hi, I've mentioned before that I got 2 New Guinea pigs from a vet college ( they desperately needed someone to rehome them ), anyway they are both females , Joan and daphne , and around a year old . I introduced them to my neutered male, Dennis and they both attacked him and when I separated them they attacked each otherNow I'm slightly concerned that daphne the definitely larger more aggressive of the two girls , could be pregnant? She is eating and drinking a lot ! She doesn't particularly like being handled and seems quite territorial . I hope I'm wrong and that this is just settling in , teething problems but any advice would be great
Hi! Poor girls - it sounds like they are very nervous and therefore very fear-aggressive; that tension in a bonding that is too early can then carry into the bond.
Give them as much space as you can, make sure that they haven't got any hideys with just one exit and bowls they have to share; instead, feed them their veg and their pellets in small portions that can be eaten in one go 2-3 times daily. Place the bowls well apart and remove in between meals. 80% of the daily food intake should be unlimited hay, so they are not going hungry and are instead eating what is good for them.
Place a blanket over the top of their cage to give them a feeling of security.
You can find lots of tried and trusted tips on how to best settle in and de-stress your girls in the following guides. Be patient and persistent; it won't happen overnight. Your girls have never had much in the way of friendly human interaction; they have been living a life where they have been yanked around by strangers all the time. Building up trust is well worth it, but it takes time to grow. Avoid as much as you can appearing as a predator and use guinea pig body language to relax them as much as possible.
How Do I Settle Shy New Guinea Pigs?
How To Understand Guinea Pig Instincts And Speak Piggy Body Language
New and Wannabe Guinea Pig Owners Corner
It is very normal as your two girls are sorting out the dominance between them as they start settling in. Please take the time to read these guides so you learn what is normal dominance and what not.
Sow Behaviour
Illustrated Bonding / Dominance Behaviours And Dynamics
In a pregnancy, sows eat and drink more as the pups are growing, but you are usually by then seeing other signs of a pregnancy. If you cannot exclude the presence of boars, please open a thread in our pregnancy sections. Take the time to carefully read the guides at the top of the section.
A good general diet is essential for a wide range of nutrients and is the best preparation your can give; the fitter and healthier mum is, the fitter and healthier any pups and the higher their survival chances.
Do NOT overfeed (you don't want large babies getting stuck during birth!) and do not go bonkers with supplementing extras that you will find recommended online; what is needed are very small extra amounts indeed. By now, these recommendations have grown way out of proportion with every new person adding a bit extra with their recommendation... and every piggy mom tempted to be a supermom and overdoing it to be on the safe side. Be reassured that babies born on a good general diet are healthier and fitter than babies born on a diet with far too much calcium, protein and sky-high vitamin C levels.
What you are doing is essentially putting your girl on a pregnancy watch. This lasts for 10 weeks from the last day they could have been with a boar. However, I would strongly recommend to not lose any sleep over it. Read the guides at the top of the pregnancy section, so you know what to look out for and keep your sow as healthy and fit as you can in the meantime. If she doesn't turn out pregnant, then she is at least super-healthy!
https://www.theguineapigforum.co.uk/forums/pregnancy-baby-care-and-sexing-no-breeding.11/
Recommendations For A Balanced General Guinea Pig Diet
