Why do guinea pigs chirp like a bird?

Status
Not open for further replies.
D

DarkStar

Joined
Sep 26, 2009
Messages
269
Reaction score
0
Points
0
Location
Canada
This isn't my guinea pig but this is exactly what I have heard Teddy do twice in the last 2 days

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IKaQxAPexmU[/ame]

He has this rock that my mom gave him in his cage and he always like stands up on it (I should get a pictures its cute) With his back legs on the ground but his front legs on it like he is speaking at a pedestal. Usually he just stands there and looks all proud but like I said twice now he was singing, does this mean he is happy or something?
 
I have heard it for about three times from my piggies; there was never an obvious cause for it.

But that clip certainly got a reaction from Llewelyn who was listening VERY attentively!
 
Does anyone think guinea pigs might have the capability to copy some of the sounds they hear in their surrounding environment? This chirping has perplexed me for quite some time, why do some do it and others never? I remember David Attenborough telling us on Life about some wild birds that are able to mimic the sound of a mobile phone ringing, and they do so because they hear it often enough to think it's another bird call. It does make me wonder if perhaps guinea pigs are capable of copying a sound that's within their range and pitch (for example some bird noises) even though it isn't a noise regularly made by other guinea pigs. It's just a theory, but could it be possible they are copying a noise from their environment rather than their peers? Just out of interest, those of you with chirping guineas, do they hear the sound of birds regularly, it would dispel my theory fairly quickly if they don't!
 
I once heard chirping like a baby bird. I assumed it was coming from outside since I was in the bathroom with the window open. But then I went into the lounge and Mowbray was standing facing the outside of the cage with her head up and making a chirping sound. She stopped when I entered the room and ran into her house (normal... she's very skittish). No idea what it was about. Seemed like she was calling the "mother ship". But I can't really hear bird song from the lounge.
 
Chirping is normal and fine and does not cause any problem. They generally do this when they are extreme happy or overjoyed. So, don't worry, its all common in guinea pigs.
 
I was just playing this vid and my 2 starting growling ha ha ha i defo wont be playing that agian :))
 
Chirping is different to normal squeaking or rumbling.

It is said to be associated with extreme happiness and contentment. It is quite rare and you are certainly priveledged to be hearing it!
 
The first time I heard one of my piggies do this, I'd only had her here a week or so, and I think she was alarmed. (I took one of her sisters out of the cage and they were all frightened) Since then I've heard two of them do it at different times, including the middle of the night! It does sound different now, more like singing, so I wonder if it can be either an alarm or a song, depending on the way they do it...

They will have heard birds in the garden but I haven't heard a bird chirp like the pigs do.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top