Rumble strutting for 3 weeks

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Stretters91

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Hey guys !
Sorry for another post but it isn’t stopping !
Digby the slightly older pig keeps rumble strutting and is now teeth chattering and chasing the younger pig Monty around :( with us being at work we don’t like the thought of anything happening to monty. There has been no blood yet or anything , even with a c and c cage now and a loft digby is still going for Monty !
We don’t know what to do , they have 2 of everything now also !
Any help would be appreciated !
Thanks
Stu
Ps they are around 4 months :)
 
I think this could be a hormone spike stage in age. Let me tag a member who can help you out @Wiebke
 
You really should not worry it is part of boar behavior my and my guinea pigs used to do this all the time when their hormones kick in. You should be fine as long as there isn’t blood
 
This is the start of the teenage months. This kind of behaviour is totally normal. Keep an eye, but don’t worry
 
Stretters91 said:
Hey guys !
Sorry for another post but it isn’t stopping !
Digby the slightly older pig keeps rumble strutting and is now teeth chattering and chasing the younger pig Monty around :( with us being at work we don’t like the thought of anything happening to monty. There has been no blood yet or anything , even with a c and c cage now and a loft digby is still going for Monty !
We don’t know what to do , they have 2 of everything now also !
Any help would be appreciated !
Thanks
Stu
Ps they are around 4 months :)
Click to expand...

Hi!

Your boys have just hit the teenage months; you should notice their testicles descending now. this is accompanied by hormone spikes and increased dominance behaviour - rumblstrutting is a mild version that some boars (including neutered boars) do on a daily basis. Boars measure up against each other peacefully by rumblestrutting and they also rumblestrut to impress sows; rumblestrutting is also there to just express their boarly feelings - in that phase it can often result in or be interspersed by popcorning or zoomies.

Please take the time to read these guides here so you know what to expect and what to look out for in the coming 10 months:
A Comprehensive Guide to Guinea Pig Boars
Boars: Teenage, Bullying, Fighting, Fall-outs And What Next?
Dominance Behaviours In Guinea Pigs
'Popcorning' and 'zooming' - joy and exuberance (videos) (contains some 'boarly' popcorning videos)
 
Thanks guys !
It just looks so unfair on Monty !
I mean Monty never rumble struts , and he never goes at digby just follows him around which is why I can understand sometimes digby rumble struts !

Is it oh k that Monty never rumble struts and just whines a bit ?
 
Stretters91 said:
Thanks guys !
It just looks so unfair on Monty !
I mean Monty never rumble struts , and he never goes at digby just follows him around which is why I can understand sometimes digby rumble struts !

Is it oh k that Monty never rumble struts and just whines a bit ?
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Yes; that is perfectly normal. The whining is a mild protest/submission. Monty is obviously still in baby mode (i.e. his own testicles have not started descending yet) and he is obviously a submissive pigsonality. It is all well within mild parameters.
 
Hey guys !
Just thought I’d pop back up and see if we’re still doing it right :p !
Our pigs seems to get on better now it’s been like nearly 2 months !
Just ever so often the slightly older one seems to really go after the smaller one ?( There’s 2 months difference and there around 4 months old )
Sometimes the younger one goes for older one but he’s definitely the more scared pig !
Like tonight they’ve been alright and all of sudden there sort of fighting trying to bump and then teeth chattering out of know where ! And we don’t want the younger feeling scared and sometimes digby doesn’t let the younger one in there big hut ?
It’s a hut from a pet shop cage and we use it on our c&c cage now but I feel like he thinks that’s his ?
We have two other big wooden houses for them aswell !
Any pointers on this one ?
Thanks guys
 
One pig claiming an item as his own happens. I think if one particular hidey is going to cause problems, then removing it from the cage altogether might help. You are dealing with teenage piggies and an increase in tensions is to be expected.
Don’t use any enclosed hideys - ensure every one has two exits so nobody can be cornered.

How big is their cage?

The issue is using words like ‘fighting’. Was it an actual fight or was it an increase in dominance behaviour. There is a big difference and it is important to know the difference:
Increased dominance - you leave them to sort their relationship out But keep watch
Fighting - you need to step in and separate them into separate cages, possibly permanently.
 
Piggies&buns said:
One pig claiming an item as his own happens. I think if one particular hidey is going to cause problems, then removing it from the cage altogether might help. You are dealing with teenage piggies and an increase in tensions is to be expected.
Don’t use any enclosed hideys - ensure every one has two exits so nobody can be cornered.

How big is their cage?

The issue is using words like ‘fighting’. Was it an actual fight or was it an increase in dominance behaviour. There is a big difference and it is important to know the difference:
Increased dominance - you leave them to sort their relationship out But keep watch
Fighting - you need to step in and separate them into separate cages, possibly permanently.
Click to expand...

This is our cage now
We do have a loft aswell but chosen not to put that on as it was an issue to clean right at the back !

So thinking about it it’s only a 4x2 now ! Maybe we should revert back to putting the loft on ? So they got more space ?

Thanks for the help ! :)
 

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Guinea pigs need single level floor space as they are ground roaming creatures. Lofts don’t count towards the cage size as they don’t increase the floor area, they are simply a bonus space. The recommended size for two boys is a minimum of 150cm x 60cm. A 4x2 c&c measures 150cm x 70cm - so, it does meet that size requirement. However, boys need as much floor space as you can give them. Our cage size guide says that a 5x2 is best for two boys. I have to agree from my personal experience of teenage boars. My two originally had the equivalent of a 4x2 (my two live in my shed) but teenage tensions meant I needed to increase their space to give them each more room away from each other. It helped a lot with my two boys. I did go overboard though and they now have the entire 8ft x 6ft shed to themselves! Anyway, the point is, the more space you can give teen boars, the better. However, you also need to bear in mind that sudden changes in environment can set of territorial disputes, so if you are going to increase cage size, then you need to be a bit careful about it - keeping soiled bedding can help them still feel like its home as it still smells of them.
 
Could I also advise you to not feed them the hanging treat sticks that are on the side of the cage. The seeds and sugars they contain are not good for piggies health. Fresh herbs are a much healthier treat for piggies
 
Thanks everyone for the advice !
We treated them to some new things from hay pigs !
We have got rid of the grey hidey what are used in a standard cage and gone for this now and we have extended the cage to 5x2 ! :)
Hopefully this will give them lot more room ! :)

A before and after ! Think this will be better for them ?
Thanks guys !
 

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The new layout looks great! They will definitely be better off with more space!
 
Thanks !
We’re just gonna get a hay trolley for them so it’s in the middle ! And think we’ll be all set !
There settling in it seems ! :)
 
Stretters91 said:
Hey guys !
Sorry for another post but it isn’t stopping !
Digby the slightly older pig keeps rumble strutting and is now teeth chattering and chasing the younger pig Monty around :( with us being at work we don’t like the thought of anything happening to monty. There has been no blood yet or anything , even with a c and c cage now and a loft digby is still going for Monty !
We don’t know what to do , they have 2 of everything now also !
Any help would be appreciated !
Thanks
Stu
Ps they are around 4 months :)
Click to expand...
At the moment it sounds like a hormone spike and nothing to worry about, just keep an eye. Also, it is common for both sexes as my two girls (who I thought were boys, had babies..long story) have been doing it back to back these past three days! I think it is where one of them finished their heat and the other one started. They do exactly what yours do but it is always playful as they’re popcorning around
 
Hey guys !
another question I know !
thanks for all the help for us New Guinea pig owners :p
We’ve had our pigs now since November ! They are around 7/8 months now !
the slightly older pig is still very rumble strutting around, teeth chattering and chasing the younger one around the cage :( I know seems a lot worse through our eyes! But doesn’t seems nice for the younger one :(
It doesn’t always happen , but the younger one always seems to sort of “whine” or just slightly higher pitch squeaking! they seem oh k most of time but it’s still a good few times throughout the day this happens !
they have never full on had a fight but just want them to be happy :)
 

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Stretters91 said:
Hey guys !
another question I know !
thanks for all the help for us New Guinea pig owners :p
We’ve had our pigs now since November ! They are around 7/8 months now !
the slightly older pig is still very rumble strutting around, teeth chattering and chasing the younger one around the cage :( I know seems a lot worse through our eyes! But doesn’t seems nice for the younger one :(
It doesn’t always happen , but the younger one always seems to sort of “whine” or just slightly higher pitch squeaking! they seem oh k most of time but it’s still a good few times throughout the day this happens !
they have never full on had a fight but just want them to be happy :)
Click to expand...

Please read our teenage and our dominance behaviour guides:
Boars: Teenage, Bullying, Fighting, Fall-outs And What Next?
Dominance Behaviours In Guinea Pigs

Your younger is submission squealing. Make sure that your younger boy is not being bullied. The teenage guide is telling you how you to that with a temporary separation and what exactly to look out for.
 
Wiebke said:
Please read our teenage and our dominance behaviour guides:
Boars: Teenage, Bullying, Fighting, Fall-outs And What Next?
Dominance Behaviours In Guinea Pigs

Your younger is submission squealing. Make sure that your younger boy is not being bullied. The teenage guide is telling you how you to that with a temporary separation and what exactly to look out for.
Click to expand...

thanks :) I’m reading through it all!
still hard to know wether they fully get on or not !
the younger ones does seem a bit of a softy !
even when they eating hay together you can hear him squealing away !
they don’t sleep together or anything like that they have there own houses :)
they say if there being bullied they loose wait and seem depressed , but the younger one still eats fine and seems happy enough when eating his hay and everything ! :)
 

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Stretters91 said:
thanks :) I’m reading through it all!
still hard to know wether they fully get on or not !
the younger ones does seem a bit of a softy !
even when they eating hay together you can hear him squealing away !
they don’t sleep together or anything like that they have there own houses :)
they say if there being bullied they loose wait and seem depressed , but the younger one still eats fine and seems happy enough when eating his hay and everything ! :)
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A trial separation is the best way to get the honest opinion of a piggy; if they perk up when away from their mate(s) then they the relationship doesn't work for them. If they want to be back with their friends, then they are obviously fine with how things are.

If you feel like your younger one is still happy to be with his mates, then that is OK. I can't see your piggies and have to rely on what you are saying. If you mention certain key behaviours, then all I can do is to alert you that there could be a problem in the making.

Please be aware that losing weight and being depressed are symptoms of advanced bullying and unhappiness - things tend to start a lot earlier and much more subtly.
 
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