Hello all! I am new to guinea pig ownership. I am a teacher and have had a female guinea pig for 4 months in my second grade classroom. I just got a friend for her (a 2 month old female). The older one is showing dominance by chasing her around, showing her teeth by yawning (only periodically). She has mounted her a couple of times that I have seen, but mostly just follows her around, and seems to try to intimidate her a little bit. The little one squeals a lot when she does this, but doesn't seem too bothered. There has been no biting, no blood, and no real fighitng that I have seen. Is this ok, or is it stressful for the little one? They sometimes seem to get along, eat from the same pile of grass, etc. The little one "popcorns" a lot, so I am hoping she is happy? I have them in a large cage with a pen that is attached, with tunnels, etc., so they have plenty of room to run around. Thank you!
New Friend
- Thread starter JColt
- Start date
Livia Rabideau
Adult Guinea Pig
The yawning worries me a bit. Only because when I tried to bond my females the one did that right before she attacked them 
. As long as there is no blood shed hopefully they will work it out. Do they have enough room? Are there any places the anyone can get cornered?
. As long as there is no blood shed hopefully they will work it out. Do they have enough room? Are there any places the anyone can get cornered?Uh oh. Well, she doesn't yawn often. I have only seen her do it a couple of times.... I hope they have enough room. It's as big as I can possibly make it for my classroom.... It's a large cage and a connected pen, with a separate bed, tunnel, food, etc. They usually end up in the same bed when I come in in the morning...The yawning worries me a bit. Only because when I tried to bond my females the one did that right before she attacked them
Livia Rabideau
Adult Guinea Pig
I think if they are sleeping together that's good!
Lady Kelly
Senior Guinea Pig
The loud squeals are squeals of submission. Basically the baby one is saying "it's ok I know you are the boss" this should calm down after a while. We always recommend to bond on neutral ground and not in one of the pigs own territory so that could be what's caused some of the aggression from yawning etc but they sound like they are settling down together
I have nothing to add about the behaviour but am concerned about piggies being in a classroom. I am sure you look after them well but who monitors them overnight at weekends and during school holidays. The RSPCA do not recommend pets in classrooms and suggest many other ways of helping children learn about animals and their care.
I personally took in two classroom piggies who had many health issues
I personally took in two classroom piggies who had many health issues