My precious Guinea Pig Archie just passed away last night at 8pm :'(
So he left his best friend Rupert who he had known since he was ickle.
I have been sad ever since.
Now me, my Grandma, my brother and my mum are getting a new one so Rupert isnt Lonely
Rupert is a very Cautious Fella but kind once he gets to know others.
How should they Meet? Proper answers please :'''(
So he left his best friend Rupert who he had known since he was ickle.
I have been sad ever since.
Now me, my Grandma, my brother and my mum are getting a new one so Rupert isnt Lonely
Rupert is a very Cautious Fella but kind once he gets to know others.
How should they Meet? Proper answers please :'''(
When you bring home a new friend for an existing guinea pig, or you get two guinea pigs from two different sources, then BEFORE you try putting them together, you need to keep them apart for two to three weeks to make sure the new guinea pig does not have any medical problems which could be transmitted to the other.
If one is sick or has any parasites or fungal infections, you'll want to treat that one first, rather than risk spreading the condition to the other guinea pig.
Quarantine means keeping the guinea pigs in two different rooms, which of course requires two separate cages. If you bought a pet store cage and have since realized it's too small, you can use the cage for quarantine until the pigs can be introduced.
You should handle the new guinea pig last. You should wash your hands after handling the guinea pig. It's a good idea to keep a smock in the room with that guinea pig. That way you have less risk of transmitting parasites or other things on your clothing.
Examine your new guinea pig very closely and carefully while in quarantine. Look for signs of mites (scratching and hair loss). Mange mites are not visible to the naked eye. Look for lice, fleas, fungus (ringworm). Look for eye or nasal discharge, excessive sneezing, wheezing, loud breathing and more. If you suspect your new guinea pig is not well, please take it to a good vet as soon as possible. Do not delay. Guinea pigs can go downhill fast.
Typical problems with pet store guinea pigs are URIs (Upper Respiratory Infections), mange mites, fungal infections, scurvy, and pregnancy!
You've honored the quarantine period, your new piggie is healthy and you are ready to introduce him or her to your other guinea pig(s).
What you don't want to do is plop the new guinea pig into your existing guinea pig's cage. Never try to introduce guinea pigs in one of their cages. Be prepared. This may happen in one afternoon or it may take months!
At Cavy Spirit we call this process the Dating Game. Our system works well for us. We are going to tell you about our system as well as suggestions from others.
The Cavy Spirit Dating Game
The initial introduction is done to determine how fast or prolonged the process will be. We also use this process when we are trying to find a good mate for someone else's guinea pig.
Get a large bath towel or two.
Put the towels on the couch (neutral, unfamiliar territory).
Spread them out over the middle of the couch.
Each person holding a pig, sits at opposite ends of the couch.
Make sure the towels are between you and there is a good amount of space (it helps to have a big couch!). Floor works, too. Keep kids quiet and out of reach. No other distractions.
Let the pigs find each other on their own time.
You may need to nudge them in the right direction. Have another towel handy to toss on the pigs if you need to separate them.
Let the games begin!
More often than not, pet owners want to break up guinea pigs exhibiting normal dominant behavior. Everyone looks worried and asks, "Is that normal?" And be prepared to answer the question, "Mommy, what are they doing?"
How long and what next?
Usually, the first 15 minutes is just getting acclimated to the new surroundings and the idea that there is another guinea pig there. It's the next 15 to 30 minutes that can get interesting. The nice thing about being on the couch is it makes it easy for them to run to you when they get uncomfortable. But, keep your interactions and interference to an absolute minimum.
Some guinea pigs will get along just great. Some will decide on peaceful co-existence right from the beginning. Some will act like long lost buddies or lovers! But, most will go through the standard dominance dance getting to know each other and trying to figure out who is going to be the boss of who. They must and will decide this. It may not be now, but it will get decided.
When to separate them? Serious blood is drawn or a wound is inflicted. Some nipping or minor biting can be quite normal. Even little tufts of hair in the mouth can be normal.
Some standard dating game behavior is (any sex combination):
Safe, non-combative, dominance behavior
Rumblestrutting
Butt sniffing
Butt nudging
Chasing
Butt dragging (they are leaving their scent)
Mounting (any which way: rear mount, head mount, side mount, flying leap mount!)
Nose face-offs (higher in the air wins, one must lower their nose to be subservient to the other)
Teeth chattering: a little (signal of dominance)
Raised hackles (hair on the back of the neck and along the spine)
Posturing for possible attack, battle for dominance is escalating
This site will help you a lot
http://www.ask.com/bar?q=how+to+do+two+m...
If one is sick or has any parasites or fungal infections, you'll want to treat that one first, rather than risk spreading the condition to the other guinea pig.
Quarantine means keeping the guinea pigs in two different rooms, which of course requires two separate cages. If you bought a pet store cage and have since realized it's too small, you can use the cage for quarantine until the pigs can be introduced.
You should handle the new guinea pig last. You should wash your hands after handling the guinea pig. It's a good idea to keep a smock in the room with that guinea pig. That way you have less risk of transmitting parasites or other things on your clothing.
Examine your new guinea pig very closely and carefully while in quarantine. Look for signs of mites (scratching and hair loss). Mange mites are not visible to the naked eye. Look for lice, fleas, fungus (ringworm). Look for eye or nasal discharge, excessive sneezing, wheezing, loud breathing and more. If you suspect your new guinea pig is not well, please take it to a good vet as soon as possible. Do not delay. Guinea pigs can go downhill fast.
Typical problems with pet store guinea pigs are URIs (Upper Respiratory Infections), mange mites, fungal infections, scurvy, and pregnancy!
You've honored the quarantine period, your new piggie is healthy and you are ready to introduce him or her to your other guinea pig(s).
What you don't want to do is plop the new guinea pig into your existing guinea pig's cage. Never try to introduce guinea pigs in one of their cages. Be prepared. This may happen in one afternoon or it may take months!
At Cavy Spirit we call this process the Dating Game. Our system works well for us. We are going to tell you about our system as well as suggestions from others.
The Cavy Spirit Dating Game
The initial introduction is done to determine how fast or prolonged the process will be. We also use this process when we are trying to find a good mate for someone else's guinea pig.
Get a large bath towel or two.
Put the towels on the couch (neutral, unfamiliar territory).
Spread them out over the middle of the couch.
Each person holding a pig, sits at opposite ends of the couch.
Make sure the towels are between you and there is a good amount of space (it helps to have a big couch!). Floor works, too. Keep kids quiet and out of reach. No other distractions.
Let the pigs find each other on their own time.
You may need to nudge them in the right direction. Have another towel handy to toss on the pigs if you need to separate them.
Let the games begin!
More often than not, pet owners want to break up guinea pigs exhibiting normal dominant behavior. Everyone looks worried and asks, "Is that normal?" And be prepared to answer the question, "Mommy, what are they doing?"
How long and what next?
Usually, the first 15 minutes is just getting acclimated to the new surroundings and the idea that there is another guinea pig there. It's the next 15 to 30 minutes that can get interesting. The nice thing about being on the couch is it makes it easy for them to run to you when they get uncomfortable. But, keep your interactions and interference to an absolute minimum.
Some guinea pigs will get along just great. Some will decide on peaceful co-existence right from the beginning. Some will act like long lost buddies or lovers! But, most will go through the standard dominance dance getting to know each other and trying to figure out who is going to be the boss of who. They must and will decide this. It may not be now, but it will get decided.
When to separate them? Serious blood is drawn or a wound is inflicted. Some nipping or minor biting can be quite normal. Even little tufts of hair in the mouth can be normal.
Some standard dating game behavior is (any sex combination):
Safe, non-combative, dominance behavior
Rumblestrutting
Butt sniffing
Butt nudging
Chasing
Butt dragging (they are leaving their scent)
Mounting (any which way: rear mount, head mount, side mount, flying leap mount!)
Nose face-offs (higher in the air wins, one must lower their nose to be subservient to the other)
Teeth chattering: a little (signal of dominance)
Raised hackles (hair on the back of the neck and along the spine)
Posturing for possible attack, battle for dominance is escalating
This site will help you a lot
http://www.ask.com/bar?q=how+to+do+two+m...
Keep them in separate cages and far apart until you are sure that your new pig is not sick. Then move the cages close to each other so they can get used to each others smells. After about a week, take them both out of their cages to meet each other and play. Keep a close eye on them. Do this every day and keep their cages close until you are sure they like each other, then you can keep them in one cage.
I hope Rupert likes his new friend!
Good Luck :-]
I hope Rupert likes his new friend!
Good Luck :-]
thats how I got my piggies to meet
If you're cage is big enough to allow it, put a divider down the middle. Something that the guineas can see and smell each other through, like metal wire from the top part of a cage, or something similar. (You can check the dollar store; they have little fence pieces you can use).
Put the two pigs in the same cage, but divided for a few days, and then take out the divider but make sure each guinea has a cardboard shoe box or some kind of "home" that they can go into for "protection".
I did this with my two pigs and it worked great.
Put the two pigs in the same cage, but divided for a few days, and then take out the divider but make sure each guinea has a cardboard shoe box or some kind of "home" that they can go into for "protection".
I did this with my two pigs and it worked great.
Allow them to be loose in an area together so that they can explore eacother freely. And start taking part on adventures together.
This is how i intro. my guinea pigs.
let thm meet on neutral terrioty and then let them sniff eachother theyll probably squek alot
but if its 2 males i wouldent reccomend it as theyll probably fight
but if its 2 males i wouldent reccomend it as theyll probably fight
guinea pig owner and breeder