Fighting!

[loulou8425]

I'm new to guinea pigs. I've had my girls for almost 3 weeks now and all has been well until last night. The larger of the 2 is the dominant one. Last night there was alot of teeth showing and chattering then they started to attack each other and crumble (dominant) chased cookie all over the cage.it looked brutal with lots of sqeaking. No blood wss drawn but it scared me. There have been a few chases today but no actual fighting. Crumble was swaying from side to side also . What's happening?

 

[Wiebke]

What is happening is the hierarchy sort-out. What you are witnessing is typical dominance behaviour, especially when the undersow has made a bid for top spot, too. The loud squealing from the undersow signals submission and not pain. They are not going to fight and fall out.
https://www.theguineapigforum.co.uk/threads/sow-behaviour.38561/
https://www.theguineapigforum.co.uk/threads/dominance-behaviours-in-guinea-pigs.28949/

Please make sure that your girls don't have any hideys with only one exit in their cage until things have settled down. If necessary, peg two hankies or tea towels to the grids, so no girl can be cornered. It is also advisable to have two bowls at least a body length apart.

 

[loulou8425]

Wow. Such an informative response. Over the course of the day I have witnessed some smaller signs of dominance, like barring cookie from several of the sleeping areas. They don't mind being together for feeding just when it comes to sleeping areas from what I can tell. I feel sorry cookie being chased away when she is cosy as crumble seems to think she owns every bed. I really hope they sort it out soon as it's upsetting me. The season thing makes sense too. Hmmm.

 

[Wiebke]

Chucking out piggies from a snug place is pretty par for reinforcing your top position. I call it throwing your weight around...

It may yet last a few days until Crumble is feeling secure and safe as leader of the group, but once that is established, the girls can then concentrate on becoming a bonded pair and hopefully good friends.

 

[loulou8425]

Things seem to be a lot calmer with my girls but there is still some dominance issues. Cookie doesn't seem to be backing down all the time and they seem to be spraying urine now . Most of the time cookie is squeaking and doing as she's told and they haven't come to blows again. How much longer will this go on?

 

[Wiebke]

Dominance takes as long as dominance takes. It can last up to a few weeks. The good news is that they won't fight or fall-out; they are past that stage now.