My pigs

[baby]

Hi, I'm new to this forum I have 6 Guinea pigs and a cat . My pigs are Hillary aged almost 7, Dennis 3 , Daphne and Joan (sisters)3, Kenneth nearly a year and my skinny pig, Jeremy also nearly a year old. I've been keeping pigs for nearly 10 years my first pig was Patrick, a lethal white both blind and deaf, Harry was another pig with special needs who sadly died suddenly from respiratory problems at only 2 . Betty was almost 7 when she died and she was my most bossy pig , she even tried to take on my sisters very enormous, very aggressive rabbit! And then there was my baby, Godfrey. Another skinny pig my heart broke when I lost him to cancer last year at just 2 years old💔 I can't imagine life without Guinea pigs.

[3piggles]

Hello and welcome to Wheekers You have a wonderful sounding herd of piggies I hope you can post some pictures of them. We love pictures Enjoy the forums

[bazookagoof]

baby, welcome to the forum! 

(and I can understand your pain- when I got my first piggy, I went to a shelter to get him a buddy and the next two piggies each only lasted about half a year, each one passing away abruptly. My third piggy is doing fine, as is the original.)

We'd love to see pictures! 

[baby]

Thanks for the welcome 🤗 I'm not sure how to upload pictures on here yet .( probably just my own stupidity 🤔)

[jolovespiggies]

Welcome to our happy family love to you and your gorgeous guineas.

Hugs
JO xx

[Bean]

A warm welcome to Wheekers! Your furry family, both present and past, sound adorable and cherished! I love their names too.

You can upload pictures to the forum using the 'add attachment' button at the top of the reply box (if you press 'reply' rather than using the 'quick reply' box). Or if you have them already uploaded to an image storage website, you can post the image links in your post and they'll show up.

[baby]

  Sorry pic is sideways 

[3piggles]

Aw! Adorable Sideways is fine

[bazookagoof]

Apr 20, 2018 20:07:42 GMT baby said:

  Sorry pic is sideways 

Just so you know, when I click on the pic, it enlarges and is not sideways anymore. 

[Bean]

Good tip Baz, same here! And what a gorgeous picture!

[jolovespiggies]

He is gorgeous hunni, what an adorable little piggy.

Hugs
JO xx

[3piggles]

You're right, Baz, and the pic is so much better in full size

[baby]

Thanks ! Lately I've been having a few problems with my 3 year old girls Daphne and Joan. (They are sisters I rescued from a vetinary college last year) Daphne had to get a lump checked at th vets last week and since she came back Joan has been bullying her , I think I might have to separate them☹️

[3piggles]

How long has Joan been bullying her? Daphne not only left the cage(territory), but returned smelling of a vet visit, not like the old Daphne. Guinea pigs are very territorial. For some, even being taken out long enough to clean the cage can cause them to re-establish dominance again. If Joan was the dominant pig, she's trying to establish dominance over this new pig, who smells really weird, and may be acting differently than she did before. If Daphne was the dominant pig, again, leaving the cage, returning smelling and actind differently, Joan is filling the gap left by Daphne.

Before separating them, I would try reintroducing them. Give them a buddy bath, in warm water, so they both smell the same. Dry them well in towels, until they're dry enough to air dry without risking catching cold. If you need to, use a tiny bit of low scent shampoo on both of them, or even a tiny bit of Dawn dish detergent, so they both smell the same.

While they're drying in towels, in a secure place like a laundry basket, totally clean the cage and everything in it, so everything smells completely new. No scent of either pig. Hopfully that will level the playing field, and they will start from scratch establishing their places in the hierarchy. There may be some dominance, but it should end in a few days. It will recur periodically, and go away.

What was the lump? Did the vet find anything? I'm asking because if it's hormonal, Daphne may continue to smell differently. If that's a problem, you may have to repeat the buddy bath and cage cleaning regularly, like monthly. Good luck

[baby]

The bullying has been going on for about a week. Before now Daphne was always the more dominant personality. I'll try the bathing and clean their cage and hope this helps. The vet wasn't sure what the lump was but measured it and said she just wanted me to keep an eye on it for any changes because Daphne was healthy in herself. Thank you for the tips and I'll report how it all goes 😊

[3piggles]

You know how it smells in a hospital or even an exam room in a clinic, and our sense of smell isn't a fraction of what a guinea pig can smell. Even if the vet didn't actually do anything to Daphne, she was removed from her familiar territory, and she came home smelling like the vets office. Meanwhile, Joan was on her own, and when the dominant pig returned, she was different. Joan is defending her territory, and trying to figure out what's with Daphne. I think the buddy bath and cage cleaning will do the trick. I certainly hope so

[Bean]

I agree with everything 3piggles has said, and hope that resetting their environment so that no one feels it's now exclusively theirs really helps. If they've got along well for some time, it's quite likely they'll be okay.

[baby]

Hi , everything settled down with Joan and Daphne (after I purchased a new cage) and they're getting on much better now. My oldest pig Hillary,7 had to go the vet Friday because she was limping on one of her back legs. The vet gave her a painkiller and anti inflammatory and she seems a lot better now. The vet thinks she probably has arthritis in the ankle joint ☹️

[baby]

[jolovespiggies]

She is gorgeous hunni, what a lovely little fuzzy piggy.

Hugs
JO xx