Guinea pig wont move

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Sugarpuffs

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Got a new 7 week old guinea pig this morning. She hasn't moved at all the whole day to eat or drink - she is still sitting in the exact same position. When is it time to get worried and does anyone has any tips to make her less frightened?

(and we haven't just bought one we already have one and are hoping they will make friends:P)
 
Put the food by her so she can get to it without having to come out if she doesn’t want to. Cover the cage with a blanket to make her feel more secure. Other than that it is just time.
She ideally needs to be in quarantine for two weeks before she can be introduced to your other piggy. I am not sure though whether there may be times when it may be advisable to not quarantine in order to get her with her friend and hope they bond, to help stop her from being so frightened.
 
Maybe arrange a vet check in the next couple of days just to set your mind at rest. They will be able to tell you straight away if she is properly hydrated and has food in her tummy even if you havent seen her eating. When we brought new pig Blodwen home she was so scared she "played dead" and we were terrified! Blodwen had ringworm so had to do 4 awful weeks of quarantine but if your new baby is so little and just seperated from her family the vet can advise on whether its ok to skip quarantine if she's very distressed on her own.
 
Piggies&buns said:
Put the food by her so she can get to it without having to come out if she doesn’t want to. Cover the cage with a blanket to make her feel more secure. Other than that it is just time.
She ideally needs to be in quarantine for two weeks before she can be introduced to your other piggy. I am not sure though whether there may be times when it may be advisable to not quarantine in order to get her with her friend and hope they bond, to help stop her from being so frightened.
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Thank you. We had the cage half covered in a blanket so have now fully covered and have put ffod in the snuggle sack which is where she is hiding at the moment.
 
PigglePuggle said:
Maybe arrange a vet check in the next couple of days just to set your mind at rest. They will be able to tell you straight away if she is properly hydrated and has food in her tummy even if you havent seen her eating. When we brought new pig Blodwen home she was so scared she "played dead" and we were terrified! Blodwen had ringworm so had to do 4 awful weeks of quarantine but if your new baby is so little and just seperated from her family the vet can advise on whether its ok to skip quarantine if she's very distressed on her own.
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Thank you she has been playing dead for most of the day!
 
Sugarpuffs said:
Got a new 7 week old guinea pig this morning. She hasn't moved at all the whole day to eat or drink - she is still sitting in the exact same position. When is it time to get worried and does anyone has any tips to make her less frightened?

(and we haven't just bought one we already have one and are hoping they will make friends:P)
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Hi! Please introduce your piggies as soon as possible!

Your youngster is feeling very lost in strange territory and threatened by unknown dangers right now. Babies at that age rely heavily on the guidance from the elders in their group to learn the ropes. They are not wired to be on their own.
The best you can do for her is the company of other piggies to give her that feeling of safety and belonging that she craves. In such cases you have to waive a quarantine and if necessary treat both piggies if there are problems like you would have to with normal pairs.
Please place a towel over the cage to give her protection and provide her with a hidey. Make sure that she has plenty of hay, some pellets and a little veg close by; keep in mind that she may not have had any veg before in her life.
If you can move both piggy cages close together if you can't stage a proper introduction on neutral ground today, that will go a long way to help.
What to check and look out for in new guinea pigs (vet checks, sexing, parasites&illness)
Understanding Prey Animal Instincts, Guinea Pig Whispering And Cuddling Tips
How Do I Settle Shy New Guinea Pigs?

Bonding: Illustrated Dominance Behaviours And Dynamics
Sow Behaviour
 
When we got Bill and Ted they hid for a whole day together in a shoe box shelter filled with hay. On the second day Ted ventured out and started to eat, promptly followed by Bill. She is just very frightened at the moment and her instinct will be to stay as still as possible being a prey animal. I’m sure she will come round especially if she has some company from your other piggie x
 
She's definitely eating, drinking, weeing and pooping and moving around - but she's nowhere to be seen whenever we go into the room - hiding in pigloo or fleece sack and pretty much playing dead. It's more than 48 hours since we got her. Should we try picking up yet or does she need to be more relaxed? Haven't done any intros yet to the older one. Still housed separately. Will she relax more when we divide the older one's cage in two separate them with a grille or will she be more nervous? We've swapped fleecy items between the two separate cages so far so they have smelt one another. They will hear one another move around - but the baby is not squeaking so far as I know as too scared. And the older one seems to squeak much less since her companion died last Wednesday.
 
If you've swapped fleecy items then you've already swapped any potential infections so you might as well just go ahead and introduce them, through the bars to start with. I'd still get a vet check for your new baby though.
 
Yes, I don't think we can wait the 2 to 3 weeks that would be necessary to guarantee no infection swaps. We decided to take that risk. The baby was infection checked before we bought her and I'm pretty sure the older one is healthy. No guarantees that either don't have somethign to give the other one though.

We're wanting the little one to settle in as quickly as possible and the bonding to happen as well as it can. That's our main priority really. Do we need to do anything before setting up the cage for two with the grille in between? Every piece of advice seems to do it different ways round. The baby is so nervous I am not sure the standard ways of introducing piggies bit by bit will work?
 
I hope the bonding goes well.
It sounds as if your little one needs piggy companionship to help her settle.
Keep us posted
 
At this point I would just go ahead and attempt to bond them (once you have checked and double checked that they are both the same sex of course).

Set up a neutral bonding pen and follow the guide here:
Introducing And Re-introducing Guinea Pigs
I still refer to it every time I have to bond piggies.

While they are bonding, if it seems to be going well then it is time to thoroughly clean and rearrange the cage they will be living in together.
Good luck - I am sure they will be fine as your baby piggy just wants company and is unlikely to cause any problems.

Oh and don't forget photos - you little one is gorgeous.
 
I'm pleased your girl seems brighter. When I bought Willow home she was a nervous wreck and she too didn't move. There was no way I could leave her alone for two weeks at such a young age. All I would say is, if you're going to introduce early please ensure you are financially prepared to treat all piggies in contact with one another incase there is an underlying health issue with the baby, you never know. For instance, I faced having to treat both my pigs for lice, not that big of a deal but just a scernario of what could occur. Good luck with bonding! And please read the guides on here how to properly introduce two piggies :)
 
Sugarpuffs said:
Yes, I don't think we can wait the 2 to 3 weeks that would be necessary to guarantee no infection swaps. We decided to take that risk. The baby was infection checked before we bought her and I'm pretty sure the older one is healthy. No guarantees that either don't have somethign to give the other one though.

We're wanting the little one to settle in as quickly as possible and the bonding to happen as well as it can. That's our main priority really. Do we need to do anything before setting up the cage for two with the grille in between? Every piece of advice seems to do it different ways round. The baby is so nervous I am not sure the standard ways of introducing piggies bit by bit will work?
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Good luck with bonding her. Please be aware though that bit by bit is not the way to bond piggies. You need to do bonding in a neutral area and leave them to it. There are some threads in the forum tab at the top of the page which explain the process. Good luck! She is such a wee cutie!
 
Thank you! They seem happy in C and C cage separared into two halves with a mesh made of a baking cooling rack in between them. They've shown a little bit of i interest in one another through the bars but not tried to make contact through the bars yet. Was thinking of doing it this way or do you think it's not good advice: Introducing Guinea Pigs | Blue Cross
 
Sugarpuffs said:
Thank you! They seem happy in C and C cage separared into two halves with a mesh made of a baking cooling rack in between them. They've shown a little bit of i interest in one another through the bars but not tried to make contact through the bars yet. Was thinking of doing it this way or do you think it's not good advice: Introducing Guinea Pigs | Blue Cross
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I have to say that while some of the advice on the Blue Cross website is very good, there are also some parts that are less good (4 - 6 weeks after neutering is alarming advice quite frankly, particularly as they are one of the organizations that pick up the pieces after unwanted litters!).

The multiple bonding sessions is just stressful for the guinea pigs, as every time they meet they need to start establishing hierarchy again and this is hard work.
I think the bonding guides on here (written by an extremely experienced guinea pig owner and complete with videos etc) are better.
Introducing And Re-introducing Guinea Pigs
 
Use the guides on this site on how to do the introductions.
Remember that Guinea pigs don’t do play dates, so if you commit to the introduction, then you need to see it through. Once they are together, as long as things look positive then they need to remain together. Separating and reintroducing means they need to start the bonding process each and every time and it is very stressful for them. Introducing And Re-introducing Guinea Pigs
 
T'hank you! Sounds like we are best off waiting for a day when have several uninterrupted hours at home then. If they have several successful hours in the bath together, is it safe to put them in the same cage without the separating bars and just hope for the best during the night time etc when we can't be popping to see what is happening? Hopefully we're not stressing them in the meantime with them living in their semi-detached separated by bars? They both seem very contented now in their own, mostly separate, ways.
 
Sugarpuffs said:
T'hank you! Sounds like we are best off waiting for a day when have several uninterrupted hours at home then. If they have several successful hours in the bath together, is it safe to put them in the same cage without the separating bars and just hope for the best during the night time etc when we can't be popping to see what is happening? Hopefully we're not stressing them in the meantime with them living in their semi-detached separated by bars? They both seem very contented now in their own, mostly separate, ways.
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Yes, as long as they get on during their time together in their neutral area, then move them into their cage together. You need to make sure the cage is fully cleaned and scent free of either pig (if your original pig thinks her territory is being invaded it could spell trouble)
 
Be aware that bonding can be very stressful for us slaves.
The forum guides and helpful, supportive members saved my sanity when I bonded 2 pairs.
In the end it took nearly 2 weeks for the 2 middle pigs to sort themselves out but an odd nip is nothing to panic about.
Hope it all goes well
 
Merab's Slave, What did you have to do during that 2 week period? Just hope for the best?
 
Sugarpuffs said:
Merab's Slave, What did you have to do during that 2 week period? Just hope for the best?
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Sorry to interrupt, but as you didn't tag Merab she may not get the message.

Usually bonding is a lot of prep beforehand by the pigslave, and during it's about being on gaurd for the safety of your pigs. Research about different behaviours and their meanings. Usually the rule is, if there's blood drawn then the bonding had failed and this is an immediate sign to separate the pigs. During the two week period merab is referring to, I would've assumed that a close eye was being kept on the 4 pigs, and just to ensure no fights had broken out during the day when Merab wasn't around. Usual behaviours of dominance are teeth chattering, runble strutting, mounting, and a few others, whilst the pigs work out their hierarchy
 
Sugarpuffs said:
Merab's Slave, What did you have to do during that 2 week period? Just hope for the best?
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Yes - I kept an eye on them, made sure that the scuffles weren't leading to blood and let them work it out.
I aged 10 years and the 2 girls sorted themselves out and are now best friends
 
Merab's Slave said:
Yes - I kept an eye on them, made sure that the scuffles weren't leading to blood and let them work it out.
I aged 10 years and the 2 girls sorted themselves out and are now best friends
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I am kind of wondering if we could skip the "neutral territory stage" by making the cage, which currently has the dividing grille down the middle, into the neutral territory by taking them both out of it, cleaning it out thoroughly, and then putting them back in with everything clean, different arrangement, no grille etc. Or are the steps of bonding in another place which is totally neutral, and then going back into the clean and rearranged cage totally necessary? Our cage is an open topped C and C cage so it's easy to separate them and to get one of them out if things are not going well - well, as easy as it would be anywhere else really.
 
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