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New Owner and in need of advice

TerryThePiggy

TerryThePiggy

Junior Guinea Pig
Joined
Sep 19, 2018
Messages
12
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Points
125
Location
Northern Ireland - United Kingdom
Hello everyone!

I adopted a 2 year old male guinea pig last week. There was little information about him given by the family apart from the fact they no longer wanted him :-(
I keep Terry in a large cage in my room for now. Over the week I have slowly been approaching him a bit more at a time - he was very cautious at the start and hid in his house quite a lot but seems like he has progressively become less shy throughout the week... and leading to my question...
I have been in the house all day today, took him out earlier to play (with little hassle) and am now sitting doing some work at my desk within sight of the cage.
Terry is lying out in the open, keeping rather still but making the occasional little purring noise. His eyes are open.

Is he just contently having a little chill out I haven't witnessed before because I haven't spent all day in my room since adopting him or should I be worried that he is feeling ill?
 
I think he may just be scared since the environment is still pretty new. My Cocoa sometimes purrs at the slightest sounds to signal she's afraid. I also believe standing still is a sign of fear. Does he have hideouts to run in?

Also, welcome to the forum!
 
emlen23 said:
I think he may just be scared since the environment is still pretty new. My Cocoa sometimes purrs at the slightest sounds to signal she's afraid. I also believe standing still is a sign of fear. Does he have hideouts to run in?
Click to expand...
He's not standing still he's actually properly sitting down! but yes he has quite a large completely covered house part to hide in if he wants to.
 
Not necessarily if he is scared, he may be too scared to move into his house.
Is he on his own? If he doesn’t have a friend, that may increase his fear as piggies don’t cope very well on their own.
Regarding his breathing seeming to be quite quick - again, may be due to fear but you need to keep an eye on that and seek veterinary advice if you become concerned.
 
TerryThePiggy said:
Hello everyone!

I adopted a 2 year old male guinea pig last week. There was little information about him given by the family apart from the fact they no longer wanted him :-(
I keep Terry in a large cage in my room for now. Over the week I have slowly been approaching him a bit more at a time - he was very cautious at the start and hid in his house quite a lot but seems like he has progressively become less shy throughout the week... and leading to my question...
I have been in the house all day today, took him out earlier to play (with little hassle) and am now sitting doing some work at my desk within sight of the cage.
Terry is lying out in the open, keeping rather still but making the occasional little purring noise. His eyes are open.

Is he just contently having a little chill out I haven't witnessed before because I haven't spent all day in my room since adopting him or should I be worried that he is feeling ill?
Click to expand...

Hi and welcome

He doesn't sound ill, but it takes time to settle in a piggy that has not had a lot of friendly human interaction. sleeping out in the open means that is feeling safe in his surroundings. Guinea pigs sleep with their eyes open most of the time.
Only worry if he has got crackling or wheezy breathing (respiratory tract infection/URI)

You may find the tips in these guides here helpful:
How Do I Settle Shy New Guinea Pigs?
Understanding Prey Animal Instincts, Guinea Pig Whispering And Cuddling Tips
How To Pick Up And Weigh Your Guinea Pig

What to check and look out for in new guinea pigs (vet checks, sexing, parasites&illness)

Once he has settled in and you can get to a good standard rescue that offers boar dating/bonding meetings at the rescue, you could consider letting him choose a new boarmate of his own liking. that should help to bring him out, but wil ensure that you come home with another piggy only if acceptance has happened and you have the rescue to turn back to if the bond is not working out.
Companionship

All these guides are part of our new owners' most helpful guides collection: Getting Started - New Owners' Most Helpful Guides

Since we have got members and enquiries from all over the world, we find it very helpful if you please added your country, state/province or UK county to your details so we can always tailor any advice to what is relevant and available where you are straight away. Click on your username on the top bar, then go to account details and then down to location. This makes it appear with every post you make and saves everybody time. Thank you!
 
Wiebke said:
Hi and welcome

He doesn't sound ill, but it takes time to settle in a piggy that has not had a lot of friendly human interaction. sleeping out in the open means that is feeling safe in his surroundings. Guinea pigs sleep with their eyes open most of the time.
Only worry if he has got crackling or wheezy breathing (respiratory tract infection/URI)

You may find the tips in these guides here helpful:
How Do I Settle Shy New Guinea Pigs?
Understanding Prey Animal Instincts, Guinea Pig Whispering And Cuddling Tips
How To Pick Up And Weigh Your Guinea Pig

What to check and look out for in new guinea pigs (vet checks, sexing, parasites&illness)

Once he has settled in and you can get to a good standard rescue that offers boar dating/bonding meetings at the rescue, you could consider letting him choose a new boarmate of his own liking. that should help to bring him out, but wil ensure that you come home with another piggy only if acceptance has happened and you have the rescue to turn back to if the bond is not working out.
Companionship

All these guides are part of our new owners' most helpful guides collection: Getting Started - New Owners' Most Helpful Guides

Since we have got members and enquiries from all over the world, we find it very helpful if you please added your country, state/province or UK county to your details so we can always tailor any advice to what is relevant and available where you are straight away. Click on your username on the top bar, then go to account details and then down to location. This makes it appear with every post you make and saves everybody time. Thank you!
Click to expand...
Very very helpful advice, Thank you ever so much! I'm so glad to hear he's feeling comfortable.
 
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