Advice needed!

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Gonecrazy

We only took on our very frightened and poorly piggy yesterday. We don't want to go straight in to picking him up etc as we want to give him time to settle and he is frightened just by the sounds of our voices. How long should we leave it until we begin trying to stroke him (which is impossible at the moment) and then picking him up? What steps should we take?

Also the hutch that came with him is very small. Any advice on which would be the best to get him?

Thanks :)
 
Is he your first and only gp?
No hard and fast rules, just take it at his speed. Some pigs settle down in a few days, others may take a few weeks.
Is he going to be an outdoor pig or, better still, one kept in the house?
The large size plastic cages, with the wire top, are ideal. Put in an upturned shoebox that has an entrance hole cut into one side. Then he has a place of his own to sleep in and to hide and feel secure.
 
Yeah he is our first and only taken on as a rescue. He is an outdoor piggy.
 
It's basically time & patience, talk to him gently as you approach his hutch & when feeding him veggies, he will soon realise your voice/footsteps mean veggies :)
How small is his hutch? If you're keeping him outside the minimum hutch requirement is 4ft x 2ft or if you're bringing him in a Nero 3 sized cage or similar or there are C & C cages made from grids. See here www.cavycages.com


There's lots of info on the forum regarding diet, beddings etc, have a look around & welcome to the forum. Oh & when your little man's settled a bit more, pics would be nice :)
 
One of my new fosters is petrified of even her own shaddow..

She gets picked up atleast twice a day just for a few minutes for a gentle cuddle and fuss then let back in cage with a treat (slice of carrot etc)
Other times I only go in to give a treat and put it near her tube which she seems to think I cant see her in, I've had her since Friday and today she actualy took cucumber from my hand :)) and now even squeeks at feed time so huge improvement already.

I find that talking to them before entering the room 'warns' them of my presence and so they tend to not panic when I walk in, the OH thinks I am nuts but it works :))
 
take it slow, it can take a few weeks. hand feeding veggies usually works. just take your time and he will come around
 
If possible make him an indoor pig, certainly get him a companion. They are social animals and need the company of their own kind. Humans are not guinea pigs!
There is a lot of rubbish talked about putting pigs together, eg litter mates don't fight, never put an old pig with a young one etc.
There are two "rules"

Male and female together will attempt to breed.
I do not agree with neutering a male just to put him with a female

Secondly, and probably more important, is to try him with a companion and see how it works out. You may find him a suitable friend straight away, if not try other pigs until he finds one that he gets on with.
Neutering boars to "stop them fighting" has no basis in fact. Neutering has no effect on aggression levels and is a waste of time and subjects the pig to unnecessary surgery.
It is well worth the money to buy either of the books by Peter Gurney about guinea pigs, together with his book "Piggy Potions" which gives a good guide to pig ailments and problems.
It is a good idea to find someone in your area who knows about guinea pigs before if/when they become ill. Vets are not always the best people with guinea pigs.
Contact the Cambridge Cavy Trust tel; 07721026401 for further advice on people in your area who can help.
 
alcesterpigs said:
If possible make him an indoor pig, certainly get him a companion. They are social animals and need the company of their own kind. Humans are not guinea pigs!
There is a lot of rubbish talked about putting pigs together, eg litter mates don't fight, never put an old pig with a young one etc.
There are two "rules"

Male and female together will attempt to breed.
I do not agree with neutering a male just to put him with a female

Secondly, and probably more important, is to try him with a companion and see how it works out. You may find him a suitable friend straight away, if not try other pigs until he finds one that he gets on with.
Neutering boars to "stop them fighting" has no basis in fact. Neutering has no effect on aggression levels and is a waste of time and subjects the pig to unnecessary surgery.
It is well worth the money to buy either of the books by Peter Gurney about guinea pigs, together with his book "Piggy Potions" which gives a good guide to pig ailments and problems.
It is a good idea to find someone in your area who knows about guinea pigs before if/when they become ill. Vets are not always the best people with guinea pigs.
Contact the Cambridge Cavy Trust tel; 07721026401 for further advice on people in your area who can help.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the contact. We have 2 rescues near us. One at the moment has no guinea pigs but will contact the other one soon.

Would a non neutered male be ok with a neutered female? Apparently males attempt to mount etc even when neutered so there would not be much use in getting him neutered? He has been with a few others before however had to be removed due to attacking them. Would it also be better to give him some time to get settled in etc as he has only been with us 1 day? I don't want to get him a friend straight away as he is being treated for unknown skin problems which may be mites, stress or lack of vitamin C and is being treated for all 3.

Thanks again
 
As long as at least one of the male/female pair is neutered they should be fine.
Irrespective of his skin condition I would get him a companion sooner than later. The thought of a pig by himself in new surroundings is, for want of a better word, disturbing. I wouldn't worry about his skin problem with a new pig. You may find it helps him to have a companion, it will reduce his stress level! Pigs are not normally aggressive either towards humans or other pigs. You often find that irritable pigs are suffering from skin problems ie "my skin itches, keep away otherwise I will bite"
Vitamin C is readily available in a normal diet, the mite treatment will sort that problem out, all that remains is a friend to alleviate stress. You can, as a temporary measure put his friend in a separate box next to him, so he is within sound, sight and smell, if not physical contact, of another pig.
 
How old is he? You could get him neutered - I've read so many success stories about a neutered boar bonding with a non-neutered sow and some of my friends have had success with that too. As far as handling him goes, don't chase him around the hutch/cage with your hand trying to stroke him. When you want to have contact with him, talk to him first, then lift him from the cage and hold him close to your body. Then you can stroke/tickle his chin/rub his head or whatever else he likes. When you are able to put your hand into the cage without him running away, you have a very tame pig. Just a few tips too - keep a radio or television running in the background wherever possible and you may want to try bribing him with a little food so that he associates his Mummy with something nice. Lettuce and cucumber is always a hit, they usually tend to go for the leafy green stuff first. Good luck with him :)
 
My Haggis (my avatar pic) read his story here http://www.theguineapigforum.co.uk/showthread.php?t=28158&highlight=rex+boar now lives with a baby boar (he wasn't neutered) & is a happy chap content to be stroked x)

I'm all for trying boys with babies rather than neutering but i have recently had one of my boys neutered (not a decision i took lightly) because he will not tolerate another boy piggy (i have tried) & yet he craved the company of another pig. He now lives, happily with my only sow :)
 
I'm sat outside working now in the nice warm sun at the moment. Crazy left me stroke his nose and he's having a nice little graze in his run now. Put some carrot and cucumber in as well, he prefers the cucumber lol
 
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