for a pat last night and then climbed into ther cuddle sack for lap time! It seemed as if they would never like me and now just over a week later we are already bonded!
Click to expand...
 
hi cassybaby that's sounds a little like my more outgoing one, can I just ask when you do lap time with the younger one in the cuddle sack, do you touch her much ? just that my timid one at the moment stays in the tunnel I get her out with and will not move, I cant get to stroke her much so just feed her
from there, I was going to get a cuddle sack hoping I would get to maybe see her head at least !? haha will prob be her bum instead !
 
ayemee said:
When I first got Mabel and Amber they were terrified of me. With time and patience they eventually came around.

It can be a bit frustrating at first when you try with no success. However one day I promise you they will take you by surprise.

Mabel now.climbs up my arm asking for veggies and Amber will do the same. Weird to think they were so timid now! :)
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hi Ayemee ..... can you remember how long it took for you roughly, weeks months ? I see a huge difference in my braver piggy, she loves food and is there whenever anyone comes near in hope ! but the timid one seems happy to miss out if need be to be left alone, I try and make sure she gets something too but feel a little like she knows this now so doesn't have to work much for it.
 
Jojessgaz said:
hi Ayemee ..... can you remember how long it took for you roughly, weeks months ? I see a huge difference in my braver piggy, she loves food and is there whenever anyone comes near in hope ! but the timid one seems happy to miss out if need be to be left alone, I try and make sure she gets something too but feel a little like she knows this now so doesn't have to work much for it.
Click to expand...

In all honesty it can take months. But each week I'm sure you'll notice small changes :)
 
We've had ours 6 months now and have gone from piggies that literally played dead through fear to piggies that will tolerate handling and will wheek for food but still have a very long way to go. I started a little diary when I got them on my intro thread which I find quite interesting to go and read. It's a slow process.
 
Jojessgaz said:
hi cassybaby that's sounds a little like my more outgoing one, can I just ask when you do lap time with the younger one in the cuddle sack, do you touch her much ? just that my timid one at the moment stays in the tunnel I get her out with and will not move, I cant get to stroke her much so just feed her
from there, I was going to get a cuddle sack hoping I would get to maybe see her head at least !? haha will prob be her bum instead !
Click to expand...
My more outgoing one tonks she is enjoying the pats. She is still hiding her face sometimes but then pops back out. My timid momma pig teto is shy! She shows me only her bum. I pet her back a little then un cover her face and give her some cheek kisses and just let her be. Usually if I stop bugging her she pokes her head out to say hi for a second! Food is def the way to their hearts. My timid piggy will come out and smell my hand when I am cleaning and they are waiting for breakfast. She has even started to allow me to pet her while she is eating in her cage.... sometimes. HAHA The little firecracker Tonks now comes over to the side of the cage and leans up on her hind legs asking for pats !
 
Both of the pigs I have now were very nervous youngsters, but both are very sweet, trusting, affectionate girls now. One is a huge lap pig and basically just flops there like a hot-water bottle. I find, for myself, once they settle in I make sure to handle new pigs every day. I would just sit them on my lap with a blanket to burrow into, would offer a treat, and would just sit quietly and pat them for at least a short time once or twice a day. I work from home and have them in an area where I am frequently and would never try to be particularly quiet and they would gradually habituate to the everyday noise of the family around them. I'm not sure exactly how long it took for them to be fully confident as it was so gradual, and I do find that eventual relaxation level seems to vary according to the piggie (I have had two really lazy lap pigs, one whose motto was apparently to be forever alert, and one somewhere in between), but I definite could see their eventual personality and means of relating to the humans after a few months of being home.
 
I'm settling in 2 new piggies at the moment.

Mabel came to us aged about 10 weeks and very fast and skittish. Her cage mate is Mollie (our first nipping pig) who is not really a good role model for a young lady. Mabel has been with us since 1st April. At first she was terrified, hid most of the time and silent. She now comes running to the bars and wheeks loudly when she sees or hears me. I can now stroke her head chin and shoulders when she is out in the open and she actively enjoys it. After being caught ( not easy) she will sit in a cosy or cat bed to be petted, but still won't sit out in the open on my lap. She's getting better every day and it's a pleasure to see her come out of her shell.

Poppy came to us about 3 weeks ago. She's about 6 months and clearly never been handled or petted before going briefly into the rescue. At first she wouldn't even eat in the open and all I saw was a flash of white as she fled for cover when we came into in the room. Violet is amazingly tame, so I'm hoping she teaches Poppy not to be so afraid. Poppy still stays hidden most of the time, but wheeks with delight when she sees me at mealtimes and will come out for food. I can now pet her while she's in a cosy but. Are taking it slowly as she's so scared. I'm sure in a couple of months she will be much tamer.

Time and patience and kindness are what you need with new piggies.
 
VickiA can I ask re Poppy, she sounds scared like my flossy, when you pet her in the cosy, do you get her out on that ? I get flossy out via her card board tunnel but then cant really see her much to pet her, if I put her in a pouch I can see all she will do is burrow into the bottom with again only her bum on view ... nice !
not ..haha as its always wet at the moment. another thing I'm getting a little concerned about as she is longer haired I have tried to brush her gently but nooo she doesn't like that. and at the moment I really don't want to do things she doesn't like. zso I'm trying to think of ways I can pet her a little each day, nd how I can brush her or at least her back end to try and stop her getting matted up. I still havnt given her or the other one any sort of health check, I was told to check
their bums every week and just gently wipe with a baby wipe to stop any infections, but I havnt a hope with her unless I scare her silly
 
My first memory of Guinea Pigs was when I was in my mid teens and a friend used to keep hers up in a spare feed room at our stables. They were in an old wooden small cage at chest height which had an open top. They were in the dark 90% of the time, they were not castrated so they were forever multiplying creating more cramped space and more mess and she cleaned them once a week. They STANK. They only got that awful musli food to eat. The kind where they just eat what they like and leave the rest.

I remember her asking if I wanted a baby off one of the litters back then and I refused, just the stink of them put me off the idea of guinea pigs for my entire childhood-teen years. I knew she could probably look after them better but my experiences watching her damaged my opinion of piggies for a very long time.

Fast forward to today and my kids wanted a pet. When guinea pigs were mentioned I instantly thought back to that stinky noisy mess and thought "oh no" but then did some research anyway.
We now have 2 piggies who have lots and lots of space, lots of interaction time, a good diet with lots of fresh veggies, a neutered boar (so no accidents) and no smell apart from on cleanout day.
 
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