Traumatic Experience For Myself And Piggie :(

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AliceKay

AliceKay

Junior Guinea Pig
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I have had my pigs for about a month now and they both seem a bit untameable (they were never handled before/ are young) they will take food from my hands and run off again sometimes. Cleaning their cages or spot cleaning them they hate also :/ Today I needed to do a proper clean out of the girls part of the cage so I built a temporary c and c cage and put it next to the boys part so they could say hi which is something I have done many times, I do normally try to stroke them both whilst I have them out (I bribe them out of the cage with cucumber so I dont touch them) as I dont know how else I can get them used to it. Something did seem off today looking back now as she was desperately chewing to get to him but I didnt think of it at the time and I tried to stroke her a couple of times and she went bonkers and ended up with her head through one of the grids and with it stuck (I thought she was way too big to manage that) and with her shrieking and seeing that I just panicked and pulled her out ... it was awful and I know its my fault :( she does seem OK now - was terrified for a few mins that she was hurt but she is eating and drinking again now ...
Should I just take this as a sign to leave my pigs alone? I am very scared to upset them again ... Does anyone have tips for cleaning out pigs without removing them from the cage?
 
Poor piggie. I have a cat carrier I sometimes put that in the cage then remove all hides tunnels etc. so the piggies go into the carrier then I shut the door. Then they can be safe when I want to move them.

My cage has 2 levels so I just leave them in when cleaning, if they are at the top cage I clean the bottom one. Then set it back up and then I go to clean the top cage they run down the ramp to the already clean bottom cage. Hope you find a solution soon. A month isn't long at all, I have had my 2 boys nearly 4 months and they still don't like to be picked up I use a tunnel to pick them up. Just give them time and I am sure they will settle. Also read the tips for taming a new piggie on this forum.
 
Don't worry, I'm sure your piggy will be fine, we all have, panics about things sometimes, my daughter thought she sat on her rat once, honestly she was breaking her heart and the little rat couldn't understand what all the fuss was about, so hugs to you ,I'm sure you will get good advice on this forum sorry I'm new to piggy's so I can't help much but good luck
 
It is about confidence, yours and your piggies. If you grow in confidence with your piggies, they will grow in confidence with you. You won't hurt them. You just need to be bold.
 
I would just add if you have girls please don't put them next to un-neutered males :( This is very unfair on your boys, are they in a pair because smelling the girls could cause them to fight & also if the girls get in with them you will end up with pregnant girls who are much too young for babies & preferably should never be bred from anyway :( The large c & c grids are not suitable for youngsters & pose a significant risk, so you need to cover the bottom half by using coroplast or something solid so they can't get their heads through until they are adults.
 
Hi thanks guys, yeah have been using the tunnel methods for picking up... I just guess sadly they don't like being touched :/ I think I naively assumed guinea pigs were all rather cuddly animals, but they will be loved all the same ofc, I just might get an older female friend who need a home and wants cuddles hehe @Poppy'sMum I have two piggies one boy and one girl who are separated now for obvious reasons, I am not attempting to breed them :/ I got them from a rescue center but was told they would be OK together for the first five months and being new to guinea pigs I trusted there advise. I am waiting for him to get to a suitable weight to be neutered and he has about 70gs to go before the vet will consider it although I was under the impression that it would not change his behavior, am I wrong about that?
was told to try and let them still see each other sometimes (I have a two level cage so they can not normally see each other) and this has been ok in the past, I didn't realize that this was cruel of me :/ was on advise I got on here that it was ok for them to still see each other... I am aware that I need the correx and I am in the process of making the base however this was just a temporary "cage" so I could quickly clean her out, the squares in the grids are within the safe guidelines (as far as I know) and she had been in the temporary cage before without issues, she is 600gs so isn't too small I think, although ofc I will not be doing it again now lol.
 
I am very sorry for your shock. Situations like these always leave you shaken.

Do you have a divider where she cannot get stuck in or reinforce the C&C grids with a bit of chicken wire for safety, being the small girl that she is? Also provide some protection for her. I hope that she is otherwise doing well? It is a difficult time as she will feel doubly unsafe without having a companion due to being potentially pregnant.

what kind of C&C grids have you got? Do they have 8 wires within the metal frame or do they have less wires, which makes them dangerous even for older piggies?
 
That's great she's ok :) Is she likely to be pregnant already then if they have been together for 5 months? As far as I'm aware once he is neutered there is a waiting time afterwards before they can go together :) @Wiebke regarding that as she knows :) Sorry if I sounded a bit harsh, boy piggies would get very frustrated to be next to a female pig, think of him as a frustrated teenage boy lol :) I think that will contribute to them not settling, there is too much sexual tension hanging in the air! I would make up an indoor run, sit inside it with one of them at a time (Never together) & just him/her sniff you & offer them veggies from your hand. This needs to be done daily really for about half an hour just to get them used to your smell. I have 3 piggies, only one really loves cuddles but the other 2 will sit happily on my lap after about 15 minutes, but they are 3 years & 4 years old. The more they get used to you the quicker they will be tame. They just need to feel safe whilst doing so. Sitting on the floor with them is the best way & they can't jump far off your lap either.Keep at it & you will be rewarded :)
 
PS: It is me that recommended to give the two youngsters time to stay in (safe) contact with it each other as they are supposed to go back together when neutering+6 weeks post op wait and pregnancy watch/birth are over; under the circumstances, it is about as long a haul as can be. Unfortunately, space is not allowing for a next door set-up with regular interaction through the bars. :(

The little girl is unfortunately very skittish and obviously panicked; sometimes, there doesn't even need any obvious cause for it. Just make sure that she cannot injure herself again.
 
Hi Wiebke, just counted - they do have 8 wires within the metal frame(hoping all of them do - I have alot). I wont be putting her in a temporary cage again I think whilst I am busy/ moving stuff / cleaning her out as it must have been too stressful, do you think a large cardboard box would be ok for 10-15 mins? I am really hoping to get her a female companion as soon as she doesnt show herself to be pregnant/ a suitable piggie is available (rescued/ 100% a girl/ undergone pregnancy watch etc) as it will be a while, most likely around Christmas, before the boy can go back with her - at the rate he is putting on weight and then about a 6 week wait.
@Poppy'sMum Hi :) thanks for the advise, will try and get them to sit on my lap later - hopefully they wont jump off straight away hehe, it was actually the girl going crazy though O.o maybe she was in heat ....
x
 
A cardboard box with some newspaper for floring and a bit of fresh hay to much on and hide in would be fine! She must be a rather dainty thing, poor little girl!
 
Ok great box it is, maybe dainty haha- she does have rather crazy fur so maybe I over estimated the size of her head before! She wouldn't have got herself back out of the situation without help though :/ hopefully she can trust me again after i pulled her fur poor girly :(
 
Sorry Wiebke I didn't read back enough, I didn't realise you advised them to be able to see each other but then I know you wouldn't have known the gaps were too big in the grids :) Sounds like they just need some correx or something attaching with cable ties so the little lady doesn't try to escape to get in with him then ;)
 
*sharpens up DIY skills* yeah she will not be going back in the c and c cage again without the correx built in ... the sheet are waiting for me, have just been putting off making it as I am so awful at DIY I feel I will muck it up :P
 
AliceKay said:
Ok great box it is, maybe dainty haha- she does have rather crazy fur so maybe I over estimated the size of her head before! She wouldn't have got herself back out of the situation without help though :/ hopefully she can trust me again after i pulled her fur poor girly :(
Click to expand...

She will have the experience that you have been there to free her. ;)
 
AliceKay said:
*sharpens up DIY skills* yeah she will not be going back in the c and c cage again without the correx built in ... the sheet are waiting for me, have just been putting off making it as I am so awful at DIY I feel I will muck it up :P
Click to expand...

Mark all lines you cut through fully with a stanley knife with felt pen and those for easier folding where you cut only halfway through from the underside in pencil. If you cut through wrongly, you can always repair with the help of some duct tape, fortunately!
 
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