Bum hair nibbling (bonding problems).

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Guineapigpoo4

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We have a 4 year old Guinea pig (called pipi) and got two baby sister Guinea pigs to join her 2 weeks ago when they were 8 weeks old. One of the baby Guinea pigs (piku) has been very nervous and wasn’t eating for quite a few days, we took her to the vet to check for underlying issues and told its stress (to do with Pipi being so much bigger) she has critical care during this time. Piku has since started eating hay now but spends a lot of time following pipi around and eating her hair around her bum area (looked into this and it can be stress related) however we have just looked at pipis bum area and it looks sore. I think piku wants pipi to take on the role of her mother and it’s stressing her out. Previously we have separated them (next to each other but made so they can’t see each other) and piku climbed up over the cage and jumped in with pipi, this happened twice. I think we need to separate them and put them in different rooms but then how to we go about bonding them and stop piku eating pipis hair/butt? I appreciate any advice.
 
Welcome to the forum

I’m sorry to hear she wasn’t eating initially. This is likely to be stress but stress of coming to a new home rather than to do with Pipi’s physical size (generally babies love being with adults - the adults provide security and teach babies how to be piggies).

I have added our barbering guide below.

Generally speaking social barbering and grooming is something to ignore. It’s not uncommon for a baby piggy to do this when they are looking for security from an adult and as long as the adult dominant piggy is ok with it then you don’t need to do anything/separate them. This is something that could stop just as quickly as it started.

If you could post a picture of the sore patch then that could be helpful to us to advise more but we do see babies nuzzling up to adults and sometimes causing patches where the skin can become tender. It’s usually a temporary thing.

If you separate them, then it would just be a case of leaving them apart until such time as you decide try to bond them (in neutral territory). She may or may not do it again and they may or may not rebond as a trio down the line.

If Pipi is not coping at all with having other piggies with her (it’s not uncommon for older sows to not take to new companions), then that is a different situation.

Barbering (Eating Hair)
 
Thank you, this is a picture of her bum area. I really don’t want to separate them if I don’t have to.
 

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Guineapigpoo4 said:
Thank you, this is a picture of her bum area. I really don’t want to separate them if I don’t have to.
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I’m not sure I can see sore areas in that picture. Just shortened hair.

Did you or your vet check that both the babies are definitely female?
 
Piggies&buns said:
I’m not sure I can see sore areas in that picture. Just shortened hair.

Did you or your vet check that both the babies are definitely female?
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This is it, so it doesn’t look sore? Just always had full on hair on her bot. Both are definitely female.
 
Just got a closer up picture of her bum area where it’s clearer the sore area to the right.
 

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Are you thinking her vulva looks sore?
To me it doesn’t look abnormal but obviously we don’t know what her skin normally looks like in that area

Is piku trying to eat pipi’s poops maybe? That’s also not uncommon particularly if she wasn’t feeling well and wasn’t eating properly. Piggies know eating poops for a second run helps settle digestion
 
It does look sore in one area, if it is irritated does that mean I should split the Guinea pig up as Piku goes through times when she is insistent on doing it
 
You shouldn’t repeatedly separate and reintroduce bonded piggies (stressful to do so and means you would potentially have to go through neutral reintroduction every time).
The thing with barbering is it can start and then stop as quickly as it started, start at any point, or it can be a habitual thing meaning you can’t separate and introduce them potentially for months or even years.

If piku is trying to eat poop, and making Pipi sore in the process, then it may be she still isn’t feeling well and is still trying to settle her gut.
Is piku now maintaining and gaining weight with sufficient hay intake?

If barbering is just causing shortened hair then you don’t do anything. Sometimes babies just do this.

If things get so bad and so relentless that Pipi is getting wounds all the time, perhaps they don’t heal because piku just won’t stop, if it causes bond problems, then you may need to then look at a permanent separation, particularly on the grounds of pipi’s health suffering in the case of persistent wounds.

I would keep an eye on Pipi. Make sure you keep bedding very clean with frequent poop picking session. Use smaller pee pads in high traffic areas so you can swap damp ones out more frequently - you don’t want a tender area to get even worse.
If she gets worse then do speak to your vet

Keep an eye on their weights with the routine weekly weight checks. If Pipi was to feel at all stressed by the situation and having the babies with her, then she could reduce hay intake
 
Guineapigpoo4 said:
Thank you, this is a picture of her bum area. I really don’t want to separate them if I don’t have to.
Click to expand...

Hi

This kind of wound pattern is not barbering but rather looks self inflicted? The baby can likely smell that there is a problem?

Please disinfect and if necessary see your vet.
 
Wiebke said:
Hi

This kind of wound pattern is not barbering but rather looks self inflicted? The baby can likely smell that there is a problem?

Please disinfect and if necessary see your vet.
Click to expand...
What disinfectant is best? Just salt water solution or something bought?
 
Guineapigpoo4 said:
What disinfectant is best? Just salt water solution or something bought?
Click to expand...

Saline solution is perfectly OK. It doesn't look infected but there is usually a pain issue behind self-biting.

Social over-barbering by newly bonded babies can go down to the skin but is generally tolerated by the affected mostly long-haired adults (the hair will grow back) but it stops at the skin and does not include nibbling into the skin, which would not be tolerated.
 
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