Cooing sound?! (Like a pigeon!)

[sazmatazz]

Hi everyone, I just wondered whether anyone's piggies ever make a cooing sound?
I heard a really odd noise coming from the piggy cage a couple of days ago and have noticed it a couple of times since, but I'm not sure who it is or why they are doing it, because as soon as they realise I'm coming over, they stop!
It honestly sounds like the noise wood pigeons make when they are sat up on our chimney, so weird. It really freaked me out at first!
We've had Poppy over 4 years and Mabel has been with us a few weeks now and I've not heard this noise until the past couple of days.
They do seem to squabble a little sometimes and rumble at each other or chase each other, especially if there is food involved, but then the next minute they are snuggled up together snoozing away in their house, so I'm not really concerned about their behaviour otherwise.
They have both recently been to the vet and been given a clean bill of health, with no sign of cysts on their ovaries or hormonal probs that could affect behaviour.

Can anyone shed any light on the mystery cooing? @)

Thanks

Saz

 

[piggyfan]

I have always understood it to be a content sound.

 

[sazmatazz]

I found another thread which suggested it is a dominance thing, but that males do it... they are definitely both female!
The couple of times I've heard it and been close by, they've not been near each other. So yesterday when I heard it, Poppy was in the hidey house and Mabel was by the veggie twister which hangs in the other corner of the cage. My initial thought was some sort of dominance display as it is reminiscent of a rumble sound in some ways but when I looked in on them, they weren't anywhere near each other & didn't appear to be arguing.

 

[Katherine]

One of our guinea pigs makes a sort of soft cooing noise when she is being cuddled - my husband always says it is like a partridge, although to be honest, I'm not totallly sure what partridges sound like! It is a very contented, happy noise, anyway.

 

[sazmatazz]

If it is a contented sound, would they be likely to just do it to themselves? It seems random. Poppy really likes cuddles and gets really comfy and relaxed with a blanket on your lap but I've never heard her do it then. Mabel is a rescue piggy and slightly freaked out by humans, she hates being picked up & tries to stay really still when shes on your knee, she doesn't look like shes at all relaxed yet. (Although shes started wheeking for her tea, she's learning! )

 

[MerryPip]

Guinea pigs are a very vocal and social species and communicate with each other a lot. I think they have something like 15 distinct sounds we can hear and more we can't. They will talk when on their own, with hoomans and other piggies. They all have meanings and some have a variety of meanings.

My boys do a wee wup wup wup sound when they are plodding around happily doing their thing. It's a content thing. They also do many others and Suilven chirps like a bird sometimes.

Here's a link to a site that has some explanation of sounds they make and some samples you can listen to. If you play them in hearing of your girls then they will probably talk back to the computer. My lads do!
http://jackiesguineapiggies.com/guineapigsounds.html