Behavior

From G-Cam

Murray in his hammock

Murray's favorite reclining position

Eating

Guinea pigs have to be the only animals on the planet that enjoy food more than humans do. When we roll out the platter for a Pig-Out, the joy is palpable. We have a few human-oriented holidays that we share with the pigs: Pig-O-Ween, PigsGetting, and PigsMass. Here is a list of Foods that our pigs enjoy.

Sleeping

Their favorite activity - second only to eating. Pigs sleep with their eyes open most of the time, although sometimes you can catch them when they're crashed out really hard and have their eyes closed. They prefer a quiet, draft-free, secure place to sleep - so that's something to consider when placing their cage. Ours tend to sleep for about two hours, activate, go about their pig business, and then go right back to sleep again. They are both diurnal and nocturnal. I'm sure there's a word for that, but hell if I can remember what it is right now.

Playing

Guinea pigs love having brown paper bags and paper towel tubes to toss around. I do different things to keep mine amused and interested. There's some excellent pig entertainment ideas to be found at Cavy Cages. When they're really happy about something, they'll "popcorn" up in the air. Some of them even like to get up to no good. Java in particular enjoys pranking other pigs. The sneaking up behind the others, giving them a slight nip on the behind, and then quickly turning the other way and pretending like nothing's happened when the victim spins around to see who bit them. I would have written it off as mere coincidence if I hadn't seen her do it intentionally on more than one occasion. I even managed to grab a snapshot of Ramona getting fed up with Java's pranking.

Ramona's reaction to Java's pranking. A fluffed-up face and threatening chatter

Some pigs enjoy floor time. Here's a few safety tips:

• Keep your pig away from electrical cords, plants, other pets, feet (always shuffle your feet if pigs are on the loose so you don't step on them) and stairs.
• Guinea pigs have no depth perception (what I've read and been told) and a fall of even 12 inches (30 cm) will cripple and even kill a guinea pig.
• If you have other things going on that could demand your attention - take your pig out to play at a later time.

If you take your pig outdoors for a romp in the grass:

• Make sure you live where lawn chemicals are never applied.
• Make sure there aren't any disease-bearing creatures frequenting the area such as wild rabbits and squirrels.
• Watch out for other animals such as cats and dogs, and be especially aware of predatory birds.
• Never let your guard down. Don't run in for a drink or to answer the phone.

It only takes a second of inattentiveness for something horrible to happen.

Herd Behavior

Politiking

We call disputes between pigs "politiks." I grew up in the 70's through 80's during Cold Wars and Berlin Walls and all that other good stuff. Whenever I read articles about political negotiations, the word was always spelled politik. I like that spelling, so you'll all have to suffer my fancy. Pigs are herd animals, and herds all have ranks. If it's a single gender group, one pig in particular will be dominant. Mixed gender herds have a dominant boar and sow. If a pig is removed from the herd - even if it's just for a day - a rank reshuffle ensues as everyone tries to determine where they land in the pecking order. Most of the time this is determined by whomever puts on the best show at it. Fights will break out on occasion, but they generally do not devolve into violence. Monitor your pigs during politiking, and follow this handy set of guidelines:

1) Never have more than one boar in a herd of females. One of them will get killed.

1a) Have your boar neutered before putting him in with a herd of females. It's pretty obvious when you think about it.

2) Learn to walk quietly or set up a monitoring device so you can observe a fight. Most of the time it's just head-butting, hopping, and tooth chattering. If it comes to a stalemate, one of the pigs might nip. It's rare for politiking to come to wholesale violence, but it does happen sometimes.

• If the pig on the receiving end shrieks loudly, or shows any sign of being hurt - remove them and look for broken skin or missing hair.

• Separate the combatants for a few hours. I know it sounds cheesy, but Time Out really does work.

• If they tackle each other during the fight and things look like they're getting out of hand - step in right away and separate them. (I've never been bitten while breaking up a fight - but if you're nervous about it, get a clean pair of gardening/work gloves to wear.)

3) If you've found pigs with signs of fighting (cuts, missing hair, shredded ears), but have never caught them in the act - set up a video camera to record their activity and reveal the culprit. Camcorders are cheap now. If you've got a large hard drive and can set up a computer near their pen, use a cheap webcam instead. Most cam software will take a snapshot every ___ seconds or so.

4) Like I said earlier, Time Out works on pigs if applied appropriately and promptly. The reason why is that they are social animals and need to be in groups. If they become separated from the group, the experience is upsetting and unpleasant. With that in mind, remember that Time Out is not a punishment. Pigs aren't people and will never understand abstract concepts like punishment. They do understand patterns and avoidance of unpleasant experiences. In cases of ongoing politiking, I've removed both combatants, put them in Pig-Evac bins, and set them somewhere quiet for a hour. That cured the fighting. In Bitsy's case, she had to be removed a few times before the lesson set in - but it did set in.

5) Some pigs just will not get along no matter what you do. My advice is that if after a month or so passes and things still have not settled down, put a divider in the cage. (Make sure you have a big cage, obviously.) They'll be able to sniff each other and posture - but not get into a physical altercation.

Socializing

You can't have a bad day if there's a pig handy.

Keep guinea pigs in pairs. (I've found that a herd of all ladies is much more peaceful than a mixed gender herd.)

• If you have two boars - you're okay. However, never introduce a sow into that mix because the boars will then try to kill each other.
• You can have as many ladies as you want, or as many gentlemen as you want as long as you have the room.
• You can have 1 neutered boar and as many sows as you have room for.

Guinea pigs are herd animals, they need the company of other pigs. Humans just aren't guinea pigs, and a solitary pig will be lonely and miserable - no matter how much attention you give it. That doesn't preclude one-on-one time with them, however. With enough patience and positive reinforcement, your pigs will become accustomed to sitting in your lap for short periods of time. Be sure to use a thick bath towel in case they "go" on you. Mine are generally good about letting me know they have to get back to the pen to use the facilities - but accidents can and do happen.

New Arrivals

I have a procedure for all new arrivals that was borne out of necessity. (Pip) Since I'll be putting it into practice shortly, I'll document it ad nauseum here shortly.

• Quarantine

In 2001 I was given a wee little pig named Pip. She was infected with meningitis and after trying everything they could think of at LVVS, she went into convulsions and we had to euthanize her. On top of that horrible experience, I found out that my entire herd could have contracted the disease. It's a wild stroke of luck that they didn't. There's no way I'll play those odds again, so all new arrival/s go into quarantine without exception.

• Vet visit

As soon as we have a temporary cage set up and everyone's settled in, I call our vet and schedule a check-up. We test for disease and check for mites and physical abnormalities. Mites are pretty common, and treatment with Ivermectin takes about a week to kill off the mites completely. Lice, if present, are treated with RID. The general rule of thumb is two weeks. If the new arrival/s pass with flying colors, introductions will be made sooner after the next phase which is:

• Confidence building

This is pretty important. Our herd trusts us. Sure, they will avoid being picked up most of the time because that's a hard-wired survival tool - but they don't flee in terror unless something startles them. I can slide a hand under their bottoms and bellies and scoop them up with little or no trouble. Sit somewhere quiet with your pig snuggled in a towel for security and warmth. Offer a variety of fresh veggies (see Food ) for them to munch on while they sit with you. Keep the sessions short. If the pig starts fidgeting and getting antsy, place them back in their pen. (They probably have to relieve themselves.) Don't expect an instantaneous bond. I'm sure it's possible, but in our experience it has taken us at least a couple of days to achieve Pax Cavia. Be gentle, be tranquil, be patient. End all interactions on a positive note.

• Introductions

Neutral territory introductions are a must, as is thoroughly cleaning out the destination pen. It helps to have a second person available during this event, so get a spouse/mate/friend to help you out.

Step 1) Set up a playpen ahead of time and place the new pigs in it.

Step 2) Right away, start placing your current herd in the playpen according to rank. Lowest rank member goes in first, then the next lowest and so on. The Alpha (dominant) pig goes in last. (Don't fret if you aren't exactly sure who is where on the rank ladder.) The reason for doing it this way is that I have found it gently blurs the lines between everyone's rank by causing mild confusion. Think of it along the lines of mixing volatile chemicals. If you just dump them into a container together - you get an explosion. If you mix them gently and carefully - the end result is a controlled reaction which eventually balances itself out.

Step 3) Start cleaning the destination pen. Scoop out all of the bedding and wipe it down with surface wipes. Make sure to dry it with paper towels and then lay down new bedding. This will get rid of previously marked territories and put everyone on a level playing field.

Step 4) Give them a few minutes to size each other up and sniff without interfering directly (unless a wild fight breaks out).

Step 5) Have a Pig-Out. Set a big pile of veggies out in the middle of the playpen, and make sure that it is more than they could possibly eat in one sitting. For guinea pigs, nothing works out a solid detente better than full belly.

• Monitoring

After they've all stuffed themselves, carefully pick them up and place the entire herd in the destination pen. Start with the new arrivals, and then add the others randomly. They will politik for rank, but that need will be tempered by the greater need for a nap.

Noises

Cavies have specific event noises that they use to communicate with other pigs as well as their human companions.

• Squeaks - are Happiness, Complaints, Pings, Narration.
• Rumbles - are dominance and sexiness.
• Shrieks - are either good or bad. The pitch and volume is different for Demands, Excitement, Complaints, Fear, and Pain.
• Chatters - are threats most of the time. I've seen ours chatter in anticipation of food.
• Hoots - are bad. They indicate distress and discomfort.

Sex

There's two kinds: Procreation and Dominance. Sexual behavior in pigs starts early on. Both of my boars were showing signs of sexual maturity at less than one month of age. I separated them from their mothers around 3 weeks of age. (In Mr.Cranky's case, it was a bit earlier than that.) Pigs hump each other to make more pigs - but they will also hump each other to assert dominance. (Ramona pigpr0n video link goes here) This is not a behavior that is unique to guinea pigs.

Signs to watch for:

Guinea pigs have individual personalities and habits which are consistent. Here's an example: Ramona is the spokespig for our herd. For every possible food opportunity or unmet need, Ramona is the one to tell us about it. If she suddenly becomes silent and reclusive - we know something's wrong because that behavior is out of character. A few hours of simple observation will yield all you need to know about your pigs and their default behaviors.