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EverGreenly

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Within the last week I adopted the cutest little boy. I was told at first he was female, but after a quick check to verify... he's a boy. His name is Walter and he is a little over 8 weeks old. This is my first piggie and I do eventually plan to get another playmate, but for now I have the one. He is still super shy and skittish. I'm trying to work with him but he just wants to hide. I have a fleece blanket that i put on the bed when I bring him out and he runs as far away from me as possible and squeeks a bit. When he hears any loud noises or gets scared, he's in my lap. I guess it takes a while to learn what their noises mean, I'm always afraid that he's scared or something.
I put him on the floor earlier for some 'floor time' and he just sat in a corner and screamed. But before that he was running around like crazy and hopping and shaking his head. I guess I'm not very good with their behavior.


I guess my question is, what should I do to make him more comfortable? How should I interact with him right now? Should I leave him alone for a bit and give him his space?

Sorry for the essay :p
 

PigPandemonium

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Welcome! :D We would love to see some pigtures of the lil guy. :) It's defiantly not going to be an overnight process. Some cavies warm up to people at once, but others never end up becoming tame. My Fus and Ro Dah, started purring and laying in my arms the second I picked them up the first time. On the other hand, Godric and Phoenix took a full year, just to get them to eat out of my hand while they were in my lap. The best thing I have found to do as a first step to taming your pig, is to get them used to your voice. You can do this by simply talking to them whilst they are in the cage, though I find it hard to strike up conversation with a guinea pig, so just reading a book aloud works. This will help him to get used to your sound. Also food is the best way to a guinea pig's heart, so make sure you give him a few pieces of lettuce during lap time and floor time. :D
 

EverGreenly

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He's black with a brown butt and some other random patches. I think he's an Abyssinian? He has little whorls of fur. And oh my goodness he sheds like crazy!
He also likes to mark on the fleece.
 

PigPandemonium

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Yep, sounds like an abby to me! Haha boys will be boys xD
 

EverGreenly

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I seem to always end up with male animals. I have 2 male gerbils right now, their names are Beauregard and Beans. I tried to come up with a B name for Walter... but he was just like a grumpy old man and Walter was more fitting.
 

EverGreenly

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I can honestly say, I've NEVER fallen in love with a critter so quickly either.
 

PigPandemonium

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They are very lovable :heart: I find myself to be ok with any gender of pet, though I might lean a little towards female. I have two male animals, and four female animals.
 

EverGreenly

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I'm having a hard time letting him alone though. I just wanna cuddle with him.
Do abbys really have that much attitude? I hear they can be harder to tame and aren't as loving.
 

suzilovespiggie

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Welcome to the world of piggies! Taming just takes time. You can sit by the cage and tangle your hand in and just talk to him. He needs to learn your hand is not the enemy. You can feed him bits of veggies from your hand, both when it is tangling and on your lap.
Dont chase him when you want to pick him up. You dont want to scare him. Get a cardboard box and let him run into it. Gently lift the box out onto your lap and have him come out. You can wrap him in a towel also so he feels safe.
He is young and it will take time and patience from you. Go slow and gentle.
 

PigPandemonium

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I have heard that about abbys before, however I've never owned one myself, so I wouldn't know for sure. I've only had two Teddies, One American with a small bit of Peruvian (She has these cute long hairs behind her ears) and a Silky. I would tend to think that abbys wouldn't be much different in way of personality from other breeds, though don't quote me on that. lol
 

EverGreenly

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Just a short update, his new home will be here on Tuesday and I am probably more excited than he is. He absolutely LOVES cucumbers and any time he hears a bag rustle or the fridge open he's screaming for it. He's still very scared of me picking him up, so I try not to do it often, but hubby has MUCH bigger hands and he's fine with that. Floor time is awesome, and he uses this box I put out for him as a 'litter box'. He potty trained himself XD. He's not too sure about the fleece just yet, any time I have him out for floor time he prefers the linoleum (I watch him every second and no loose tiles) and avoids the blanket.
He loves head pets and back pets, if you scratch him in the perfect place you will get ONE purr out of him. Oh my grumpy little Walter.
 

mufasa

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My Abby definitely has an attitude! I have a male American shorthair who's totally laid back and mellow. Then there's Amy the Abby, who is a major drama queen about everything. She usually enjoys lap time, but sometimes she decides to imitate an air raid siren when you pick her up. She's a nipper, too, but I know how to work around that. I love her dearly and her attitude makes her that much more fun.

Your Walter sounds like a great pig. Isn't it amazing how fast they steal your heart? It sounds like he's coming around, and that's awesome that he potty trained himself. Even if you don't go with fleece, you can get a cuddle cup or other soft option to give Walter a choice. My piggies are on Carefresh, but Amy has a cuddle cup and she loves to snuggle and sleep in it.
 

Ithilgil

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I'm also a newbie at this site and at guinea pig care. In fact, I've just gotten my first two cavies a few days ago. They are Abbies too.

Photo0434.jpg
The one at the front is Robin. The one hiding away behind her sister is Rhode. Rhode is very skittish.

Photo0431.jpg
The one at the left is Robin and the one at the right is Rhode.

Both of them are willing to literally eat out of my hands,but run away as soon as I try to pet them. Robin lets me pet her once every 15-20 tries, but I had only managed to pet Rhode once - after sitting in their C&C cage with them for around two hours yesterday.

And I've kind of tricked them into allowing me to pick them up last night.

More info about my progress with my girls can be found here https://www.guineapigcages.com/forum/about-guinea-pigs/73906-yay-progress-my-cavies.html

I hope you'd be able to bond with your cavy soon.
 

mufasa

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@Ithilgil, I just love your piggies' Abby faces. When I was looking for pigs to adopt, I resolved to take in needy piggies regardless of breed/color, but Abbies are my favorites when given a choice. I was thrilled the fates aligned things so I ended up with Amy (although my Borat has a sweet little face too).
 

EverGreenly

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Taking pictures of Walter is nearly impossible. He's a runner. He gets out during floor time and goes NUTS! It's like watching a dog that has never been out of a cage. And now he's mad cause I gave him a carrot instead of cucumber. He glared at me. Little turd.
 

Ithilgil

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@Ithilgil , I just love your piggies' Abby faces. When I was looking for pigs to adopt, I resolved to take in needy piggies regardless of breed/color, but Abbies are my favorites when given a choice. I was thrilled the fates aligned things so I ended up with Amy (although my Borat has a sweet little face too).

Thank you.

Same here. I didn't really care about my cavies' breed/colour, though I prefer short-haired ones simply because it's easier to groom them. In fact, I didn't even know what breed Rhode and Robin were until I did some research.

I had gotten my girls from a couple who no longer wanted them anymore. I'm not quite sure why, but whatever, their loss is my gain.

Rhode and Robin are just so cute!:lovestruc
 

EverGreenly

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Walter's cage finally came today! I've decided to use fleece bedding and got a super cute no-tip bowl from Old Tyme Pottery (its baby looney tunes I almost got the Hello Kitty, but I figured since Walter is a boy... my hubby would appreciate the looney tunes more). Right now he's hiding in his box hidey house that I made. Trying to figure out a kitchen area. He's been quietly chutting to himself, but not moving around too much. Only hiding. What other fun things should I put in the cage? Right now I have a little cuddle cup I made and the box. Unfortunately the box is pretty big, i'm considering cutting it down. Will get pictures soon!
 

EverGreenly

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IMG_20120611_195922.jpg
This is Walter's new Midwest Guinea Pig Habitat from Amazon. The cage cost $30, the food bowl (its so flippin cute!) was only $1.29 at Olde Tyme Pottery, the 'kitchen' with bedding and hay (don't have zip ties for my hayrack yet) is the bottom of an old hamster cage, and the fleece is a blanket that I bough from walmart a few years ago.
IMG_20120611_200035.jpg
I made him a little sleeping bag out of an old robe. He got inside for a second, and then decided to hide in his box.
IMG_20120611_200134.jpg
And this is my love Walter! He's very camera shy. He's so cute though XD
 

EverGreenly

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So I've been searching around for a buddy for Walter and FINALLY found him! He's another abby, a couple of months old and a total sweetheart. I get to meet him sometime this weekend and bring him home. Here are some pictures of the lovely pig. His name is Oliver, but I may just change it, new beginnings and all. He has a pretty great story and I'm so happy to add him to my family!
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I have a pet taxi to bring him home to minimize the stress. I'm going to see if she's got something of his i can bring home to make him comfortable. I am so excited you have no idea! I hope Walter loves him too!
 

PiggyPigLover

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Welcome I'm Amy and your piggys are very cute!
 
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