I'm so very frustrated with my pigs!

[Squirle]

My guinea pigs are frustrating me so much! Its driving me crazy!

I'm taming them, taking great care of them, and i don't get anything in return. Not even letting me pet 1 of them.

I've been bitten way too many times to count, actually I was bit today and my finger had been bleeding for about 45 minutes, and still isn't stopping.

They will not tolerate me petting them, holding them, or anything. They just don't want to be with people.

I just don't understand what i'm doing wrong! What did i ever do? I take great care of them, every day try to tame them very gently, give them food and water, give them hay and veggies. I don't know what I'm doing wrong. I'm so sad, I just sitting here crying because i don't know what to do.

I've had them for about 6 months. If anyone could help me, even the slightest bit, i would appreciate it very, very much.

And sorry about sounding for angry, I'm just having a really hard time.

Thank you for your time and patience with me.

[BabyGrl]

Have you treated them for mites? That the only thing I can think of.

[Squirle]

Yes, I had them checked a few times by my vet ( a really good vet who treats pigs), she says thyey are perfectly healthy little guineas

Thank you though

[cavywench]

Treating for mites would also be my first recommendation. Pigs usually only bite when they are in pain.

Althought I've had my boys for awhile, they sometimes will still run away from me. Since they are prey animals, sometimes they will never get out of that "they are gonna eat me!" mode. You can always try to herd one at a time onto or into a cuddle cup and lift them out from there. They might just settle down once they are out of their territory. Give them treats while they are on your lap, pet them, make them feel secure. With time, they should settle down. But do expect them to run at first with your approaching their pen.

Good luck!


I would recommend treating them anyways. Mites can not be seen with the naked eye and a skin scrapping doesn't always come out positive.

[smoot]

It's really unusual for guinea pigs to bite. One of the reasons guinea pigs became popular as a pet was that they don't bite. I know mites seem to be the answer to everything, but have you treated them for mites?

Check out this link: http://www.cavyspirit.com/biting.htm. If they have been biting for a while, they may be conditioned to do this so you'll leave them alone. "Don't put them back down after they bite. That will only reinforce the behavior--biting to get their way. Continue holding your guinea pig and pet him calmly. Put him down later." This is very important!

When you say you're taming them, what do you mean? Taming them usually means that you're making them used to human contact. Are you holding them every day? Do you sit and talk to them so they're used to your voice?

From personal experience, I was tired of my pigs being so skittish around me. It sounds mean but I picked them up and forced them to have lap-time. They would run like crazy to get away from me grabbing them, but after just a few weeks, they're noticeably calmer. They instinctually run like the dickens when I go to pick them up, but after a few seconds they look like they remember "Oh, wait, the Big Hands From the Sky aren't so bad" and let me pick them up. One pig even falls asleep while I'm petting her. I've had her about five months.

I know how frustrating it can be - you take care of all their needs and you adore them, but they seem "ungrateful" and unfriendly. I think being a little more firm about your expectations will be good. It's important that they learn to be with people. If they get sick and need to go to the vet, they have to be okay with having a vet touch them and look at them, and it's important for you to be able to handle them to transport them.

Don't give up! You have our support!

Edit: I posted during the mites discussion. Woops!

[BabyGrl]

I agree with treating them if you have not already. Even if the vet thinks that it it is not mites she could be wrong. Check out this link for info about how vets can make mistakes. http://www.guinealynx.info/forums/viewtopic.php?t=68

[smoot]

My girls had no symptoms of mites (no scratching, flakey skin, etc.) but I treated them with Ivermectin anyway because of their background. They were much easier to handle after the treatments.

[Squirle]

Ok I deffinetly will. Thanks very much guys and girls, you've been such a great help, you don't know how much I appreciate you help!

[cavypaulita]

hi,
I'd suggest to be a little more patient...and give them more time to gain trust.

I've had my piggies since August, and one of them is less fearful and it didn't take much to get him to trust me and to let me pet him and hold him.
But the other one was/is much more fearful. It's baby steps. Now after 4 months, he is gaining much more trust and now actually enjoys lap time.Today was the first time ever he fell asleep on me.but it took patience and at the beginning I too had to insist a lot and I still do to get them used to me. I began just by getting them to eat from my hands.

It depends on the piggies, I am sure yours will get to trust you eventually. Give them more time.

pauli

[Hansel]

I have two pigs, the one was friendly and lovey the first day he came home from the shelter. The second one...now thats another story! He would run from you every time you tried to get NEAR him...even with veggies. Any noises, sudden movements, or anything would get him scared. It was at about two months after I had him that he would accept a carrot from my hand. With him I didnt push him to be picked up, we started with just the hand feeding, then petting, and now after about 5 months hes becoming comfortable with lap time. I share an apartment and my pigs live with me in my bedroom so they see me VERY regularly and are quite used to me. Maybe you could take some baby steps and see if that helps them to trust you. Just remember with my guy it took 2 entire months before he would eat from my hand...some are just more timid than others and may take more patience. Dont give up!

[homeschoolmama]

We are currently dealing with our second biting piggie. Mr. Pigg has always been a biter, when he needs to go. Once we figured out the reason behind his biting, we were able to avoid being bit.

And now we have Oreo, a champion biter. If you try to pick him up barehanded, he will bite you. He had a very rough first year & was handled very rarely & roughly. He is honestly afraid of us. What we are doing is working to gain his trust. We'll sit in the playpen with him (one at a time) and just quietly talk to him & pet him when he comes near us. I will actually pick him up & hold him in my lap, petting him gently a few times a day just so he knows that laps are an okay, fun & safe place to be. We've only had him for 2 weeks, but he is already doing so much better.

If you're positive that they don't have mites, and it's not something like your holding onto them when they need a "potty break," I'd guess that maybe they just need a lot more laptime to warm up to you.

[Licorice]

I have a pig who will bite, though not hard, more like a graze with her teeth if she is feeling bothered. If she is standing on old greens and I try to pull it from under her feet she will bite. She was the sweetest little thing when she was a lone pig and has totally changed since I gave her cagemates. She doesn't fight with them, but she definitely has a dominant personality towards them and usually keeps her distance. The other pigs actually seek her out.

[daftscotslass]

Feed them the majority of their veggies whilst in your company - i.e. with them sitting on your knee. They will soon recognise that you are the food bringer!

[Ly&Pigs]

Skin scrapings in pigs are useless to look for mites. You would have to hit the very exact little spot and too many skin scrapings come back negative when the pigs do indeed have mites. My first thought was mites when I read your post. You can safely treat them yourself and the treatment won't hurt them if they don't have mites.

http://guinealynx.info/mites.html
http://guinealynx.info/ivermectin.html

[angelwise]

I know what you mean about getting completely frusterated about getting bit! I have one piggy that bites me every time. In fact I've wanted to just get rid of her for being so mean. My husband's comment is maybe she just doesn't like to be held. She does enjoy being with her mom and sister. Maybe I just shouldn't even bother. She does let me hold her if I hold her close to my chest and lightly rub her head behind her ears, but I always get at least a nip to do that. She is getting better. At least I haven't had any bloody fingers. The funny thing is that while I am leaning into her pin to clean up her cage, she will be all over my hair having the best time. You'd think she would be hiding in the corner or something.

[Gonzo]

I saw statistics that say only 1 in 400 bite. I don't believe it. I think it's more like 25%! Griffin always tries to bite after about 30 seconds being held. So, I hold him at least a minute or so, and try to distract him, so he doesn't associate biting with getting put down.

Bandit will nibble, but so far, no bites. Whiskers tries to burrow through the bottom of my hand, and Mickey pretty much is laid back, will let me pet her, and though she runs away, she's pretty easy to catch, and will not make a fuss while I hold her.

I have a colony of twelve piggies: my pasha and his harem of five plus thier offspring. I would have to say that I have some knowledge of taming piggies. Here's what worked for me:

For the first stage, I began by making a list of my piggies and posting it beside their cage. Because piggies have a great sense