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One bad bully

StacieN09

StacieN09

New Born Pup
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Dec 13, 2022
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Hi I'm new the the forum but I'm at my whits end with one of our 4 guinea pigs named cookie. She was fine when we got her and spooky but fast forward a good couple of months and she's a little terror.. My older piggie luna is the new alpha piggle a albino crested. Cooke also a crested has been acting very aggressive on and off for the past month or two and it's driving me and the other piggies crazy. We have tried letting them deal with her but she has really started bullying our little spooky a abyssian that is shy and so sweet. Lately I had to our cookie in the smaller cage away from our other girls due to the constant bullying and territorial displays.. She seems alot happier when she is away from the other guinea pigs so my boyfriend and I are thinking if she does not get better or over whatever is going on we may have to remove her bc she is disrupting the peace in our other three guinea pigs causing them to be on edge and snippy. What can we do to help her or should we consider she may need another home please help?!
 
Sounds like a nightmare. I have 4 girls that get on great but just a little nipping or rumble strutting every now and then.
 
It honestly is cookie has become our little bully and we don't know what else to do with her. I'm watching her now trying to assert herself on every other piggie and I'm feeling frustrated 😔.
 
I agree with @Bill & Ted if Cookie is an elder lady, she could have ovarian cysts although some sows can get them from 18 months - 2 years. They can cause crankiness so if this is a new behaviour, I’d be inclined to have her checked over by a vet x
 
Cookie is about 5 or 6 months old now she and spooky are our younger piggies. We have a senior named Koda who will be 3 soon and luna is a year old now. But Koda never gives us any issues just cookie lol.
 
I just don't like the how she is harassing the others it stresses them out and she's the only doing it and spooky is the same age and is like a little angel lol.
 
What size is the cage they are living in?
Do all hides have two exits?
Are there enough resources in the cage? (Ie four hides, four hay piles, four bottles etc)

As she is a teenager she is going to be full of hormones so seeing an increase in dominance and particularly when they are in season (approx every 2 weeks) is normal.

It’s important when using the word bullying that you aren’t putting a human spin on what is normal dominance. Dominance is not a problem (although it may look aggressive to us, to piggies it definitely isn’t), but proper bullying is bond breaking and will require permanent separation. Bullying is set of behaviours which will see the other piggies become depressed, withdrawn, not allowed to eat and consequently could start to lose weight.

Sows: Behaviour and female health problems (including ovarian cysts)
Moody Guinea Pigs: Depression, Bullying, Aggression, Stress, Fear and Antisocial Behaviour

(Koda, at 3 years of age, is definitely not senior! 3 is in the prime of life)
 
Actually we have a nice and big open top cage we put them in our backyard for to stretch and be out for abit. They have plenty of food and water and straw. They are beyond spoiled daily by me and my boyfriend and get plenty of floor time. Also we have spooky she is the same age as cookie but only cookie out OF ALL our females displays this behavior. And I'm not quick to label things unless it has become a problem which is why I sought out the forum due to the fact spooky the one that is most harassed out of the other three is showing clear signs of depression and barely comes out of hiding. The moment cookie comes near her she whines loudly and tries to find other places to hid while cookie chases her trying and sometimes successfully biting her bringing blood. Spooky in fact is withdrawn and will not eat or drink unless cookie is put away or else she is chased away from the food and water. When I say I am at my whits end I was being very serious about my concerns.
 
Ok, that’s fine but for us to advise appropriately we do need specifics ie the actual measurements of their cage, the type of behaviours you are seeing etc. We see many new members coming on concerned about behaviours but it turns out it is just dominance and they have misinterpreted what they are seeing.
There is usually only one piggy who will display the most dominant behaviours - that is very normal and how hierarchies function. If several piggies displayed lots of dominance, then that can be because there are too many dominant piggies in the herd which will cause bond failures.

If the bond has definitely failed, then you have no choice but to permanently separate them.
Things won’t improve if they are not compatible.

It may just be a wording, but in case it’s not, please don’t give piggies straw. They need hay.
 
Please also bear in mind that all piggies are different - just like people.
Age really has nothing to do with it, so it is perfectly normal that Cookie and Spooky have very different personalities.

If you read the guides linked above, these will explain more clearly about the differences between normal behaviours and bullying.
It would also help a lot if you could give us more specific information about your cage set up as requested above by @Piggies&buns
 
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