Constant Rumbling and mounting without aggression

[adavies2]

Hello, I am new to the forum. I have 3 female piggies.
I am hoping to find some reassurance as Honey (the top pig of the trio) has decided to target only 1 pig (Fig) with constant rumble strutting and mounting.
Fig is not a dominant pig, she doesn't fight back apart from peeing at Honey.
I am treating them all with mite spot on as I had the beginnings of a mite outbreak.
Weights are all normal, they are all eating and popcorning. But 2 weeks of dominance towards a single pig is starting to worry me. The 3rd pig is a little younger but she is also an adult.
The only other thing I can think that might be a factor is construction outside annoying her.
Plenty of space, they all love cuddles. Honey is just being a little tyrant.
Lastly, there is no actual fighting. Fig is very passive and tolerates a lot.
Thank you

 

[Piggies&buns]

Welcome to the forum

If a sow is over two years of age and starts to display constant dominant behaviour (like she is always in season) then please have her seen by a vet for potential ovarian cysts.

I’ve added a guide below to help further

Sows: Behaviour and Female Health Problems (including mounting and ovarian cysts)

 

[adavies2]

Thank you for your quick reply! Honey is little over a year old, about 1 year 2 months

 

[Piggies&buns]

It could still be worth a vet check. Cysts can occasionally still happen in younger piggies.

Otherwise, at her age, she is only just at the end of her teens (they arent considered adult until 15 months) so she may still experience teen hormones (although even for a strong season lasting for two weeks is very excessive which is why the cyst issue would be mentioned).
If the third piggy is younger then she is definitely still a teenager.

Did you get all three of them together as an already bonded trio?

 

[adavies2]

It would still be worth a vet check. Cysts can occasionally still happen in younger piggies.

Otherwise, at her age, she is only just at the end of her teens (they arent considered adult until 15 months) so she may still experience stronger seasons (although lasting for two weeks is very excessive which is why the cyst issue would be mentioned).
If the third is younger then she is definitely still a teenager.

Did you get all three of them together as an already bonded trio?
How long have you had them?

I got Honey and Fig at the same time, they are 1 year, and 2 months, while Juniper was born on New Years Eve that just went, so 9-10 months old.

Honey has always been a rumbly pig, but it would usually be just under a week of rumbles.
But the current rumbling started suddenly, there was one day that was really really intense, lots of chasing, rumbling and mounting.

I got Honey and Fig last November as a pair and Juniper in March.
Ill get a vet visit organised to be safe.

 

[Piggies&buns]

A season lasts a few days but they come every 15-17 days so being rumbly for just under a week is normal. Constant and longer lasting isn’t normal but it may not be abnormal if she is having a strong season, feeling territorial or even feeling insecure as leader. All three are still teenagers (honey and fig are almost adult - when they get to15 months) and Juniper is still a teenager for some time longer yet.
Is juniper trying the hierarchy at all or is she very obviously at the bottom of the hierarchy and content being there?

For fig to be peeing at honey, then do note that is fig telling honey to leave her alone in a very strong manner.

How big is their cage?
Do you have three of all resources in the cage?
Do all hides have two exits?

It’s always a good idea to rule out any potential medical issue first and foremost.

Was the mite outbreak diagnosed by a vet and is it being treated with a prescription strength treatment? (As opposed to a pet shop parasite product).
If not, then we do not recommend the use of ivermectin unless a vet has diagnosed a mite issue. Pet shop parasite products as they aren’t strongly enough dosed so while they can suppress the mites they don’t always fully cure and can mean the mites come back. I’ve added our parasite guide below as well

New Guinea Pig Problems: Sexing & Pregnancy; URI, Ringworm & Parasites; Vet Checks & Customer Rights

 

[adavies2]

A season lasts a few days but they come every 15-17 days so being rumbly for just under a week is normal. Constant and longer lasting isn’t normal but it may not be abnormal if she is having a strong season, feeling territorial or even feeling insecure as leader. All three are still teenagers (honey and fig are almost adult - when they get to15 months) and Juniper is still a teenager for some time longer yet.
Is juniper trying the hierarchy at all or is she very obviously at the bottom of the hierarchy and content being there?

For fig to be peeing at honey, then do note that is fig telling honey to leave her alone in a very strong manner.

How big is their cage?
Do you have three of all resources in the cage?
Do all hides have two exits?

It’s always a good idea to rule out any potential medical issue first and foremost.

Was the mite outbreak diagnosed by a vet and is it being treated with a prescription strength treatment? (As opposed to a pet shop parasite product).
If not, then we do not recommend the use of ivermectin unless a vet has diagnosed a mite issue. Pet shop parasite products as they aren’t strongly enough dosed so while they can suppress the mites they don’t always fully cure and can mean the mites come back. I’ve added our parasite guide below as well

New Guinea Pig Problems: Sexing & Pregnancy; URI, Ringworm & Parasites; Vet Checks & Customer Rights

Juniper seems to be content, she is the second rumbliest but its rare. She does tell honey off with small jabs if she tries to take her food.
We followed the cage guidelines on Kavee, we have a 5x2 cage with a loft. Minimum 3 hides, 2-3 areas with hay and 2 water bottles. Run time in a caged off area and sometimes free roam of the flat (they all follow Honey).

Honey was diagnosed by a vet and prescribed ivermectin. Fig started to show similar symptoms so I used a spot on treatment of ivermectin. We followed a guinea pig care page but I understand will not do that again. I want only the best for my pigs she was also tested for fungal and fortunately was negative

 

[Piggies&buns]

Juniper seems to be content, she is the second rumbliest but its rare. She does tell honey off with small jabs if she tries to take her food.
We followed the cage guidelines on Kavee, we have a 5x2 cage with a loft. Minimum 3 hides, 2-3 areas with hay and 2 water bottles. Run time in a caged off area and sometimes free roam of the flat (they all follow Honey).

Honey was diagnosed by a vet and prescribed ivermectin. Fig started to show similar symptoms so I used a spot on treatment of ivermectin. We followed a guinea pig care page but I understand will not do that again. I want only the best for my pigs she was also tested for fungal and fortunately was negative

Cage is all fine - just wanted to double check that there wasn’t something in that that could be exacerbating an issue.

When one piggy in a herd has mites, they could well all need to be treated, along with cage disinfection and throwing away any hay. I only mention the pet shop parasite products as not everyone knows they aren’t strongly enough dosed.

 

[Piggies&buns]

Keep an eye on the hierarchy and their weights to ensure everyone is eating and otherwise happy.
It can be possible for an underpig to challenge and that can then make the leader (more so if the leader is insecure in their position) go overboard on dominance to reassert themselves.

I’ve added in our bonds in trouble guide to help you spot if things go too far

Bonds In Trouble

 

[adavies2]

Thank you so much for your help, we did disinfect everything, bought new toys to replace possibly infected ones, full clean of the area. Looking at the weights, Juniper is growing and getting much bigger so maybe that is playing a part. Honey has been top pig since day one.
I really appreciate the reassurance and help, thank you. Its nice knowing there is a community to help eachother ive added a photo of the tyrant being cute to restore her image a little lol

 

[adavies2]

Hi all,
Just an update on Honey. She does indeed have a large cyst, so far its not giving her any trouble, and she's not in pain. But getting her scheduled in for an Ovarian Cyst Spay a hefty £800 bill.

I am anxious because my only experience with having an small animal under anaesthetic, my poor little rabbit died and that was a routine neutering. So now I am worried.

Can anyone provide any helpful experiences of their guinea pig not dying from the anaesthetic or surgery? I just need to know of successes to help ease my nerves. But also need honest experiences, no sugar coating.

Thanks - Ary

 

[Mrs Tiggy Winkle]

At least you have the clarity of a diagnosis now. Good that Honey is so far not in pain.
800 pounds, ouch, but vets cost what they cost.

I don't have guineas anymore, but I had many over my adult years, from 1997 till early 2023. I did lose some after operations. I think more to do with difficulties getting them eating again after an operation or other post-op care rather than due to the anaesthetic itself. I wonder when it was that your bunny died due to anaesthetic? I mean, if it was a long time ago, operations and knowledge of guineas have much improved over the years, so I think less reason to worry.

This forum has tons of information and how-to's that I never had access to before I joined, which was after my guinea years. If you were to read all this posts on this forum about guineas undergoing and surviving operations and living their best lives afterwards, you will find a lot did so!

There is likely to be an information thread somewhere pinned at the top of a forum on operations and anaesthesia, but I don't have the wherewithal to find it right now. Probably somebody like @Piggies&buns could link it for you. Having these informational threads means that the moderators and other very active and knowledgeable members on the forum don't have to keep writing everything out again for every member, which is rather time-consuming and could also be why nobody has responded so far to your query.

All the best to you and Honey.

 

[piggieminder]

Non-emergency vet visits, contagion and illness care support

I've linked the above guide for you, it's full of helpful advise like syringe feeding and travelling with guinea pigs. Scroll down and click on the green titles you think will be useful to you.

I've not had a guinea pig spayed as I have boars but over the years we have been through several operations and I've not lost one to the anaesthetic.