EddyNoble
New Born Pup
Hi, I'll try to keep this as short as possible but i feel it'll be quite long! I love my guinea pigs so much but i am by no means an expert so any help would be so appreciated.
So i got Eddy, about a year old, in late March. We got very close and he has almost complete reign of my home, gets lots of love and attention. Soon I will be going back to classes and cant spend the up to 6 hours recommended time with him a day. I decided to get another guinea pig. I figured it would be best to get a younger male, so Eddy wouldn't feel threatened and the younger would submit.
I got a one month old male, Noble, on July 1st. I kept him in a separate room and cage for 2 weeks as recommended. One important thing is that I believe he can only have young guinea pig food. Alfalfa hay and pellets for calcium. Eddy can't share this food because he could develop stones, very dangerous. So my plan was to keep Noble in a separate cage but connect their play areas and let them play together then have them eat and sleep in their respective cages.
I had Noble in my room for a few days, maybe about a week, and everything was fine, they didn't really seem to notice each other's presence unless they were squeaking together. However, yesterday I decided to let Noble out of his cage at the same time as Eddy. This did not bode well. It was normal bonding introductions, Eddy obviously the alpha. He was purring and rumblestrutting and scenting everywhere, and he tried to get into Nobles cage.
However, I think I made a mistake because Noble got scared and went back into his cage. I did not want Eddy going in there, so I closed it, but Eddy didn't like that. Every time I let him out now he tries to knock down Noble's cage, and if i lock Eddy in his own cage, he gnaws on the bars very aggressively trying to get to Noble. I think if I just had one cage for both of them, the introductions would have played out normally and eventually they'd be ok, but since I have them in 2 cages, it seems like an issue. I also regret not "formally" introducing them elsewhere, like in the living room where neither have ever been. But what's done is done.
Does anyone have recommendations for my situation? I feel that Eddy is very mad at me for putting him in this situation. I don't like locking him in his cage as he enjoys running around and playing with me, but now he cannot be out without knocking down Nobles cage and trying to steal his alfalfa hay. It is concerning me. (Noble, on the other hand, seems pretty much ok with everything. He seems to quite like the company and happily popcorns and squeaks when Eddy is near.) I apologize for the long post, any advice would be so helpful for me!
So i got Eddy, about a year old, in late March. We got very close and he has almost complete reign of my home, gets lots of love and attention. Soon I will be going back to classes and cant spend the up to 6 hours recommended time with him a day. I decided to get another guinea pig. I figured it would be best to get a younger male, so Eddy wouldn't feel threatened and the younger would submit.
I got a one month old male, Noble, on July 1st. I kept him in a separate room and cage for 2 weeks as recommended. One important thing is that I believe he can only have young guinea pig food. Alfalfa hay and pellets for calcium. Eddy can't share this food because he could develop stones, very dangerous. So my plan was to keep Noble in a separate cage but connect their play areas and let them play together then have them eat and sleep in their respective cages.
I had Noble in my room for a few days, maybe about a week, and everything was fine, they didn't really seem to notice each other's presence unless they were squeaking together. However, yesterday I decided to let Noble out of his cage at the same time as Eddy. This did not bode well. It was normal bonding introductions, Eddy obviously the alpha. He was purring and rumblestrutting and scenting everywhere, and he tried to get into Nobles cage.
However, I think I made a mistake because Noble got scared and went back into his cage. I did not want Eddy going in there, so I closed it, but Eddy didn't like that. Every time I let him out now he tries to knock down Noble's cage, and if i lock Eddy in his own cage, he gnaws on the bars very aggressively trying to get to Noble. I think if I just had one cage for both of them, the introductions would have played out normally and eventually they'd be ok, but since I have them in 2 cages, it seems like an issue. I also regret not "formally" introducing them elsewhere, like in the living room where neither have ever been. But what's done is done.
Does anyone have recommendations for my situation? I feel that Eddy is very mad at me for putting him in this situation. I don't like locking him in his cage as he enjoys running around and playing with me, but now he cannot be out without knocking down Nobles cage and trying to steal his alfalfa hay. It is concerning me. (Noble, on the other hand, seems pretty much ok with everything. He seems to quite like the company and happily popcorns and squeaks when Eddy is near.) I apologize for the long post, any advice would be so helpful for me!