head butting

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bunpig

does anyone know what it means if when you stroke your guinea pig he head-butts your hand? i'm not sure if it means he likes it or if he's telling me to s*d off! :D
when i stroke mr fuzzy sometimes he pushes his head right up in the air, it looks so cute cos i get a good view of his pink piggy lips ;D but i'm not sure if he's doing it because i'm annoying him. ?
 
Some of mine do this but I don't know what it means. They don't move away or anything, maybe it's just a reaction to something on them. Have you tried stroking them under the chin, mine love that.
 
I read that if they nudge your hand then they don't like what your doing. Maybes that its.
 
Laurie often headbutts my hand - as he's a bit bratty anyway, I usually just stroke a little less, then stroke more again and he stops doing it. C:

I won't just stop stroking him, because I don't think that'll help. Just like how I won't put him back in the cage if he nips my arm after just taking him out of it.
 
A piggy throwing its head up means 'leave me alone, I don't want petting'. If a piggy does this you should respect its wishes and put it back in its cage/run. Just because you are bigger and stronger does not give you the rights to impose your will upon the piggy unless it is a welfare issue where you need to force it to be held for administration of medicines etc. Piggies get forced to sit and be stroked because they usually do no more than just push your hand away. Maybe more people would respect their wishes if they scratched and bit like other animals.
If I pick one of my pigs up for a cuddle and it doesn't want to know I will put it straight back in its cage. I only hold them and pet them if they are happy for me to do it.

Sorry if this offends anyone but I had to say it.

Kat
 
I understand that it means the piggie doesn't want to know too, so I stop doing it, whether or not I'm doing the right thing remains to be seen lol! If he does it and I immediately stop he doesn't do it again. If he settles down on me after that I take it to mean he just didn't want petting but he's happy with the contact- if he starts getting fidgety after the headbutt I put him back in the run/cage.
 
Both Cindy and Wilson do this... i always thought it was a 'go away' thing its also really cute, and they are quite strong! lol
 
KatsCavies said:
A piggy throwing its head up means 'leave me alone, I don't want petting'. If a piggy does this you should respect its wishes and put it back in its cage/run. Just because you are bigger and stronger does not give you the rights to impose your will upon the piggy unless it is a welfare issue where you need to force it to be held for administration of medicines etc. Piggies get forced to sit and be stroked because they usually do no more than just push your hand away. Maybe more people would respect their wishes if they scratched and bit like other animals.
If I pick one of my pigs up for a cuddle and it doesn't want to know I will put it straight back in its cage. I only hold them and pet them if they are happy for me to do it.

Sorry if this offends anyone but I had to say it.

Kat
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That's fine if it's a piggy that is used to you, but when it's a pet that is still settling in and still isn't bonded with you, you can't just give up and say, "Oh, he headbutts every time he's out the cage - guess he's just not meant to be a pet."

That's like - if a new guinea pig bites you, you don't react in shock and put them down. You keep them with you, verbally say 'No' and allow them to understand what is and isn't the right way to react.

When Laurie headbutts, he soon stops when he realises that I am no threat.
 
Cindy bites me alot and i either tell her no and sort of blabber on that it hurts (she looks like she understands :)) or i just ignore it but i never put her down straight away lol
 
Darky said:
KatsCavies said:
A piggy throwing its head up means 'leave me alone, I don't want petting'. If a piggy does this you should respect its wishes and put it back in its cage/run. Just because you are bigger and stronger does not give you the rights to impose your will upon the piggy unless it is a welfare issue where you need to force it to be held for administration of medicines etc. Piggies get forced to sit and be stroked because they usually do no more than just push your hand away. Maybe more people would respect their wishes if they scratched and bit like other animals.
If I pick one of my pigs up for a cuddle and it doesn't want to know I will put it straight back in its cage. I only hold them and pet them if they are happy for me to do it.

Sorry if this offends anyone but I had to say it.

Kat
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That's fine if it's a piggy that is used to you, but when it's a pet that is still settling in and still isn't bonded with you, you can't just give up and say, "Oh, he headbutts every time he's out the cage - guess he's just not meant to be a pet."

That's like - if a new guinea pig bites you, you don't react in shock and put them down. You keep them with you, verbally say 'No' and allow them to understand what is and isn't the right way to react.

When Laurie headbutts, he soon stops when he realises that I am no threat.
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Not wanting to offend anyone but I totally disagree. Whilst I see your point, you don't want to just keep putting them down again, I don't think you should be forcing them to stay with you either. All of mine are incredibly tame but I spend hours and hours just 'being' with them especially when they are new to my home. I hand feed them, stroke them in their cages. Encourage them towards me with food. I will pick them up and place them on my lap but if they do not want to be there (ie not settling down within about a minute), they go back into their pens and I try again the next day. I find the slowly slowly approach works better with guinea pigs. I have never ever been bitten by any of my pigs but if one did, I would put him/her down. I believe that if a pig actually bites out of fear or aggression (not a friendly or curiousity 'nip') then you respect that it does not want to be held at that time and leave it alone. I am all for persevering over a long period of time but you have to be patient with them.
 
My Piggie always does it if I stroke his head, he adores being stroked anywhere else though, especially under the chin.

Chester on the other hand hates being stroked under the chin but will happily let me stroke his head and never headbutts.

And as for the new girlies i'm still working out their likes and dislikes, so far Abbie loves the chin stroke, and Candy loves any kind of stroke!
 
My pigs occasionally do this so when they do I just stop stroking them for a bit and stroke somewhere else that they love..a bit later I might try and stroke their head again, but that depends on which pig I'm holding and their personality :)
 
Clover is so bad for head butting things! (she's like that kid out of 'Parenthood').. i know i shouldn't have laughed, but i've told her before not to do it. She had a brick to climb on in her run and she tried to shove it out the way... she look slightly concussed for a few seconds then carried on..... silly creature

It hurts if they are sat under your chin and they do it, i think i've nearly had a tooth broken! (i guess she was getting her own back at me for laughing at her for head butting a brick)
 
I think or i read something about that meaning that it measns like not to do it again
 
All my lot do it sometimes when you stroke their heads. Uncle Ton does it now because he knows it means medicine! ;)

I don't put them back, just stroke in other places
 
Scamper does it when I stroke somewhere she doesn't like so I stop stroking there and continue elsewhere. These days I have to be careful cos she loves chewing on my watch strap if I'm wearing short sleeves and that can hurt!
 
Sehnsucht said:
they have this thing for chewing bracelets too and rings :o lol
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Oooh, better watch her with my wedding ring then - can't get it off my finger these days! Either the finger has got fatter or the ring has shrunk in the wash. ;)
 
Sehnsucht said:
I reckon maybe theyre jealous and want it for themselves ;D
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Those rubbery charity band things.. she eats them! LOL

newpiggies said:
Either the finger has got fatter or the ring has shrunk in the wash. ;)
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ooohhh same here!
 
3 of mine will try to chew my hair ::)

So far they've left the jewellery alone though!
 
Just this evening i was sat watching tv with clover under my chin, and she quite contentedly cleaned my necklace/chain for me :D
 
Clover_kins said:
Clover is so bad for head butting things! (she's like that kid out of 'Parenthood').. i know i shouldn't have laughed, but i've told her before not to do it. She had a brick to climb on in her run and she tried to shove it out the way... she look slightly concussed for a few seconds then carried on..... silly creature

It hurts if they are sat under your chin and they do it, i think i've nearly had a tooth broken! (i guess she was getting her own back at me for laughing at her for head butting a brick)
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lol! ;D thats so funny! My Truffles head butts to and he likes to sit under my chin but thankfully he hasnt head butted while he has been sitting there..... YET! :D
 
Tiger does it sometimes, so I just call him grumpy and put him back down on the floor. I think that if I cuddle him before he's done a few laps round the floor, peed, and sniffed out any food, then he is restless and sometimes nips/headbutts, but if I pick him up later after he's done, he settles down for a good stroke. If he can hear Jeremy running rund or worse - eating something!- then forget it - he won't stay on my knee for fear of missing on on some grub!
 
mine do that sometimes mid purr
so i just stroke somewhere else and they settle again
it's just a "don't", not a "oh my gosh, put me down right NOW!" thing
 
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