I can't get my 4 girls to play outside of their cage anymore. We have a large den that I use for their floor time. I fence off the kitchen and living room entances, and then let my piggies have full access to the (pig proofed) den - where their cage is.
My one year old (Squeakers), was quite the little explorer, and loved to run laps in the den, but the three younger girls have always been a bit leary of the large open space, and would rarely wander far from the cage.
We recently took in our neighbors dog, because they weren't feeding her. So my girls had to stay in there cage for a while until we determined if Isabelle (the dog) could be trusted with them or not.
The dog is well behaved enough that if she approaches the fences, all I have to do is say her name, she will turn around and come back.
The problem is, now my girls won't come out of their cage to play, even when the dog is nowhere around. The cage is on the floor, so I just open the door, and let them have access to the room, and cage at the same time.
I have tried to put all 4 of them out of the cage, and closed the cage door, but they all 4 sit around the cage, trying to figure out how to get back in, and chewing on the grids. I also tried to lure them out with some veggies. They came out long enough to grab them, then took the veggies back into the cage to eat them.
I guess it is good that they like their home, but I know that they need their exercise too.
I work from home, so I can leave the cage open practically all day. They just don't seem to want to come out, and when I force them to come out, they chew on the cage trying to get back in.
Is there anything else I should try to get them to like playing outside of the cage again?
Allison
My one year old (Squeakers), was quite the little explorer, and loved to run laps in the den, but the three younger girls have always been a bit leary of the large open space, and would rarely wander far from the cage.
We recently took in our neighbors dog, because they weren't feeding her. So my girls had to stay in there cage for a while until we determined if Isabelle (the dog) could be trusted with them or not.
The dog is well behaved enough that if she approaches the fences, all I have to do is say her name, she will turn around and come back.
The problem is, now my girls won't come out of their cage to play, even when the dog is nowhere around. The cage is on the floor, so I just open the door, and let them have access to the room, and cage at the same time.
I have tried to put all 4 of them out of the cage, and closed the cage door, but they all 4 sit around the cage, trying to figure out how to get back in, and chewing on the grids. I also tried to lure them out with some veggies. They came out long enough to grab them, then took the veggies back into the cage to eat them.
I guess it is good that they like their home, but I know that they need their exercise too.
I work from home, so I can leave the cage open practically all day. They just don't seem to want to come out, and when I force them to come out, they chew on the cage trying to get back in.
Is there anything else I should try to get them to like playing outside of the cage again?
Allison