Fighting Guniea pigs

[Ajm95]

I have three female guniea pigs and the dominate one has been picking on the
Quiet one and well it was just bites and rumbling but then as i was putting them to bed the dominate charged at the quiet one and she jumped into the hay basket thing that is metal, to get out of the way. As she tried to get out she got her
Front left foot stuck and dangled. To basically to fastforward its broken and
Ginger the quiet one is on her own and she is happy but mum seems to think when she is healed they can go back. What can i do?? Is this possible?? as i cant go through the process of a screaming guniea pig again, and i wont put ginger in that possition again??

[foggycreekcavy]

There are some things you can do to minimize fighting. One, make sure the cage is large enough. You can check out the cage size standards on the front page of this site-- Guinea Pig Cages, Your Cavy At Home Pigs in cages too small usually end up fighting, and as you have unfortunately found out, injuries and vet bills can happen.

You can take out the hay basket. Pigs don't need hay mangers--you can put the hay directly on the floor of the cage. Take out any other things that pigs can get trapped in or on. Take out any houses with only one door.

[bpatters]

How large is your cage? And how much stuff do you have on the floor of it? Guinea pigs need room to run around.

You can replace hideys with fleece tunnels or fleece/towels draped across the corner of the cage.

Hay baskets ought to be outlawed. In the years I've been dealing with guinea pigs, there have been a ton of them with injured feet because they got in the baskets and then broke a leg or foot trying to get out of it.

[Ajm95]

It says its only fit for two guniea pigs, but that was only there holidayy villa as my mum calls it for two weeks. How big should there cage be?? They hvent got the hay thing anymore they just have a bundle. But they all seem happy separated, ginger the injured guniea pig will she ever be healed as i took her the vets and they just said bring her in for check ups

[Ajm95]

This situration is now sorted as ginger is in a smaller separate cage to the rest of the guniea pigs, thank you for your help.

[CavyMama]

Three female pigs should be fine in a 2X5 grid C&C cage. If the cage you have is from a pet store, there's about a 95% chance it's entirely too small which is likely the reason for the scuffling.

[Ajm95]

Hi im to sure if ive started a new thread but i love my guniea pig to pieces and i wanna show her but my female bonnie freaks put if i try to do nose to nose. Is there any other ways to show her i love her? Oh and also puttin her back or me even movin if she think im gettin up she rips into me an draws blood help please

[MrWhistles]

I would strongly urge you to make sure your cage is correctly sized.
I feel you have a pet store cage and it is WAY too small for your pigs.

[bpatters]

See the Main page of this site (button above) for the recommended cage sizes.

Wire hay racks are dangerous for guinea pigs, and if they are the kind that hang on the walls of the cage, pigs often get hurt in them. You can replace it with something like a utensil rack that stands in the middle of the cage, or a box that sits on the floor of the cage.

The best way to show your pig you love her is to hold her calmly and feed her yummy treats. Not the ones you buy from the pet store, but things like dill, basil, cilantro, parsley, etc. Unfortunately, pigs aren't particularly cuddly, like kittens and puppies, although some are more so than others. She doesn't understand what you mean about putting her up to your nose -- she's probably scared to death and just wants to get down. You'll have to figure out ways to relate to her that she understands, rather than what you'd necessarily prefer to do.

[Ajm95]

Ok, the guniea pig nook i have said nose to nose means your friends thats where i got that from but it makes sense ill try that thank you

[MrWhistles]

The best way to show your pig you love her is to hold her calmly and feed her yummy treats. Not the ones you buy from the pet store, but things like dill, basil, cilantro, parsley, etc. Unfortunately, pigs aren't particularly cuddly, like kittens and puppies, although some are more so than others. She doesn't understand what you mean about putting her up to your nose -- she's probably scared to death and just wants to get down. You'll have to figure out ways to relate to her that she understands, rather than what you'd necessarily prefer to do.

I agree. We can be very scarey to our piggys.
Imagine a huge, monstrous face suddenly comes up to yours. That's freaky man!