Who else finds guinea pig behaviours fascinating?! This video takes a closer look at dominance behaviours and gives advice on what to consider when guinea pigs aren't getting along that well. Let us know in the comments - who's the boss pig in your herd? And what is their go-to dominance move? 😂🤗🌻
Musings from this adorable and informative video: First, I am obsessed with Roxy's "tail" of hair. It is just awesome. I miss having Peruvian/mix piggies! @3:23 Willow to Lyra: Um, look if you don't know how to do this correctly, please stop jumping on me in the middle. I am sensitive there! @5:35 when poor Willow cries out it reminds me of how one of my piggies used to act whenever I was going to clip her nails. Didn't even get close to touching her yet but you would think I was murdering her! Lastly, I love how just as you were saying "I was worried about introducing two younger piggies with Willow and Lyra..." Roxy jumps up and nose butts Phoebe and Phoebe starts popcorning.
My 2 male piggies have been doing a LOT of fighting lately! They have been pretty much raised together for the last 2 yrs with no issues but over the last few months they fighting is getting concerning. The one boy keeps climbing on top of the other and nipping at his butt to the point where the other starts squealing loudly. At first I thought he was just feeling frisky but now I dont know. No injuries' have happened that I can see but I dont know if I should separate them or not. What would you suggest??
Hello! I was wondering my piggy gives me love and kisses all the time but when she's in her hidey or house she jab nips at me and tries to move her head when I pet her- this is a dominance behavior correct? Is there any way to get my piggy out of this I know she loves me but it scares me sometimes. Also she seems very happy any other time this just happens in her hidey even outside of the cage.
This really helped me understand the dynamics of our herd of 4 girls! We had 2 adults, but when one passed we decided to introduce 3 babies. The most dominant of the 3 babies and the adult are always lunging at each other, and while it never progresses more than that, I was concerned the baby was at risk. Glad to know its just the adult pig reminding the baby who's boss!
So glad the video helped! Yes, unless it progresses further I wouldn't think you have anything to worry about. Sometimes its not always a just a dominance thing either - some pigs are very highly strung and can't stand others getting all up in their grill 😂
Hi! I have 2 male Guinea pigs and they are both 7 weeks old (they are brothers). They chase one another around the cage and I often see the hair on their neck raise lmao xxxx
Thank you so much! I have two sister piggies of 3.5 months and the "dominant" one started rumblestrutting quite often where she tries to chase her sister. The little one seems frightened by this behavior and I'm wondering what else I can do to ensure they get along well. PS I must tell you that you're the reason I found the courage to adopt my two guinea pigs and I'm so thankful! Without your expertise it wouldn't have been possible! Lots of love 🩷
This is fascinating! I'm a new piggie owner and didn't realize that a lot of their behavior was actually about dominance! I just brought home two males, and one started to frequently and aggressively mount the other. Until that started, I thought they were just playing! 🤦♀️
My two boys do these all the time. Thankfully they’ve never hurt each other. One of them rumble strutts all day pretty much and they touch faces. It’s pretty adorable.
I'm a mousie caretaker, very familiar with mouse culture and behavior - which I guess is why it's fascinating to occasionally visit a different type of culture and society, guinea pig culture almost like visiting some different and exotic part of the world.
This video helped out a lot! I am a first time guinea pig owner and was told to atleast have 2 because they get depressed alone and I thought the girl was just nipping at the other girl to be mean or violent!
Awesome videos! I am a new piggie owner and all this info really helps. Just keep up the good work Bc I’m sure it’s helping several piggie owners all around the world!🤍✨
I have 2 piggies and one of them is the more dominant and she's chasing my other pig and i was at first a little scared but now i know why. Your films are amazing!
Thank you so much! I’ve been struggling with introducing my piggy Opal to her new friend (Opal would say ‘friend’ is a stretch lol) This video was very informative! And it helped me to understand piggy behaviors
Thank you so much for this video! I am a relatively new guinea pig owner, and I was just about to separate my pigs when I came across this video, turns out they were just being dominant and not aggressive!
They are all just absolutely adorable. ♥️🥰♥️Phoebe and Roxy are so precious, and Lyra and Willow are lovely. Very informative video. Amazing that such sweet herbivores can be so dominating and aggressive!! I’ve always had males and recognize these behaviors- didn’t realize females are just as bad 😂
About that little "O" mouth that piggies make when they are jabbing: So I have been seeing that so much lately in videos - all kinds of piggies doing it. My piggies did head jab/nose butt and all the other behaviors but never once saw the open mouth thing. It is so amazing over all those years to not see that. I know it is a warning, but it is so gosh darned cute. I can't stand it how cute!
My kid recently got a paid of females for her birthday..I grew up with tons of them but it's been 39 years..we thought we had a extremley odd pig about us until I watched this and seen the rumble strut..explain everything thank you..We thought she thought she was a male since she kept trying to mount..very good information for any pig owner..
Note that dominance behavior shows when guinea pig matures and youngsters can be more feisty (since they more healthy and have more energy) ;p so things might change
Thanks Sarah-very useful and helpful video I feel lucky that my 7 girls all get along pretty well and also have a very large amount of cage space to share, thankfully. Love the babies popcorning inside the hammock-so adorable :-) xx
Sounds like you have a great set up! Seven piggies! 😍😍 Haha yes, one of only a few clips I have of them doing it - they always stop when I get them camera out 😂 xx
My Harriet was a bit different when she was introduced to my rescue Clementime, who was at guessing, 3 months. Harriet was a pet store piggie,isolated and her behavior reflected that. Clementime,came to me in a skeleton state. The bonding intense. Harriet pretended to hump, and then also nip out ,but didn't. When things settled down enough, moving them to their home and had minimal tunnel and fiddle sticks, I caught Harriet trying to squish on top of tunnel. Out went the tunnel. It was hard and my first bonding, but they are like sisters now, Clementine has gained weight and they snuggle and sleep side by side. Clementine makes the submissive squeak noises, but usually in morning. Harriet chatters at that time too. Only time I hear disagreements. I am thankful and happy!
Great video! So glad you included submissive too. We recently adopted three sisters and I spend a lot of time watching them and trying to decide who the dominant one is lol. Love your channel, keep up the good work 💐
Thank you! Funnily enough, I'm a mod on another channel, and someone on the chat was asking why their girls were teethchattering. I'll send them your way if they show up again in the chat because you explain things so much better than I did.
Hey girl, thank you very much for this video. My guinea pig has been constantly raising her head when I would rub her on her throat, and I used to encourage that behavior. I had no clues she's been domineering over my hand xD. I know now to let them pay their own rank and just try to buy them over :). Thanks again
I finally found the reason why my smaller Piggie (Midna) is making that squealing noise. I'll run to see what's wrong and the larger Piggie (Rochelle) which they say is her sister is nearly sitting on her. Sometimes she is! Midna seems as though she is going to suffocate. I've had them less than 2 weeks and that sound has been going on since they got here. The rescue said they haven't heard the sound before. But, then, she's got many animals surrounding her with all sorts of noises going on. I feel so bad for Midna 😢 They have a 2 x 4 cage with both having their own hideout. I'll use your advice and make sure they have their own water, hay and food bowls, as well. I'm not sure how this will work since no matter where Midna goes, Rochelle follows....
@@SqueakDreams i couldn't believe it either, the older ginea pig looked like she was feeling so guilty just approaching the veggies of the younger one😂
Thank you so much for this video i just got another female today and i was worried about them and i was alittle on edge cause i did not know what to expect over it this help me alot to what to watch for
I used to have guinea pigs and remember all those sounds and behaviors,. I used to think it was all just cute, but it seems that a lot of serious business was going on. Very interesting leaning what it all means.
Thanks for this video I own 2 girls and they do all of this all day I just got them Thursday they have a love hate relationship lol maybe I need to get a bigger cage soon
I'm planning to get a second guinea pig soon, because at a time I had to take the current one quickly (or he'd die without proper medical treatment). I see that he needs a neighbour, and it breaks my heart a little. So, a new cage and a new friend is needed, but I was really unsure of his behaviour, especially of rumbling when i pet him and then almost immediate quiet squeaking. I'm glad I got to watch this video, but I'm still unsure how to translate this wheaking. Anyways, thank you!
My cage is a good bit bigger then the preferred size and I still alway feel like it’s too small and like I’m a bad owner and I even get nightmares about it but I watch videos like these to remind myself that my pitied are obviously very happy and totally fine and that that is probably just my anxiety/ sbuconsions playing with me (also I got Alice in wonderland syndrome[object rooms and things randomly change size meaning my perception is very unreliable] wich makes it kinda funny that I freak out over something like that that I can’t even judge properly) thank you for making videos like this it was very helpful and you piggies are lovley
Our two girls seem to swap dominance, LouLou is almost 5 and doesn’t seem as frequently showing dominance, but Bubbles being only one year old frequently rumble struts. But I think she’s the one who squeals the most.
I just got another male guinea pig for my solo guinea pig and I couldn't tell the difference between them play fighting or being dominant but then after they played they popcorned at the end
I have three wonderful females but they keep biting each other. Nothing very violent, but the youngest one is clingy and follows the oldest (Luna). The Luna one bites her sometimes, usually when they go in the same hidey together. I usually put four hideys when there is three piggies. Unfortunately the youngest, Daisy, lives alone. She lives alone because we currently dont have enough space for her, and she was just given to us out of nowhere. I will put her with the other two when I build the cage. But when I clean cages, I make a large space for all three too run around together.
I really have a very dominant female guinea pig. Ze was sort of mellow and together with a submissive female and a kind male. But after he died the two female went quite passive. The oldest female took over the dominant role, but they kept being passive. I decided to adopt a male to break her habit of trying to be too bossy and to get them moving. (Behaving like guinea pigs again) Unfortunately she does not at all accept him. Although he is still young and can sometimes be quite hyper, he tries To approach her quite cautiously, she really wants to hurt him. They have a neutral zone with a lot of space (a whole room as a matter effect) to run around in, to get to know each other, but no change. I even tried holding them both on my lap. No change. Small spaces, big spaces. Just them or with a third submissive neutral guinea pig also there. I’ve tried it all. At this point I don’t know what to do anymore. I put her in a different cage to make her loose the idea of the cage being hers. I’m hoping when being alone, she will be longing to be with her own kind. She doesn’t want to be alone, but she also doesn’t want to be with him. He still is becoming an adult and is going to be castrated in a week. His character will still change, but he has changed a lot already. So I don’t know. Well see. All tips are welcome at this point. Any suggestions?
I cannot thank you enough for this video! I got two young boys a week ago, Anakin and Obi-Wan, and I’ve been wondering why Obi has been rocking side to side and mounting Anakin but this just explains it so so well and it’s normal as they establish who’s gonna be the boss! 😅 Does it take long for them to establish who’s in charge? They’ve been doing it for about 5 days
Thank you so so much for the video! This helped so so much!! My two almost 6th month old piggies Oreo and Peach not girls! Have been rumble strutting,nipping, and bum sniffing! I was very concerned! And was thinking about splitting them up but felt bad doing it, I think they are just trying to, as you said, find who’s the “boss” pig! But if anyone has any tips please let me know! I’m new to guinea pigs as a only have owned them for a year now!
we have skinny pigs and going through the introduction period tonight it scares me more because they don't have the protection of hair we are introducing 2 new babies male to existing older that just lost his cage mate yesterday😢
hello and thank you for so many precious infos! a question: can two neutered males (brothers, living togheter) live with only two females? (the mother and another girl) - thank you soooo much!
I have two male babies, Wilbur and Mouse. I had Wilbur first and thought he was submissive until I introduced Mouse… Mouse is smaller and a bit shy and Wilbur humped his face a couple times and rumplestrutted 😂 Mouse just took it so I guess Wilbur is the dominant one. They have two separate hides, two separate food bowls… I’m gonna get another water bottle tomorrow so they shouldn’t fight over any resources. Plenty of room too
We tried our two boars together early on. Our one mounted, sprayed and bit (drew some blood one of the times) the other every time they were together. We separated them after with their cages side by side. Even now they don't get along over a year later and need the bars between them.
I had the same problem. When they were babies, they were fine. When the hit puberty, they got violent with each other. Now they have adjoining cages that take up what's supposed to be my small dining room. The only time they're in the same place without bars is when they're on the couch together having a lettuce party in between them.
@@nb2008nc Cage cleaning is the only time they're together too. I give them both some treats on separate areas of the floor and get cleaning. It'd be nice if they could share, but alas not in the stars for this pair.
If i mistakenly introduced my two female piggies in the cage of one of them, how do I get them to bond? they’ve been in the cage together for 3 days and i did but them in neutral territory but they still seem to not get along? any help ?
My guinea pigs fight all the time. It annoys me I always have to stop the fight. They fight abt 3 times a day, my parents say it’s fine but it’s tiring and u hate it , they have a midwestern cage ( according to my guinea pig shelter, it’s okay ) and I take them out, there healthy. I feel bad
I have 3 guinea pigs, 1 baby( i think he is VERY small ) And the other 2 are adults The 2 male adults battled their dominance out ( not fighting but by humping ) But my one male keeps chasing the small one to hump him and the younger one runs away i constantly have an anxiety attack not wanting him to get hurt, Funny how the baby one and the other male guinea pig just came from petco( as of writing this we got them both october 9th 2021 , and the other male we already had for a week and a half ) and the baby LOVES being held by humans and crys for me to give him attention And atm all of them are not wanting to lay together in the pigloo we have one sleeps on top and the other sleep in a back and the baby kicks them out lol but he is very submissive to the 2 year old male for a week 😂😭 Im a new guy guinea pig owner so this is new to me🥺😔 i love them tho!
What if your two pigs (baby Male and adult female) break out into a fight and rip hair but then seem calm? I was about to separate them but they calmed down. They are in a hiddey together now and we’re not making noises. Now they are teeth rumbling again. Should I separate them?
I know this post is 2 years old but i have two older guinea pigs and one baby guinea pig and the adult piggys have been hurting the baby alot. they don't get along well. what should i do?
I need some help. I recently just got a new guniea pig he is 3 months old my Og piggy is 7months. I havent put them in the cage together yet but I took your advice and introduced them on neutral ground. However, yesterday I made a mistake and brought of one of their houses which wasn’t open. They both got inside and started fighting it was so scary. Now today they automatically saw each other and teeth started chattering. What should I do now? I’m def keeping them separated for a few but I’m going to keep introducing them. I just need advice pleasee
So I have two boars (I know it’s not recommended but it’s all pet smart had so here we are) are they just gonna be dominant and submissive all the time or when do they become friends or is that a thing
What about kicking? I've noticed my older guy Kaz kicking the younger one with his hind leg as he Rumble struts by him He also sometimes mounts him and gets annoyed with him. Recently I had to separate them because Kaz just would not stop mounting him one night. It's funny because if you take Chico out of the cage, Kaz will immediately starting crying and complaining. He hates not having his Lil buddy and yet he's mean to him lol I wonder if it's separation anxiety because his older buddy died when he was young Kaz is also very fussy about being touched. He let's me pet him but if Chico rubs up against him he'll get jumpy and really annoyed lol He's a sweetheart but he's also a fussy Lil bastard. And lazy, he lays down while he's eating pellets out of his bowl. Total glutton
Hello! I was wondering my piggy gives me love and kisses all the time but when she's in her hidey or house she jab nips at me and tries to move her head when I pet her- this is a dominance behavior correct? Is there any way to get my piggy out of this I know she loves me but it scares me sometimes. Also she seems very happy any other time this just happens in her hidey even outside of the cage.
Hi l want to ask something..is guniea pig poo or urine smells bed ? I had rabbit there urine smells bed around home l want to buy guniea pig ..also can l give toilet train for guniea pig and are they biting ?
Do guinea pigs try to dominate their owners as well? I feel my absyssian guinea pigs, sassy one, does the dance of dominance towards me when I tell her not to do many things 😅 I think that’s her way of trying to set hierarchy over me 😂
Hi, I have my guinea pigs for 1 and a half week now. They are 2 males. The one male keeps purring/rumbling and the other keeps squeeking/whimpering. This morning I found some fur missing on the whimpering pig. Is this normal? 🥺 They do have a big cage and 2 hideys
my pig does rumble strutting to the other, and when i feed them he always steals food and doesn't let her eat. they seem always angry at eachother, what should i do?
i just got my first two guinea pigs today! One of my boys keeps humping my other male guinea pig,, i don’t really understand what this means can someone help me?
I would like to know how usually takes to calm down... I have two piggies, one of 5 months and the other has 7 months and the youngest one started to show dominance, chasing the other piggie and making the head thing. I don't know what to do since sometimes when they're doing this they jump to each other but any of them gets hurt? But I'm afraid of letting them free in the same space and that causes a fight. Anyone cal help? ;_;
Hi love this video it was very informative and helpful! I am a new guinea pig owner and I have two baby piggies who are sisters, they have been pretty dominant with one another since I've got them. They keep doing this thing where they charge at the other guinea pigs bottom nip it then run away. Any Idea what they are doing? I assumed it was dominance since they are also rumble strutting. Just want to make my little piggies happy! ( I've had them gendered by the vet so they are definitely both girls)
Can you tell me what yawning in confrontation means, my piggies does it all the time with teeth chattering.? They won't do it at fights but only when casually testing each other limits. Young male so gonna be a long ride of overwatch.
I have seen yawning a few times in combo with teeth chattering like you say, I'd say its just something to be aware of as another sign of possible aggression 😊
I'm new to having 2 girls. Gwen is a skinny pig (ive had her for awhile now)and Clover is my new fur guinea pig. I introduced them and Gwen wanted to interact but Clover stayed in a corner but when Gwen came close, she would open her mouth and raise her head. Gwen would chatter her teeth and tried try to mount at times (not sure if it's dominance or just the season) This is my first time introducing and I'm not sure about certain noises they make as well. Should continue leaving them in the cage or keep them in a separate one and try again?
Hello! My wife's coworker had to rehome her guinea pigs so we decided to take them in. We've had them for 2 weeks now and one of the guinea pigs is demonstrating a lot of these dominance behaviors towards the other. The less dominant guinea pig backs down every time and often makes these really sad sounding squeaks, but the dominant piggie just keeps getting in his face and moving head up and down. He sometimes nips at him and he's constantly making the rumblestrutting noise. You mentioned that changes can provoke these behaviors and the previous owner stated that they did this when they first brought them home, but it dissipated as they settled in. Do I just need to give them more time? I feel bad for the piggie that's getting bullied. I have a cage that is slightly less than 4ft x 2ft (I plan to build a larger one) and I made sure that there's 2 of everything (hidies, food bowls, hay, water, etc). Any insight you have would be greatly appreciated!
I had to separate my pigs because the vet said to quarantine one due to an upper respiratory infection and it broke their bond. There was a lot of teeth chattering and what looked like lunging. Should I be scared? :(
I’m a new owner to 3 girls, I had only planned on getting 2 but that would’ve meant I’d left the last girl alone in the shop which I just couldn’t do 😁 I have noticed that the girl I couldn’t leave seems a bit of a try hard with the other 2 if that makes sense? She gets in their space a bit and she has this little habit of turning around and going to them bum first. If anyone could explain what that behaviour means it would be a huge help 😅
Thank you so much, this helped my knowledge. Angel is currently separated and will not bond with Willow. It doesn’t matter what I do. Do you have any tips or do you think she’s okay by herself as I do see her do some laps and popcorns here and there.
Awh that's a shame - if they can hear/see each other I think that is an okay compromise. Is Willow the baby? You could also try re-introducing when she's a bit older maybe 😊
My 2 female guinea pigs were fine but now other one is constantly rumbling and wiggle her bum. She has been doing this 4 days now. Could she be on heat?
Had my guineas for 2 weeks now, both sisters. I noticed one of them biting the other on her lower back several times a day and now she has a bald circle with a couple of scabs there. It’s now starting to heal though and the other doesn’t bite her anymore. Could you explain what this could have been? The biting started about 4 days into having them. Competing for dominance maybe?I was just about to separate them until it stopped. They still get a little fussy with each other but like I said before, I just got them 2 weeks ago (4-6months in age). Thank you so much and LOVE the videos!!
Congrats on your new piggies! Was the biting paired with other dominance behaviour like chasing? If so it is unusual but possible following the stress of moving home and you should monitor them for any more aggressive behaviours. Alternatively it could be a skin problem made worse by the other licking/nibbling it if it was more casual. A circle shape could point to ringworm, I recommend reading up on this and also the possibility of manage mites. If in doubt a vet visit might be in order :)
Squeak Dreams Thank you so much! I did get them from a pet store and I did watch your video about getting them from a breeder only after I got them, lol. I’m taking both piggies to the vet today :) They were doing the chasing thing as well. They have a lot of free range time out of the cage several times daily and they love it. They are so so sweet to handle! Thank you so much for the information and I’ll update you on what the vet says :)
Who else finds guinea pig behaviours fascinating?! This video takes a closer look at dominance behaviours and gives advice on what to consider when guinea pigs aren't getting along that well. Let us know in the comments - who's the boss pig in your herd? And what is their go-to dominance move? 😂🤗🌻
Musings from this adorable and informative video: First, I am obsessed with Roxy's "tail" of hair. It is just awesome. I miss having Peruvian/mix piggies! @3:23 Willow to Lyra: Um, look if you don't know how to do this correctly, please stop jumping on me in the middle. I am sensitive there! @5:35 when poor Willow cries out it reminds me of how one of my piggies used to act whenever I was going to clip her nails. Didn't even get close to touching her yet but you would think I was murdering her! Lastly, I love how just as you were saying "I was worried about introducing two younger piggies with Willow and Lyra..." Roxy jumps up and nose butts Phoebe and Phoebe starts popcorning.
My 2 male piggies have been doing a LOT of fighting lately! They have been pretty much raised together for the last 2 yrs with no issues but over the last few months they fighting is getting concerning. The one boy keeps climbing on top of the other and nipping at his butt to the point where the other starts squealing loudly. At first I thought he was just feeling frisky but now I dont know. No injuries' have happened that I can see but I dont know if I should separate them or not. What would you suggest??
Lol okay it’s anoyying with the chattering everyday put them in the room with to live lol you won’t say that then
My boss pig is definitely my "physically larger" piggy, Cole - he's usually the one who rumble struts.
Hello! I was wondering my piggy gives me love and kisses all the time but when she's in her hidey or house she jab nips at me and tries to move her head when I pet her- this is a dominance behavior correct? Is there any way to get my piggy out of this I know she loves me but it scares me sometimes. Also she seems very happy any other time this just happens in her hidey even outside of the cage.
This really helped me understand the dynamics of our herd of 4 girls! We had 2 adults, but when one passed we decided to introduce 3 babies. The most dominant of the 3 babies and the adult are always lunging at each other, and while it never progresses more than that, I was concerned the baby was at risk. Glad to know its just the adult pig reminding the baby who's boss!
So glad the video helped! Yes, unless it progresses further I wouldn't think you have anything to worry about. Sometimes its not always a just a dominance thing either - some pigs are very highly strung and can't stand others getting all up in their grill 😂
Hi! I have 2 male Guinea pigs and they are both 7 weeks old (they are brothers). They chase one another around the cage and I often see the hair on their neck raise lmao xxxx
I am a beginner so I appreciate this.
Thank you this was perfect!! I was really worried that they are fighting :)
Thank you so much! I have two sister piggies of 3.5 months and the "dominant" one started rumblestrutting quite often where she tries to chase her sister. The little one seems frightened by this behavior and I'm wondering what else I can do to ensure they get along well. PS I must tell you that you're the reason I found the courage to adopt my two guinea pigs and I'm so thankful! Without your expertise it wouldn't have been possible! Lots of love 🩷
This is fascinating! I'm a new piggie owner and didn't realize that a lot of their behavior was actually about dominance! I just brought home two males, and one started to frequently and aggressively mount the other. Until that started, I thought they were just playing! 🤦♀️
I got 2 recently and I thought they were playing as well lol
My two boys do these all the time. Thankfully they’ve never hurt each other. One of them rumble strutts all day pretty much and they touch faces. It’s pretty adorable.
mine do that as well sometimes :p
I'm a mousie caretaker, very familiar with mouse culture and behavior - which I guess is why it's fascinating to occasionally visit a different type of culture and society, guinea pig culture almost like visiting some different and exotic part of the world.
This video helped out a lot! I am a first time guinea pig owner and was told to atleast have 2 because they get depressed alone and I thought the girl was just nipping at the other girl to be mean or violent!
Awesome videos! I am a new piggie owner and all this info really helps. Just keep up the good work Bc I’m sure it’s helping several piggie owners all around the world!🤍✨
Awh thank you so much, I'm so glad the video is useful! 😃🌻
I have 2 piggies and one of them is the more dominant and she's chasing my other pig and i was at first a little scared but now i know why. Your films are amazing!
Same
I thought they were fighting
Thank you so much! I’ve been struggling with introducing my piggy Opal to her new friend (Opal would say ‘friend’ is a stretch lol) This video was very informative! And it helped me to understand piggy behaviors
Thank you so much for this video! I am a relatively new guinea pig owner, and I was just about to separate my pigs when I came across this video, turns out they were just being dominant and not aggressive!
They are all just absolutely adorable. ♥️🥰♥️Phoebe and Roxy are so precious, and Lyra and Willow are lovely. Very informative video. Amazing that such sweet herbivores can be so dominating and aggressive!! I’ve always had males and recognize these behaviors- didn’t realize females are just as bad 😂
About that little "O" mouth that piggies make when they are jabbing: So I have been seeing that so much lately in videos - all kinds of piggies doing it. My piggies did head jab/nose butt and all the other behaviors but never once saw the open mouth thing. It is so amazing over all those years to not see that. I know it is a warning, but it is so gosh darned cute. I can't stand it how cute!
Haha yes it is so so cute - little angry donut lips! 😂
My kid recently got a paid of females for her birthday..I grew up with tons of them but it's been 39 years..we thought we had a extremley odd pig about us until I watched this and seen the rumble strut..explain everything thank you..We thought she thought she was a male since she kept trying to mount..very good information for any pig owner..
When one of my old guinea pigs died I got two babies and the older piggy loved them, rarely any aggression they got along very well, I miss them
I just love watching your videos! so informative. I have 4 girls, 2 older ones and then we got 2 babies last september, they get on so well together.
Note that dominance behavior shows when guinea pig matures and youngsters can be more feisty (since they more healthy and have more energy) ;p so things might change
Thank you Karen! That's lovely that your piggies get on really well 😃❤
Thanks Sarah-very useful and helpful video I feel lucky that my 7 girls all get along pretty well and also have a very large amount of cage space to share, thankfully. Love the babies popcorning inside the hammock-so adorable :-) xx
Sounds like you have a great set up! Seven piggies! 😍😍 Haha yes, one of only a few clips I have of them doing it - they always stop when I get them camera out 😂 xx
My Harriet was a bit different when she was introduced to my rescue Clementime, who was at guessing, 3 months. Harriet was a pet store piggie,isolated and her behavior reflected that. Clementime,came to me in a skeleton state. The bonding intense. Harriet pretended to hump, and then also nip out ,but didn't. When things settled down enough, moving them to their home and had minimal tunnel and fiddle sticks, I caught Harriet trying to squish on top of tunnel. Out went the tunnel. It was hard and my first bonding, but they are like sisters now, Clementine has gained weight and they snuggle and sleep side by side. Clementine makes the submissive squeak noises, but usually in morning. Harriet chatters at that time too. Only time I hear disagreements. I am thankful and happy!
Great video! So glad you included submissive too. We recently adopted three sisters and I spend a lot of time watching them and trying to decide who the dominant one is lol. Love your channel, keep up the good work 💐
Thank you! Funnily enough, I'm a mod on another channel, and someone on the chat was asking why their girls were teethchattering. I'll send them your way if they show up again in the chat because you explain things so much better than I did.
Ah that's so cool! Thank you! I'm glad you thought my explanation was good! 😃
@@SqueakDreams You're welcome!
I have an older male and a younger female and they get along very well the first day 🤷🏾♀️✨✨🥰
Hey girl, thank you very much for this video. My guinea pig has been constantly raising her head when I would rub her on her throat, and I used to encourage that behavior. I had no clues she's been domineering over my hand xD. I know now to let them pay their own rank and just try to buy them over :). Thanks again
I finally found the reason why my smaller Piggie (Midna) is making that squealing noise.
I'll run to see what's wrong and the larger Piggie (Rochelle) which they say is her sister is nearly sitting on her.
Sometimes she is! Midna seems as though she is going to suffocate.
I've had them less than 2 weeks and that sound has been going on since they got here.
The rescue said they haven't heard the sound before. But, then, she's got many animals surrounding her with all sorts
of noises going on. I feel so bad for Midna 😢
They have a 2 x 4 cage with both having their own hideout. I'll use your advice and make sure they have their own water, hay and food bowls, as well.
I'm not sure how this will work since no matter where Midna goes, Rochelle follows....
One of my guinea pigs when she was small she used the submissive behavior to make the older one guilt trip so she wouldn't steal her veggies😂
Haha oh so sneaky! I'm surprised it worked! 😂
@@SqueakDreams i couldn't believe it either, the older ginea pig looked like she was feeling so guilty just approaching the veggies of the younger one😂
Thank you so much for this video i just got another female today and i was worried about them and i was alittle on edge cause i did not know what to expect over it this help me alot to what to watch for
Thanks for showing that chart because I have 2 female guines pigs and their cage is 39" feet
I used to have guinea pigs and remember all those sounds and behaviors,. I used to think it was all just cute, but it seems that a lot of serious business was going on. Very interesting leaning what it all means.
This helps me so so much! Thank you. Now I feel less worried for sure
Thanks for this video I own 2 girls and they do all of this all day I just got them Thursday they have a love hate relationship lol maybe I need to get a bigger cage soon
I'm planning to get a second guinea pig soon, because at a time I had to take the current one quickly (or he'd die without proper medical treatment). I see that he needs a neighbour, and it breaks my heart a little. So, a new cage and a new friend is needed, but I was really unsure of his behaviour, especially of rumbling when i pet him and then almost immediate quiet squeaking. I'm glad I got to watch this video, but I'm still unsure how to translate this wheaking. Anyways, thank you!
Thank you. Looking forward to sharing your video. 😊
Thank you so so much! Such an informative video and love your clear manner
I’ve had my Guinea pigs two weeks today and there only 3 months old and I’ve got one who is rumble strutting all the time on and off :( it scares me
sorry i’m so late, but did they end up having to be separated?
I love gunie pigs
My cage is a good bit bigger then the preferred size and I still alway feel like it’s too small and like I’m a bad owner and I even get nightmares about it but I watch videos like these to remind myself that my pitied are obviously very happy and totally fine and that that is probably just my anxiety/ sbuconsions playing with me (also I got Alice in wonderland syndrome[object rooms and things randomly change size meaning my perception is very unreliable] wich makes it kinda funny that I freak out over something like that that I can’t even judge properly) thank you for making videos like this it was very helpful and you piggies are lovley
Our two girls seem to swap dominance, LouLou is almost 5 and doesn’t seem as frequently showing dominance, but Bubbles being only one year old frequently rumble struts. But I think she’s the one who squeals the most.
I just got another male guinea pig for my solo guinea pig and I couldn't tell the difference between them play fighting or being dominant but then after they played they popcorned at the end
Thank you!!!!!!!!!
great video!
I have three wonderful females but they keep biting each other. Nothing very violent, but the youngest one is clingy and follows the oldest (Luna). The Luna one bites her sometimes, usually when they go in the same hidey together. I usually put four hideys when there is three piggies. Unfortunately the youngest, Daisy, lives alone. She lives alone because we currently dont have enough space for her, and she was just given to us out of nowhere. I will put her with the other two when I build the cage. But when I clean cages, I make a large space for all three too run around together.
You watch little adventures too
I really have a very dominant female guinea pig. Ze was sort of mellow and together with a submissive female and a kind male. But after he died the two female went quite passive. The oldest female took over the dominant role, but they kept being passive. I decided to adopt a male to break her habit of trying to be too bossy and to get them moving. (Behaving like guinea pigs again) Unfortunately she does not at all accept him. Although he is still young and can sometimes be quite hyper, he tries To approach her quite cautiously, she really wants to hurt him. They have a neutral zone with a lot of space (a whole room as a matter effect) to run around in, to get to know each other, but no change. I even tried holding them both on my lap. No change. Small spaces, big spaces. Just them or with a third submissive neutral guinea pig also there. I’ve tried it all. At this point I don’t know what to do anymore. I put her in a different cage to make her loose the idea of the cage being hers. I’m hoping when being alone, she will be longing to be with her own kind. She doesn’t want to be alone, but she also doesn’t want to be with him. He still is becoming an adult and is going to be castrated in a week. His character will still change, but he has changed a lot already. So I don’t know. Well see. All tips are welcome at this point. Any suggestions?
Omg thank you for this.. I just introduced a new girl to my 2 girls and they are bullying her.. but now I know it’s normal. I was so worried for her.
Fascinating!
I cannot thank you enough for this video! I got two young boys a week ago, Anakin and Obi-Wan, and I’ve been wondering why Obi has been rocking side to side and mounting Anakin but this just explains it so so well and it’s normal as they establish who’s gonna be the boss! 😅 Does it take long for them to establish who’s in charge? They’ve been doing it for about 5 days
Thank you so so much for the video! This helped so so much!! My two almost 6th month old piggies Oreo and Peach not girls! Have been rumble strutting,nipping, and bum sniffing! I was very concerned! And was thinking about splitting them up but felt bad doing it, I think they are just trying to, as you said, find who’s the “boss” pig! But if anyone has any tips please let me know! I’m new to guinea pigs as a only have owned them for a year now!
I meant both girls lol😂😂
very interresting. i like your videos so much. 👍😍
Thank you! 😄
we have skinny pigs and going through the introduction period tonight it scares me more because they don't have the protection of hair we are introducing 2 new babies male to existing older that just lost his cage mate yesterday😢
hello and thank you for so many precious infos! a question: can two neutered males (brothers, living togheter) live with only two females? (the mother and another girl) - thank you soooo much!
We have two boys and neither of them have yet to assert dominance, they constantly try to fight each other for dominance.
I have two male babies, Wilbur and Mouse. I had Wilbur first and thought he was submissive until I introduced Mouse… Mouse is smaller and a bit shy and Wilbur humped his face a couple times and rumplestrutted 😂 Mouse just took it so I guess Wilbur is the dominant one. They have two separate hides, two separate food bowls… I’m gonna get another water bottle tomorrow so they shouldn’t fight over any resources. Plenty of room too
Haha, love their behaviours! Sounds like you are on top of the situation and hopefully they'll be very happy together 😍
We tried our two boars together early on. Our one mounted, sprayed and bit (drew some blood one of the times) the other every time they were together. We separated them after with their cages side by side. Even now they don't get along over a year later and need the bars between them.
I had the same problem. When they were babies, they were fine. When the hit puberty, they got violent with each other. Now they have adjoining cages that take up what's supposed to be my small dining room. The only time they're in the same place without bars is when they're on the couch together having a lettuce party in between them.
@@nb2008nc Cage cleaning is the only time they're together too. I give them both some treats on separate areas of the floor and get cleaning. It'd be nice if they could share, but alas not in the stars for this pair.
Nice video, im still struggling introducing my new Teddy to Sheba Mini Yak . SIGH
I am trying to bond my male pigs and this helps a lot but it's not my cage I don't think there in a 4 x7 if it works out it will be a 4x9
If i mistakenly introduced my two female piggies in the cage of one of them, how do I get them to bond? they’ve been in the cage together for 3 days and i did but them in neutral territory but they still seem to not get along? any help ?
My guniea pigs have. The first problem every time so I think I’m gonna put them in the same cage
My guinea pigs fight all the time. It annoys me I always have to stop the fight. They fight abt 3 times a day, my parents say it’s fine but it’s tiring and u hate it , they have a midwestern cage ( according to my guinea pig shelter, it’s okay ) and I take them out, there healthy. I feel bad
One of my guinea climb on one of my other guinea pig like she climbs on her
Great video 😊👌
(Just a quick question. What is the size of your cage?)
Thank you! The cage is 2 m by 70 cm - equivalent to a 2 x 6 C&C 😃
I have 3 guinea pigs, 1 baby( i think he is VERY small )
And the other 2 are adults
The 2 male adults battled their dominance out ( not fighting but by humping )
But my one male keeps chasing the small one to hump him and the younger one runs away i constantly have an anxiety attack not wanting him to get hurt,
Funny how the baby one and the other male guinea pig just came from petco( as of writing this we got them both october 9th 2021 , and the other male we already had for a week and a half ) and the baby LOVES being held by humans and crys for me to give him attention
And atm all of them are not wanting to lay together in the pigloo we have one sleeps on top and the other sleep in a back and the baby kicks them out lol but he is very submissive to the 2 year old male for a week 😂😭
Im a new guy guinea pig owner so this is new to me🥺😔 i love them tho!
What if your two pigs (baby Male and adult female) break out into a fight and rip hair but then seem calm? I was about to separate them but they calmed down. They are in a hiddey together now and we’re not making noises. Now they are teeth rumbling again. Should I separate them?
I know this post is 2 years old but i have two older guinea pigs and one baby guinea pig and the adult piggys have been hurting the baby alot. they don't get along well. what should i do?
I am going to get a guinea pig in 3 weeks
The dominant pig is bullying the lesser one kind of bad for weeks. I tried to separate them but when I introduced them again..same old thing.
I need some help. I recently just got a new guniea pig he is 3 months old my Og piggy is 7months. I havent put them in the cage together yet but I took your advice and introduced them on neutral ground. However, yesterday I made a mistake and brought of one of their houses which wasn’t open. They both got inside and started fighting it was so scary. Now today they automatically saw each other and teeth started chattering. What should I do now? I’m def keeping them separated for a few but I’m going to keep introducing them. I just need advice pleasee
I have 2 girls had them a few months they make a loud puring noise help ! Lol
Where did you get the hanging hammock from the wood stand?
Would a cage 4 grids by 2 grids work for two guinnea pigs?
So I have two boars (I know it’s not recommended but it’s all pet smart had so here we are) are they just gonna be dominant and submissive all the time or when do they become friends or is that a thing
One of my pigs who is the older one between the two had made my younger pig bleed so we had to put Timothy in the time out cage
Do they get along now?
What breed of piggies are they? Mine are Abyssinian
My guinea pigs uses to have serious fights and it was horrible!! They have relaxed more but still lunge and roll around every now and then : (
i have 2 girls the younger one keeps rumblestrutting and mounting the older one and she keeps on squealing
My boys are fighting right now!!! :( they lunge and chase each other all the time
Well I have a 3 week old guinea pig and 1 month old guinea pig the 1 month puzzle keeps hurting limbo my new guinea pig
What about kicking? I've noticed my older guy Kaz kicking the younger one with his hind leg as he Rumble struts by him
He also sometimes mounts him and gets annoyed with him. Recently I had to separate them because Kaz just would not stop mounting him one night.
It's funny because if you take Chico out of the cage, Kaz will immediately starting crying and complaining. He hates not having his Lil buddy and yet he's mean to him lol I wonder if it's separation anxiety because his older buddy died when he was young
Kaz is also very fussy about being touched. He let's me pet him but if Chico rubs up against him he'll get jumpy and really annoyed lol
He's a sweetheart but he's also a fussy Lil bastard. And lazy, he lays down while he's eating pellets out of his bowl. Total glutton
what would you suggest if an older guinea pig is lunging and fighting with a (new) younger one ? should we stop trying or try again?
Fighting (fur ball fights that result in injury) mean they will not bond and need to be separated unfortunately :(
Hello! I was wondering my piggy gives me love and kisses all the time but when she's in her hidey or house she jab nips at me and tries to move her head when I pet her- this is a dominance behavior correct? Is there any way to get my piggy out of this I know she loves me but it scares me sometimes. Also she seems very happy any other time this just happens in her hidey even outside of the cage.
@squeakdreams
Hi l want to ask something..is guniea pig poo or urine smells bed ? I had rabbit there urine smells bed around home l want to buy guniea pig ..also can l give toilet train for guniea pig and are they biting ?
My guinea pig rumblestruts at the other every day.
Do guinea pigs try to dominate their owners as well? I feel my absyssian guinea pigs, sassy one, does the dance of dominance towards me when I tell her not to do many things 😅 I think that’s her way of trying to set hierarchy over me 😂
Hi, I have my guinea pigs for 1 and a half week now. They are 2 males. The one male keeps purring/rumbling and the other keeps squeeking/whimpering. This morning I found some fur missing on the whimpering pig. Is this normal? 🥺 They do have a big cage and 2 hideys
40x290
my pig does rumble strutting to the other, and when i feed them he always steals food and doesn't let her eat. they seem always angry at eachother, what should i do?
Do you have any tips now??
@@maddyinparadise not really, i just keep their cages separated. When i free them i'm either really careful or i let them out in different times
Where did you get your cute guinea set up ?
i just got my first two guinea pigs today! One of my boys keeps humping my other male guinea pig,, i don’t really understand what this means can someone help me?
I would like to know how usually takes to calm down...
I have two piggies, one of 5 months and the other has 7 months and the youngest one started to show dominance, chasing the other piggie and making the head thing. I don't know what to do since sometimes when they're doing this they jump to each other but any of them gets hurt? But I'm afraid of letting them free in the same space and that causes a fight. Anyone cal help? ;_;
Hi love this video it was very informative and helpful! I am a new guinea pig owner and I have two baby piggies who are sisters, they have been pretty dominant with one another since I've got them. They keep doing this thing where they charge at the other guinea pigs bottom nip it then run away. Any Idea what they are doing? I assumed it was dominance since they are also rumble strutting. Just want to make my little piggies happy! ( I've had them gendered by the vet so they are definitely both girls)
Can you tell me what yawning in confrontation means, my piggies does it all the time with teeth chattering.? They won't do it at fights but only when casually testing each other limits. Young male so gonna be a long ride of overwatch.
I have seen yawning a few times in combo with teeth chattering like you say, I'd say its just something to be aware of as another sign of possible aggression 😊
I have 3 males. I've already had to remove one from the group but now I'm not sure whether I need to separate my other two. 😭
I'm new to having 2 girls. Gwen is a skinny pig (ive had her for awhile now)and Clover is my new fur guinea pig. I introduced them and Gwen wanted to interact but Clover stayed in a corner but when Gwen came close, she would open her mouth and raise her head. Gwen would chatter her teeth and tried try to mount at times (not sure if it's dominance or just the season)
This is my first time introducing and I'm not sure about certain noises they make as well. Should continue leaving them in the cage or keep them in a separate one and try again?
Hello! My wife's coworker had to rehome her guinea pigs so we decided to take them in. We've had them for 2 weeks now and one of the guinea pigs is demonstrating a lot of these dominance behaviors towards the other. The less dominant guinea pig backs down every time and often makes these really sad sounding squeaks, but the dominant piggie just keeps getting in his face and moving head up and down. He sometimes nips at him and he's constantly making the rumblestrutting noise. You mentioned that changes can provoke these behaviors and the previous owner stated that they did this when they first brought them home, but it dissipated as they settled in. Do I just need to give them more time? I feel bad for the piggie that's getting bullied. I have a cage that is slightly less than 4ft x 2ft (I plan to build a larger one) and I made sure that there's 2 of everything (hidies, food bowls, hay, water, etc). Any insight you have would be greatly appreciated!
I had to separate my pigs because the vet said to quarantine one due to an upper respiratory infection and it broke their bond. There was a lot of teeth chattering and what looked like lunging. Should I be scared? :(
I’m a new owner to 3 girls, I had only planned on getting 2 but that would’ve meant I’d left the last girl alone in the shop which I just couldn’t do 😁 I have noticed that the girl I couldn’t leave seems a bit of a try hard with the other 2 if that makes sense? She gets in their space a bit and she has this little habit of turning around and going to them bum first. If anyone could explain what that behaviour means it would be a huge help 😅
Thank you so much, this helped my knowledge. Angel is currently separated and will not bond with Willow. It doesn’t matter what I do. Do you have any tips or do you think she’s okay by herself as I do see her do some laps and popcorns here and there.
Awh that's a shame - if they can hear/see each other I think that is an okay compromise. Is Willow the baby? You could also try re-introducing when she's a bit older maybe 😊
@@SqueakDreams their cages are right next to each other. I’ll try when Willow is older. Thanks!
My 2 female guinea pigs were fine but now other one is constantly rumbling and wiggle her bum. She has been doing this 4 days now. Could she be on heat?
Had my guineas for 2 weeks now, both sisters. I noticed one of them biting the other on her lower back several times a day and now she has a bald circle with a couple of scabs there. It’s now starting to heal though and the other doesn’t bite her anymore. Could you explain what this could have been? The biting started about 4 days into having them. Competing for dominance maybe?I was just about to separate them until it stopped. They still get a little fussy with each other but like I said before, I just got them 2 weeks ago (4-6months in age). Thank you so much and LOVE the videos!!
Congrats on your new piggies! Was the biting paired with other dominance behaviour like chasing? If so it is unusual but possible following the stress of moving home and you should monitor them for any more aggressive behaviours. Alternatively it could be a skin problem made worse by the other licking/nibbling it if it was more casual. A circle shape could point to ringworm, I recommend reading up on this and also the possibility of manage mites. If in doubt a vet visit might be in order :)
Squeak Dreams Thank you so much! I did get them from a pet store and I did watch your video about getting them from a breeder only after I got them, lol. I’m taking both piggies to the vet today :) They were doing the chasing thing as well. They have a lot of free range time out of the cage several times daily and they love it. They are so so sweet to handle! Thank you so much for the information and I’ll update you on what the vet says :)