Teeth Chattering

[JohnLpool]

I’m just cleaning out my two four month old guinea pigs and they’ve started teeth chattering and raising their hair on their necks to each other. They’ve been absolutely fine until they were taken out of the cage. The set up of where I transfer them to is exactly the same as I have previously done but I have moved the hides so they can’t see each other and it seems to have settled but when they do start to come out and make eye contact it starts again. Is this something they’re now going to keep doing or will it settle? I don’t want to put them back in together if someone is going to get hurt

 

[Reenie]

Hi there. A change of environment can sometimes set off a fresh round of dominance, however, your piggies are just at the age where their hormones are kicking in. If they are boars, don't separate them unless they get into a serious fight or draw blood, as they need to start from the beginning each time they are introduced to each other. There's a thread on bonding and dominance behaviours in the forum section at the top of the page. (I can't do links on this device). I hope it's just them sorting out who is going to be top pig. Good luck

 

[Wiebke]

I’m just cleaning out my two four month old guinea pigs and they’ve started teeth chattering and raising their hair on their necks to each other. They’ve been absolutely fine until they were taken out of the cage. The set up of where I transfer them to is exactly the same as I have previously done but I have moved the hides so they can’t see each other and it seems to have settled but when they do start to come out and make eye contact it starts again. Is this something they’re now going to keep doing or will it settle? I don’t want to put them back in together if someone is going to get hurt

Hi! Your boys are now teenagers; new territory requires a hierarchy sort-out and dominance behaviour. In some sensitive piggies, this can include cleaning time or a newly cleaned cage. If possible, keep your boys separated during a cage clean for the time being.
You will find more information on the teenage months and what you can do to help keeping their bond as stable as possible in this guide here: Boars: Bullying, Fighting, Fall-outs And What Next?