How can I coax piggies to go up/down a ramp?

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gorgeous piggies

gorgeous piggies

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I have recently added a complete 'upstairs' to my girls pen with a ramp. I have added sides to it so that it is secure. Trouble is, none of my girls have been anywhere near it yet! :(

The top floor remained untouched, with water bottle, food dish, hay, cosy beds etc...I wanted to give them more space, but they just didn't know it was there! So today I put two of the 'braver' girls in the top and they have settled down nicely. BUT haven't gone near the ramp! It is so frustrating! I am also worried that because they are split, if they take any longer they will forget the other girls are on the other floorand I will have to reintroduce. mallethead

How can I coax them up/down the ramp without launching one down it? :{

HELP! x
 
Try walking them up it while your holding them maybe? Or put veggies up the ramp so they have to climb it to get the food? :)
 
The ramp also has secure sides attached as I thought this would be safer for them :)

Yes, tried the food thing but they just ignore it! Stubborn girls!
 
I was going to suggest scattering food up it, but doesn't sound like that has worked. What is the ramp made of? Is it slippy or a little steep maybe? I know some people cover the ramp to give it more grip- not sure what they use though.
I have been quite lucky with my girls 3 of them learnt to use the ramp bridge over a couple of days, then I had Rosie using it for a short while- but now unfortunately she won't use it now so sometimes she gets left on her own :( I will be watching this thread with interest as she is so stubborn, either that or her she is wary with having cataracts.
 
When I introduced my ramps it took a few days with putting food down along the length of the ramp with their fav food of course. I did as you have moved the furries up and down until they got the knack of it, now jack knows where the heat pad is and he gets very excited by it. Must try posting a video of it.
 
I agree with Klee. When I first got a cage with a ramp, the ramp was too slippy & after putting Minky on the top level she went on the ramp to come down & slid down just like a child on a playground slide. I got some thin rubber backed door mat from Ikea & cut a strip of this which I glued to the ramp. They were soon all using it. When I made the girls large run I used the same mat for both the ramps.
 
Is it too steep? Can you add an extension to lower the gradient of it?

I've also heard of putting fleece tunnels over the ramp so it's completely enclosed which I guess makes them feel safer?
 
I use flat "wall" type cat scratch posts from.zoo plus they're 80cm long and the incline is fine (up 35cm) even for fat lazy piggies it took them.less.than a day to.get used to it :-)
 
Put their water up there for a few hours, or put your most confident pig on the second level so she can find her way down x
 
Thanks for your ideas and suggestions! :)

The ramp isn't that steep really and is fairly flat. I have put the sides quite high so that they feel more confident using it. I have attached old carpet tiles to it so it isn't slippy. I have tried putting the 'outgoing' two girls at the top with the hope that they would go down. I scattered green beans all the way down the ramp yesterday. STILL no luck!

They have never had a ramp before, just a c&c cage. I thought by adding another floor I was being nice and giving them double the zooming room as Bronte does like to zoom! I realise that it may take time for them to get used to, but it has been nearly a week now and they are uninterested. I ended up putting them all together at the bottom last night and they are still there with no sign of life at the top. I may just have to give up!

And yeah, maybe they are just fat and lazy! :))
 
Maybe it's because because you're watching? I reckon if you leave the top two or youngest two on top and leave the room for half an hour then return, they'll all be on top or will have used it to get down x
 
Or if the second level is on the side of the room near a window, try putting the veggies on top then opening the window slightly to allow the smell of the veg to travel, similarly you could use a low powered fan x
 
I left the Bronte and Lola at the top all afternoon and was busy painting so I haven't watched them really, just kept popping in the living room to see if they had moved! It is so frustrating! I think Lola was a bad choice actually, she is so laid back. Maybe I'll try Imogen...she's quite bold. :) It will have to be tonight though, I'm at work 12-7pm so I'll try then. :(|)
 
Good luck :) you know piggies if they want something bad enough they'll bend over backwards to get it ;)
 
You seem to have done everything correctly. Only other thing I can suggest if your piggies like fresh grass. Most can't resist it so try putting a trail of grass up the ramp. With perseverance they should all use it eventually.
 
I recently got a C&C cage for my two fluffy girls and it took Latte a few days to be able to come back down. She was quite happy to go up, but scared of going down, whereas Cappuccino zoomed up and down it within minutes. I just put Latte on the ramp facing down and patted her bottom to make her go down and after she had done it once, she gradually lost her fear of it.

She also became more determined when veggies were being served in the bottom section. :))

When I put Hamish & Dougals cages together using a log bridge, I thought they'd never get the hang of going over it. It took them about a week to be completely at ease with it.

I think I would try serving veggies in one section and see how long it takes them to use the ramp, especially if someone else is already tucking in and getting all the best veggies. :)) Good luck. :)
 
I tried everything to no avail, however, what finally worked was tunnels. I had sewn a long fleece tunnel and attached it to the ramp. Then they went straight up no problems. I think the out in the open may scare them so the safety of tunnel is great. Only took a few weeks before I could remove the tunnel and they go up any ramp fine!
 
Still no joy :(

I'm resorting to actually 'walking' one of them down it....after a cup of tea as I have just got back from work.

I'll let you know what happens! rolleyes
 
It took ages with two of my girls. They wouldn't entertain it at all.

In the end, I laid the ramp flat - lined it with stuck on carpet tiles and fed them on it - all veggies and nuggets. I then raised it slightly at one end and carried on feeding on it. After a few days put it up to the second floor and hey presto, piggies running up and down like they'd been doing it all their lives :))

Hope that helps.

Jo x
 
That's a really good suggestion, thank you :)

I'll try tomorrow and lay it flat and feed their veggies on it. Hopefully that will work! I really didn't realise what nervous nellys I have! rolleyes

I didn't get the chance to 'help' them yesterday, so they are still in the bottom at the moment and it's a little bit darker now. It will be lovely and bright when they finally make it upstairs. :)
 
Well, progress today! I put Imogen up in the top this afternoon, with some veggies and scattered them at the top of the ramp again. The temptation was too much and she inched closer. Finally she went down the ramp! No interest from the other girls though.

Then 10 minutes ago, I noticed Bronte at the top! I don't know how long she had been there but she has also just gone down. So, progress indeed! :))

I'm a very happy slave :(|)
 
Nice work! Bet they use it all the time when you're not looking... :D
 
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