New Guinea pig behaviour help!

[Enesandeser]

Hi everyone,

I hope I’m posting this in the right place as an new to this forum but I’m looking for some advice on my new pair of guinea pigs. They are around 6 weeks old and have both come from the same place of a large group of guineapigs - possibly sisters but I’m not sure but they have certainly been living together with all the others since being born.
The first night I found one had made it to downstairs in the hutch into the other sleeping box down there - I put her back upstairs thinking maybe she had got scared and didn’t know how to get back up - there was lots of teeth chattering (from her I think) and she wouldn’t enter the upstairs bedroom and went back downstairs instead. The second day I put her back upstairs again just to see what would happen and it was the same. I have only had them five days now but they seem to be living apart and whenever together they are chattering and one of them will leave and go in the other bedroom - normally the same one that does the chattering will leave the situation and go elsewhere.
Is this normal considering they aren’t new to each other?
I would have thought they would want to be with each other for comfort as they’re in a new place without their other buddies?
Could one be male and the other female?
I have checked myself and I’m not sure but the one doing the teeth chattering i think is a girl and the other maybe a boy? Would this be normal behaviour in that situation?
mom not sure what to make if it and whether we will have a problem with them living together as I really don’t want to end up with having two separate guineaPigs and obviously having to get new friends for each of them.
Any help and advice would be greatly appreciated!
Thanks you

 

[Piggies&buns]

Guinea pigs of both sexes chatter their teeth - it’s a dominance behaviour. But it is absolutely essential that you check their sexes yourself. It is common for pet shop piggies to be incorrectly sexed and run the risk of pregnancies. Please do check them yourself immediately. You can post a picture of the slit on here and we can help, I will also add in links below on how to sex them.
Please do this straight away as if you do have a mixed sex pair they will need immediately separating. (Boars can make their own babies from 3 weeks of age and sows come into season between 4-6 weeks of age so the risks of pregnancy even now will be there)

Being related (if they are) makes no difference as to whether they will get on. Being not new to each other also isn’t strictly true as such - as a pair they will need to establish a relationship and hierarchy between them.
The problem with buying piggies is that often all the piggies are simply put together in an enclosure for sale and sold with little regard for their actual character compatibility. Character compatibility is absolutely key to whether two piggies will get on for the long term and while most will be fine, there are always some who were sold together but down the line are completely incompatible and have to be separated.

They will need to settle their own hierarchy though (it happens whenever there is a change of environment) and this will take some time. One will be the dominant piggy and the other submissive. As long as one does submit, then their hierarchy will work. If they can’t sort it out between them, then that is when you run into trouble.
It’s also common for the dominant piggy to claim all the best hideys. Always ensure you have plenty of hidey houses (at least than one per pig) and always two food bowls, bottles, hay piles etc.
Also, sows come into season for the first time at around 4-6 weeks so there is also the possibility of hormones (and that will be the case every time they come into season).

Do read the guides I’ve linked in below (the first one being the very important one of how to sex them), and the other is a collection of useful guides for new owners covering everything from behaviour to feeding to housing

https://www.theguineapigforum.co.uk/threads/illustrated-sexing-guide-for-all-ages.156297/
New Owners' Most Helpful How-To Guides and Information
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[Enesandeser]

Thank so much - I will take another look at them as soon as I can and try and take some pics to put on here. I used to have lots of small animals when I was younger and rescued a lot so I have sexed them before but it was a long time ago! I adopted them from a farm where they’d had unexpected piggy babies-I was certain I didn’t want to buy any from a pet shop as I know there’s so many out there needing new homes. Thanks again and I’ll be back in touch x