My herd is now 16 strong - SUCCESS!

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ghostbusterbunny

ghostbusterbunny

Adult Guinea Pig
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It honestly couldn't have gone any better and I have no idea why I was so worried. Einstein thought all his christmases had come at once and we have 15 happy, contented little ladies! They have a fantastic new home and I must say I'm incredibly jealous of them!

I put my herd in first, followed by Einstein, followed by my creche (2 mums 2 babies)... Then came Flossie and Panda who I completely expected to have to section off for a while have now become part of the herd and Flossie (who showed nervous aggression every time I attempted to introduce her to the herd) has been making plenty of friends and getting involved! I'm so proud of her!

So, here's (quite) a few photos!

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"Whee love mucking up mummy's shed as soon as she makes it pretty for us!"

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Flossie is the black and white one in the middle - she makes me a very very proud mum!

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They had TWO of these full! Lucky pigs!

Cont...
 
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Herd Video

And last but not least, a video of one of the luckiest little boars!


Thanks to Joanne (milhaven) and Wiebke for your bonding advice! Wiebke, I did your suggestion of letting Munchie meet Einstein first...
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After less than 30 seconds!

Perfect. Little. Herd! x)
 
Amywatters said:
Hi this is amazing I'm currently doing this for my 17 piggies and wondered what floor you used xx
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Hi! We used a 'fake lino' (I think it's called vinyl flooring?) from our local B&M stores if you have one? We were going to go with cork but it was too expensive. We managed to get foam underlay and the flooring for about £40 if that helps - 10x6 :). It's nice and warm and squishy!
 
Wowwweeeeeeeeeeeeeee! Soooooooooooooo many piggies! The noise must have been amazing! :)) I loved little Einstein rumbling away in the video! I'm so pleased it's all worked out well for you, Einstein really must be in heaven, he must think he is the king of all pigs! :))
 
Just out of interest, when you say Flossie has nervous aggression what do you mean? I wonder if my Mabel behaves like this too...when she's first around Finley she seems to 'freak out' the hackles are up, she starts puffing and she's not sure where to run or what to do. This seems to settle down after a while but then as soon as he comes near her it would happen again, and if he came too close she'd lunge :{

Oh and your butterfly dishes are looooovely! Where are they from?!
 
i have serious piggie envy, thats fabulous they all look so happy. x)x)x)
 
Wow - that is brill - yes - I also want to know where you got the butterfly dishes from.:))
 
AWWW - I am so glad that all has gone so smoothly! Looks like your first lady took one look at Prince Charming and was smitten! x)

Lovely pics of your herd! A pity that you aren't closer (but then you'd probably have to body search me!)
 
Oh my goodness! WOW! What a fab setup, what lucky piggies, who by the way are all so gorgeous! drool. How cute is Einstien settling in what a lucky boy. Looking forward to seeing more pictures of your set up and your gorgeous herd so I can drool some more x
 
I'm sooooooooooooooooo jealous of your shed its AMAZING :)) x)
 
Thats fantastic news!

I'm so proud of you (and the piggies) for being brave and just putting them all in together, its always worked for me with groups to go into a new home at the same time, that way there are no terratorial issues. They usually sort things out fairly quickly. :)

Phew, job well done! Now you can sit back and enjoy every single one of them. :)) I'm over the moon for you!
 
Guinea pigs <3 said:
Just out of interest, when you say Flossie has nervous aggression what do you mean? I wonder if my Mabel behaves like this too...when she's first around Finley she seems to 'freak out' the hackles are up, she starts puffing and she's not sure where to run or what to do. This seems to settle down after a while but then as soon as he comes near her it would happen again, and if he came too close she'd lunge :{

Oh and your butterfly dishes are looooovely! Where are they from?!
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Flossie was one of the most nervous pigs I've ever come across when I brought her home (and even then this was a vast improvement on what she was like when she first arrived at rescue!). She was very uneasy around other pigs and she didn't know how to react around them so rather than go and meet and greet she let them come to her but then attacked them. It wasn't aggression as we know it, but because she didn't know what to do and panicked, lashing out was all she could do to keep herself safe (even though she was in no danger at all!).

The puffing is quite an aggressive sign, Flossie's never done this as far as I know but it's a very clear "leave me alone or I'll get you" kinda sound. It could be that she's just not happy with a boy near her. Some sows won't accept boars at all and will do anything to keep them away. Do you know her history? There may have been something in her past which has led her to not be comfortable at all around boars... poor love!

The butterfly dishes were from B&M Stores though I don't think they do them anymore! Should have bought more - they hold a surprising amount of food! :)
 
ghostbusterbunny said:
Flossie was one of the most nervous pigs I've ever come across when I brought her home (and even then this was a vast improvement on what she was like when she first arrived at rescue!). She was very uneasy around other pigs and she didn't know how to react around them so rather than go and meet and greet she let them come to her but then attacked them. It wasn't aggression as we know it, but because she didn't know what to do and panicked, lashing out was all she could do to keep herself safe (even though she was in no danger at all!).

The puffing is quite an aggressive sign, Flossie's never done this as far as I know but it's a very clear "leave me alone or I'll get you" kinda sound. It could be that she's just not happy with a boy near her. Some sows won't accept boars at all and will do anything to keep them away. Do you know her history? There may have been something in her past which has led her to not be comfortable at all around boars... poor love!

The butterfly dishes were from B&M Stores though I don't think they do them anymore! Should have bought more - they hold a surprising amount of food! :)
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Thanks for this Ghostbusterbunny! To cut a long story short on my first bonding attempt everything was great! No teeth chattering/hackles up etc. Mabel was cuddled up next to Finley in a box of hay, they were together (on neutral ground) for around 3/4 hours - no problems! But then when i put them all together in the cage there was loud teeth chattering and she lunged for him, so i took a slowly slowly approach. The next bonding session i bathed them both before it, there was puffing/hackles up and then she lunged for him within half an hour...i had called it a day as i thought she clearly demonstrated she didn't like him! Since this i've been in contact with Jenny from Crawley GP rescue and she's watched some of the bonding videos - she thinks that it could still work as it seems the pigs were only getting aggressive when there were cosies around so she's coming to my flat on Saturday to help with the bonding! If it doesn't work out little Finley can choose his own friend from the rescue (home check pending!) Piggies hey! Their behaviour really interests me but sometimes it is hard to make sense of what is going on! malletheadmallethead:{:{
 
awe such lovely piggies! How do they stay warm in the winter? I'm looking for tips as mine are in a pen right now and I wondered how to keep it warm. The pen is inside the shed. I do have a couple heatpads that they will use for sure but wondered what else?

thanks and thanks for sharing!
 
PingandChipy said:
awe such lovely piggies! How do they stay warm in the winter? I'm looking for tips as mine are in a pen right now and I wondered how to keep it warm. The pen is inside the shed. I do have a couple heatpads that they will use for sure but wondered what else?

thanks and thanks for sharing!
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Over the next few weeks we'll be adding insulation to the walls and roof, and we'll be building some bedding boxes in for them. I'm considering getting heat pads, but I think it's going to be better for us to get a little heater in there (if anyone has suggestions as to what type, please tell me!) instead!

We'll also line their entire floor with hay once it starts to get cooler. For now they've got a big haypile at the back of the shed for them to snuggle in together as it's still a nice temperature in the shed, surprisingly cosy!
 
ghostbusterbunny said:
I think it's going to be better for us to get a little heater in there (if anyone has suggestions as to what type, please tell me!)
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Can you get this kind?
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I'm not recommending this web site or this particular brand of heater, I just found this picture that looks like mine. It's what I have here, and I am quite fond of them.

Great job on the piggie home! I am sure they will all be very, very happy.
 
wow i think you've got my dream set up :)) so cute x)

i wish i had space for all them gorgous little faces
 
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