Strange guinea pig

Jvnxed

Post   » Sun Dec 01, 2019 7:00 pm


Hello, we have five boars, four of which are lovey snuggly and submissive. one of them, on the other hand, Latte, has a unique personality. Every time a guinea pig makes a noise from another room where we’re holding them, latte will tumble strut and squeak at the top of his lungs and run around the cage. he isn’t tame at all, whenever we hold him he runs around and bites and never settles down. If he smells another guinea pig on me he will go berserk, rumblestrutting and oinking and making a racket. he likes to jump on top of his little fleece hut and bother the other guinea pigs. the others are pretty much conditioned to his ridiculousness so they don’t really make much of it. he is just a crazy untamed guinea pig. any tips?

User avatar
Lynx
Celebrate!!!

Post   » Sun Dec 01, 2019 10:03 pm


If he bites, just make sure he does not hurt anywhere or have parasites like mites, which can make touching him painful.

Otherwise, you may just need to accept him for who he is. It is likely he will mellow a bit with time. I think the biggest compliment is when a skittish guinea pig learns trust.

Jvnxed

Post   » Mon Dec 02, 2019 8:29 pm


thank you! i have been handling him quite a bit, sometimes he will settle down and lay down if he’s in a good mood.

User avatar
daisymay
Supporter 2016-2021

Post   » Tue Dec 03, 2019 2:30 am


Try having food with you at cuddle times. You could try taking bedding from one cage and put into his to get him use to the smell. He may just be feeling lonely or sorry he may think you are his girl friend?

Hoping things work out, if he continues to bite try wrapping him in a towel? Maybe he feels insecure? Good Luck! Keep us posted!

Jvnxed

Post   » Tue Dec 03, 2019 10:36 am


if i put bedding from another’s cage into his, he will feel intimidated and unsafe in his own territory, so that might not be the best idea. usually when i hold him i hold him having not held another guinea pig before him.

User avatar
daisymay
Supporter 2016-2021

Post   » Tue Dec 03, 2019 8:03 pm


Have you tried to bathe them together to get rid all of scent so they smell the same? Have you tried neutral territory with loads of hay and food? How big is your cage? Are there hidey places with a back door? Sorry just trying to help.

Jvnxed

Post   » Wed Dec 04, 2019 6:44 am


their cages are 2x4 grid each, and 3 of them have a second floor (the other two have no interest in that whatsoever) i guess i forgot to mention they are seperate

User avatar
Renonvsparky

Post   » Wed Dec 04, 2019 12:07 pm


Your guinea pig has character for sure. Of my 4 boars, 2 of them are calm and the other two are like your Latte, although they don't bite me. Scruffy does bite my shirt and pull on it. He and Sammy don't sit still long enough to get a good petting in. They buck my hand off if I put it on their head. Scruffy likes his chin rubbed and when he's in his cage or on the floor he'll sit still to be petted. He just doesn't when I hold him. I think he's just an impetuous little guy who loves to run around. He also pees a lot when held. Sammy is just all around squirmy regardless of whether he's in the cage or out. He's gotten a lot better since I first got him.

Jvnxed

Post   » Wed Dec 04, 2019 9:05 pm


sounds like latte haha. he pees too and pulls on shirts blankets etc. but yeah he does like to run around, he has a second floor in his cage and on the second floor he has a little fleece giddy thing with holes in the sides and top that he can climb through. he likes to go in it and pop his head and upper body out of the top hole almost as if he were a weasel. he likes to bother one of my other guinea pigs, bon. recently he has been jumping on top of the fleece hide, so now he sits on top haha.

User avatar
Sef
I dissent.

Post   » Thu Dec 05, 2019 6:36 am


Is there a reason why you have 5 boars all living in separate cages?

Jvnxed

Post   » Thu Dec 05, 2019 9:53 am


they aren’t compatible with one another, since they are boars they are prone to fighting etc. we had latte housed with moe when we first got them, they were both really good until one day latte cut moes eye. moe made a full recovery but unfortunately we had to seperate the two. we let some guinea pigs play together during floor time, but only pairs who do well.

User avatar
Sef
I dissent.

Post   » Thu Dec 05, 2019 12:44 pm


One bad pair-up doesn't necessarily mean that others can't be successfully paired. I have had boars for well over a decade, many of whom were successfully paired. It does take ample cage space, along with patience on the part of the owner to help ensure a successful pairing. With five adult boars, it's likely that you can have at least one peaceful pairing. Most (but not all) guinea pigs are happier with a buddy, so you might re-consider at some point.

Post Reply