Unfriendly Piggies?

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Bingley

Bingley

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Hi

We adopted two gorgeous piggies from a rescue centre a couple of months ago. They are girls, 5 months old, both black (one with rough fur and one with smooth.) They live in a 4x2 C&C cage in the heart of the house, are lavished with attention, timothy hay and lots of fresh foods.

My worry is that they don't like each other very much. They came as a 'bonded' pair but I see no evidence of them being friendly. Sweep, the toilet brush fuzzy piggy, rumblestruts for days on end. The smooth piggy used to ignore this behaviour but now wheeks. I'm worried she's crying! It's happening now as I type. I get the feeling Sweep hasn't won though and so it continues.


It's peculiar because I thought the smooth one would be the more dominant; she's the adventurous one and Sweep follows her around when they have time to roam.

They never cuddle up to one another. Don't most piggies sit together and sleep together? When we get them out for lap time at the same time (one on each of our knees) we encourage them to visit each other but they're unfriendly then too and sort of threaten to nip a little bit.

So they're not fighting as such but I'd like it if they were friends!

Any ideas? Thanks.
 
By far not all piggies are lovey-dovey! They kind of tend to live with more alongside each other. Is the rumblestrutting constant or are you seeing a peak about every two months or so when they are coming into season? Some girls are also more hormonal than others during their first year. it usually doesn't end in fights, which is why it doesn't get as much attention as boar behaviour.

Loud wheeking is not crying or being in pain, but submission. Nipping is also generally not painful unless a piggy lights into another one with full force. It is just letting an underpiggy feel the teeth; I call throwing one's weight around. ;)

Most piggies prefer to sleep alone in a snug spot; even the biggest snuggle-uppers often spend part of the night on their own.

It doesn't mean that your girls are not bonded or not happy with each other, but it means that you will have to say goodbye to your rosy-tinted vision an idealised piggy couple that you can get when looking at all those beautiful pics etc. Piggies are people and they get on like real-life people (albeit with piggy behaviour and rules) and not like celebrities or soaps. ;)
 
Thanks. Yes, absolutely- I did wonder if I was expecting too much and thought I'd check it out. The rumblestrutting doesn't happen every couple of months (we've only had them for 2 months) but there are flair ups. The last big spell was nearly a fortnight ago and it seemed to settle down a bit but it's happening all the time again. I also wondered if she was hormonal but she must be hormonal all of the time! She must just have that sort of nature! She's very easy going with humans and lets us pick her out of the cage. The smooth piggy, Sooty, is very different- adventurous and athletic! She's very nervy but enjoys cuddles once she's out.

I know I'm expecting an ideal but it would be much nicer for them if they were friendly to each other (even just a bit!)
 
Sows come into season every couple of weeks, not months, sorry for the typo after an interruption. if it is in a fortnightly rhytm, then it is mostly your girl having fairly strong seasons. It should eventually die down, especially when they reach adulthood.
 
Please don't worry about your girls. I've had many sows over the years and they are always very lively when coming into season, youngsters being worse than the middle aged ladies. Yours sound absolutely typical. My strongly bonded sow pair Connie and Violet never snuggle up together and rumble at each other most days, but happily eat together from the same bowl (once they've established who's got first pick from the bowl). You just have to watch their behaviour over time to learn what it all means. When the chips are down they are there for each other like sisters but that doesn't mean they don't enjoy their own space!
 
My girls bicker all the time, I would'nt worry. Sometimes they all love each other and sit together, other time they are at all corners of the cage and making a racket, chasing, rumble strutting the lot. Depends on lots of things but its just guinea nature. One thing I have found is to make sure they have a place they can go to, to chillout. I built them a small platform about 6 inches off the ground with a little log bridge to get to it. I call it their 'rest and relaxation suite!' It works a treat, if things are getting too much, one tends to just sit up there for a while to get away from the chaos. If you have the room its worth doing. It just takes the heat off sometimes!
 
Yes, I too wouldn't worry too much. I have 2 groups & very few want to be next to another piggy, much prefering their own space.
 
one of mine in particular will squeal very loudly and dramatically if one of the others comes too near, but with a loft added she's been able to stake out her own little snuggle sack and is a lot less squealy!
 
@Wiebke: i take it applies to boys too! as i was wondering (on a different thread): are there any signs of getting on -i mean, apart from cuddling up. for instance, after our argumentative morning, things are back to normal. at the moment, the shy one is asleep in one of the huts, and the brave one (who did the chasing and seemed to be after domination, or to confirm it) is sleeping outside. is this a sign of 'getting on', i.e. cozying up without actually sleeping together, or maybe a sign of 'i am keeping an eye on you', i.e. asserting a dominant position?

also, hank, the brave one, seems to rumble strut and wobble walk on his own, when he is excited. does that make sense?

and, i have a hard time figuring out who is the dominant one. i though it was the shy one, pumpkin, but i am not sure. maybe that is why there are more or less elaborate arguments regularly? thanks!
 
Steffie said:
@Wiebke: i take it applies to boys too! as i was wondering (on a different thread): are there any signs of getting on -i mean, apart from cuddling up. for instance, after our argumentative morning, things are back to normal. at the moment, the shy one is asleep in one of the huts, and the brave one (who did the chasing and seemed to be after domination, or to confirm it) is sleeping outside. is this a sign of 'getting on', i.e. cozying up without actually sleeping together, or maybe a sign of 'i am keeping an eye on you', i.e. asserting a dominant position?

also, hank, the brave one, seems to rumble strut and wobble walk on his own, when he is excited. does that make sense?

and, i have a hard time figuring out who is the dominant one. i though it was the shy one, pumpkin, but i am not sure. maybe that is why there are more or less elaborate arguments regularly? thanks!
Click to expand...

Sleeping outside can be a sign of confidence, of having been chucked out of some prime real estate but wanting to be as close to a companion as possible or - if it is across the only exit - ot "lock" an underpiggy in (bullying). It all depends on the context. if your boys are argumentative, removing any hideys with just one exit can help preventing a piggy from being caught in a tight spot. Your boys seem to be settling down and getting to the end of the dominance phase.
Here is our list of dominance behaviours: http://www.theguineapigforum.co.uk/threads/dominance-behaviours-in-guinea-pigs.28949/
 
Thank you for the insight everyone. They have a loft which we don't use yet- now seems like a good time to introduce them to it. I can imagine Sooty enjoying the space and Sweep can rumblestrut below to her heart's content!

How to make a ramp- that's the next issue!
 
Bingley said:
Thank you for the insight everyone. They have a loft which we don't use yet- now seems like a good time to introduce them to it. I can imagine Sooty enjoying the space and Sweep can rumblestrut below to her heart's content!

How to make a ramp- that's the next issue!
Click to expand...

Best inquire for ramp tips in our housing section!
 
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