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Weird mark on guinea pigs ear, and pairing a trio

SydneySharkk

SydneySharkk

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So I just adopted two more girl guinea pigs today (now I’m at a total of 5 pigs all together!) I wanted to pair two with my one girl XiaoXiao (who is recovering from a dental issue) I felt like now would be a good time to finally get her some friends. I just got them home today and I cleaned their cage, gave them some much needed baths/pedicures/haircuts, if you want I can show you the before pictures :) Anyway, I notice the white one has a weird mark on one of her ears, it doesn’t seem to be a scab or anything I can scratch off, but none of my other piggies have anything like that. So can guinea pigs have little birthmarks on their ears? Or could it be ringworm or something?

On another note, Xiao Xiao will be done with her antibiotics on Thursday, can I put them together before then? Or should I wait a few days? She wants to say hi to them so badly, sometimes she just stares at them over the lip of the cage and I just feel so bad :( like she really wants to snuggle with them (i have the cages close together so they can see each other) I’m also scared about the size difference, the two new girls are VERY BIG like I’m pretty sure they are overweight, understandably because the cage I got them in is LESS than 3sq Feet (the cnc cage I have set up for the three of them is over 12sq feet) So they’ll be going on a diet and getting a lot more exercise. I just wanted to get opinions on weight differences, should they be ok? They are very calm pigs, they spend most of their time laying down, probably because it’s all they can do, but you know. Ok thanks for reading, any suggestions will be greatly appreciated :)

(First pic is the mark on her ear, second pic is of the two new girls, last picture is of the cage they came in, that they are currently still in, before I cleaned it)
 

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You need to quarantine new Piggies for at least 2 weeks. There is a guide called "The Importance of Quarantine" that you should read but can't link in on this device.
 
I think the ear mark is just pigmentation, your piggie is mainly white but there is much brown fur as well. If at all worried see a vet but I think it’s brown skin.
 
Hi!

I think that it is just skin pigmentation. if she had hair growing there, it would be likely pale lilac. ;)

Since you have waived the quarantine already with Xiao Xiao in contact, you might as well try inroductions. You just have to be aware that you will need to treat all three for any problems that crop up.

But please be aware that being a the grid is not necessarily a desire to be with other piggies; it can also be a fear-aggressive reaction to potential intruders on the border of her territory. Only an introduction will tell, but something ready in case you need to separate quickly.
Our detailed bonding guide has a chapter on fear-aggression: Bonding and Interaction: Illustrated social behaviours and bonding dynamics
 
Ok thanks :) I totally forgot that they aren’t supposed to be in the same room when they’re in quarantine, they can’t touch or anything, but if they did have anything it would probably have got to all the other pigs, so hopefully they don’t have anything. Is it still fine to introduce them even though XiaoXiao isn’t done with her medications? She seems fine, and it looks like she was even more active and excited to just be around the other piggies instead of stuck in my room. And the size difference should hopefully be ok? They’re almost x2 her size. Because if you guys say it’s fine I’d like to introduce them right now :)
 
So far so good, there’s just been a little bit of lunging from the two new girls to each other and to Xiao Xiao, but no actual fights. Also I’ve decided to name the Black one Cheerio and the White one Maple Syrup
 
Before you put them on a diet, weigh them and feel their heft. The latter is more indicative than weight.

Hope they settle in well ☺️
 
Siikibam said:
Before you put them on a diet, weigh them and feel their heft. The latter is more indicative than weight.

Hope they settle in well ☺
Click to expand...
Yeah, I’m starting to think my other guinea pigs are just smaller than these new girls, I’ll have to find my scale. And thanks :)
 
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