Not enjoying my piggys as much as hoped

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obsessedwithanimals

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Hi guys,

Just wondering if you have any tips on how to enjoy my piggies more?
They're two sows called Pepsi and Peachy and they live in a hutch in my shed. I've had them for a few months now since they were babies. Feeling a bit sad as I was hoping to enjoy them a bit more than I am. It's hard work remembering to buy hay and veggies for them and order bedding etc and just to take general care of them and I can't really have snuggles with them as they just buck if I try and touch them and I'm worried I'll drop them or they'll nip me. Any advice? xx
 
Can you not keep them inside? It is much eaiser to tame and spend time with your guinea pigs if they are inside. They will take much longer to get used to people if they are outside
 
I'm afraid we don't have any room for them inside and my dad may be allergic to them if we have them in the house.
 
Could you bulk buy hay and store it somewhere dry? Compressed hay takes up very little room if the packaging hasn't been opened.

With veggies, I buy for my pigs whenever I do my own food shopping - once a week for the main shop, and then usually mid-week too whenever I pick up fresh milk/bread then my pigs get fresh veg too. We see them as part of the family, so we buy food for them whenever we buy food for ourselves.

Veggie treats are usually the best way to help new pigs get more confident. Perhaps set aside some 'pig time' every day when you just sit and talk to them. Put your hand in the cage with a small slice of carrot/cucumber or whatever their favourite treats are. After a while one of them will come forward to take the treat. After a few days they will begin to associate you with food. Then when they are a little braver you can move on to handling them.

Pigs will usually only nip you if they are afraid. When their confidence grows and they feel more comfortable with you then they should do this less :)
 
Jerrybelly said:
Could you bulk buy hay and store it somewhere dry? Compressed hay takes up very little room if the packaging hasn't been opened.

With veggies, I buy for my pigs whenever I do my own food shopping - once a week for the main shop, and then usually mid-week too whenever I pick up fresh milk/bread then my pigs get fresh veg too. We see them as part of the family, so we buy food for them whenever we buy food for ourselves.

Veggie treats are usually the best way to help new pigs get more confident. Perhaps set aside some 'pig time' every day when you just sit and talk to them. Put your hand in the cage with a small slice of carrot/cucumber or whatever their favourite treats are. After a while one of them will come forward to take the treat. After a few days they will begin to associate you with food. Then when they are a little braver you can move on to handling them.



Pigs will usually only nip you if they are afraid. When their confidence grows and they feel more comfortable with you then they should do this less :)
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Thanks. They take food out of my hand but try and grab asap and run of with it. If I touch Peachy she'll either buck, stay still and make chattering noises or run away. Pepsi on the other hand usually runs away. Trouble is I don't have much time to spend taming them. :(
 
My three Mop, Muffin and Billy spend the summer outside and we bring them in for cuddles.
It has never harmed them...
 
WDMMBT said:
My three Mop, Muffin and Billy spend the summer outside and we bring them in for cuddles.
It has never harmed them...
Click to expand...

Yeah in the summer I could take them inside the house but now it's cold outside and very warm inside with the heating on so I couldn't really take them inside. :(
 
You'll have to wrap up warm and devote some time to them in the shed then. You have to earn their trust. It's not easy but it is worthwhile. We've had Mouse since Feb and she was incredibly shy ( and ours are inside with us) she has only just started relaxing and enjoying cuddles and in the last couple of weeks has started giving me piggie kisses at snuggle time. If you put the time and effort in you'll get a very special reward, you know you've earned a piggies affection when you finally get it and that's what makes it so special. :) make sure you talk to them as often as you can so that they can get used to your voice and above all be patient.
 
Do you think I should let them get used to me touching them before trying to pick them up? Also how can I catch them if I wanted to pick them up? xx
 
Heyooo :)

When I first kept my two boars i kept them in a hutch in the shed, if you do have a spare hour or two on the evening go into the shed and sit with them....this isnt too everyones taste i understand and I'm sure not everyone is as dotty as i was with my boys (think wrapping up in a jumper, coat and scarf and sitting with them in the shed with the shed light on and a book!

However if you can spare 15-20 a evening just to sit and chat to them you can build up their confidence over time. You could try reading a book to them so they get used to your voice and associate it with something that isn't dangerous. Another option is leaving the radio on for a couple of hours whilst you are out so they can become used to voices :)

For handling not all piggies like to be touched and 'cuddled' however you can make this cuddling time fun for both you and the piggies. If you have a cosy cup or pet bed (or even a small dog bed with hay) you can entice them in with veggies and place this on your lap and slowly get them used to stroking and cuddling.

Another tip might be leaving something that smells of you in their cage (if you dont mind it being nibbled/peed on) ie a scarf, hankicheif, cuddley toy.

I know it can be a chore in the winter months when its pouring down, and the piggies need their hay and veggies but you can make it easier by having a check list, and a good winter coat and wellys!

I have a check list, and keep an eye on hay. :) Hay is very cheap to buy esp in bulk a bale of hay is around £12-15 for meadow, and you can store it in the shed ontop of the hutch. For veggies try looking in the reduce section in supermarkets on a daily basis, my piggies get curly kale, parsley, little gem lettuce, spinich, carrots, apples all from the reduce section costing me from 10p-£2.10 depending on how much.

You could also have a wonder down to your local greengrocers (an independent shop not supermarket) and see if they'll come up with a discounted fee if you stick with them for x amount of time or you buy a certain amount weekly. They might also be able to deliver to your door which will be handy if you do find you forget easily.
It can get frustrating when you’re tired, got a lot on your hands and the piggies aren’t being friendly but it is so sooooo rewarding when they finally trust you (take my Artie for example, i did everything i have said above it took me a year and a half for him to finally come to me and allow me to touch his back. Amazing, you will get there it just takes time, trail and error and a bit of self motivation! Good luck x
 
Highly recommend this website for ordering hay from , i buy the 9.5 kilos lasts me around 3 months in the summer or 2 in the winter and I have four piggies too feed! :)

http://www.hayforpets.co.uk/

This is how big it is (the one at the back) compacted and you can break it down into smaller chunks if space is an issue :)

spoiltpiggies.jpg
 
Another idea, I bought a cheap plastic box, like for organising and storage, no lid. I put fleece n material in it loose and pop the piggies in here. I then carry it into the house. Start off with them in the box with hand feeding, then move on to touch etc over time. Half an hour each night, plus as they are wrapped up when you are moving them they will stay warm.

It keeps all wees and poos in the box, stops stray hay etc if your parents are worried about mess and as they will only be in the box shouldn't affect allergies.
Have a tv show on quietly in the back ground and hopefully this can help!
 
obsessedwithanimals said:
Do you think I should let them get used to me touching them before trying to pick them up? Also how can I catch them if I wanted to pick them up? xx
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first of all I wanted to agree with what others have said - if there is any possible way you can get your piggies inside, you will be well rewarded. Having kept a pair of sows outside a few years ago - and now these boars we have indoors now - what a difference! Our sows used to come into an extension inside during winter but were rarely handled and cuddled so we never really got the most out of them.

With these boars - I wanted to make sure from the very start that we spent time cuddling them and it's really paying off. Ours are only 14 weeks old and we got them at 8 weeks. Stanley (on the left of my avatar) is a pretty chilled out character anyway.


I think the ease of catching them hinges on your cage design. We initially popped them both into a large single story c and c - all the top lifted up as it is easier I think to reach in from the top (rather than the front)

Obviously for the first few days, even Stanley was a bit shy - and we probably didn't have the best method of getting him - we just approached him from the front and then I think it was a quick hand under his belly and up! Once he was off the cage bottom we had him and then straight into a chest cuddle whilst we carried him through to our living room. within a few short days, we noticed Stanley was going into his litter tray to be picked up and he loves coming out. Very quickly, he stopped running anywhere - he just sits where he is, we can stroke him or pick him up and he is very comfortable with that.

Benson is still getting there - he is really happy on our knees and makes lots of happy sounds straight away. this is progress from when we got him as he used to toss his head up when stroked - he has stopped that completely.

He was tricky to catch is the single story cage as he ran corner to corner - we always caught him but it took a while. then after a couple of weeks we noticed he always went in his tube when we came to get him -probably he didn't want to come out at all - but it made it easy for us - we just took the whole tube with Benson inside put it on our livingroom floor and waited for him to emerge! He always did - within a few minutes he was out and then easy to pick up.



With my new 2 story hay loft added on - Benson is much easier to catch - once he is in the hayloft, I block of the top of the ramp and the hayloft is totally accesible. If he is downstairs - then I can't get Benson (Stanley comes up to us to be picked up but not Benson yet)

What we are doing with Benson is spending time stroking him without lifting him when he is in the hayloft, taking him out for a good hour each day and also talking to him. Sometimes, we think there has been a real breakthrough as he just stays to be stroked - then other times he shoots off downstairs.

He is only 14 weeks so I am hopeful he will eventually be as relaxed as Stan. they are different though even when they are sleeping - Stanley stretches right out on his bed which is totally uncovered - benson sleeps in a sitting position which isn't nearly as relaxed-looking!



I would say - calming them apart - to have them indoors even just to see them running around the cage making all their sounds is great entertainment value!

Hope you soon enjoy them more!
 
Great idea SophRuss5. If your father is allergic, you could take them up to your bedroom out of his way. Have you not got space in your bedroom to keep them in during the winter months? :)
 
ps - I suffer hayfever but some kinds of hay are worse than others - you might find your dad is the same. Oxbow timothy is the worst for my hayfever (but of course I do take medication to keep it under control and I just take my prescription stuff if my allergies are flaring up) timothy hay in general seems to be a problem for me (but I do feed it in a 'tidy feeder')

Alfafa hay and meadow hay cause no problem at all for me. If you had an indoor cage you could line with fleece and just put in a small amount of hay in a box with an opening for the piggies to pull the hay through - I'll bet your Dad's hayfever would be ok with that - you don't need mountains of hay!
 
obsessedwithanimals said:
Oh isn't? I read it on the forum several times? :{ So glad! :))
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Ahh goodness no,please don’t bring them indoors for a short period of time
Temp change is bad, they're small animals and struggle going from minus temps outside to a warm heated house and then being place back into minus temp.

Put it this way: You live outside, you've started to become accustomed to the weather , then someone brings you inside its warm, too warm but you get used to it, then you're placed back outside. Its freezing and you can't put a jumper on, and it's getting darker and colder. Then this cycle continues.

This change in temperature will effect on their health, maybe not straight away but gradually.

You CAN bring them indoors temporarily ONLY if its in an unheated room or a room which is the same temperature as outside (use a thermometer)

If they are staying outside, keep their environment the same temperature . But if they are coming inside keep them inside. :)
 
A sudden change in temperature can be extremely harmful to guinea pigs, especially if you were to plan to keep them indoors temporarily, if you bring them indoors now they then must stay indoors for the remainder of this cold weather as the sudden shock of then going outside can make them terribly ill
 
Keep spending plenty of time with them and they will get used to you and trust you. Talk to them as well and they get to know your voice. It is a good idea to handle them as much as poss as this helps with the bonding. You haven't had them for that long either, so keep your patience. I buy hay and bedding in large bags from a local farmers market and top up on veg at my local shop weekly. X
 
What Audioheart said is right but if I use my piggies as example, it's 15 degrees in the barn they are in, probs more in the hutch and even more in the hay filled houses! Best thing is to buy a cheap thermometer, I got mine from amazon for £2 delivered! That way you can know they are staying safe and warm! I have to admit that the fussing, cleaning and working out their safety is part of the fun for me! I like to have animals so that I can look after them and do lots of research on their needs! The hugs and the strokes are immediate gratification, however, knowing you are doing the best you can for them is all the more satisfying for me!
 
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