Adopting Considering giving up my boys for adoption :/

I'm sorry that you are finding yourself faced with the possibility of rehoming your boys. Incidentally, what size C&C were they sharing?

Since November is really not long at all! It takes a lot of patience and time to get them to trust you. Mine are not as tame as I thought they would be by now but they are slowly making progress.

CavyMama said:

I'm sorry that you are finding yourself faced with the possibility of rehoming your boys. Incidentally, what size C&C were they sharing?

Click to expand...

They were in a 2x4 with a 1x2 loft. When the fighting increased I expanded to a 2 story 2x4. Now they're both in separate 2x4s.

It can take a long time to earn a piggies trust. Some just don't want to be held. I have 3 boars and they all have different likes and dislikes. Guinea was not socialable at all with me for a long time when I adopted him. After upgrading to a c&c cage that has changed ten fold. He loves getting petted on his nose and ears. He does not like to be picked up so if I need to, I get him to go in a cuddle sak. They let you know when they are not interested. Do you hand feed them? I try to sit in the cage with mine since it's on the floor and it's huge. This has helped so much, especially with my new piggy I got a month ago. What type of cage do you have for them and is it open on the top? Boars need tons of space to run from each other if needed. Don't give up just yet or you might regret it. Keep trying, I promise it will pay off! If they both want to be the top pig, have you considered getting them both a younger, mellow friend? That might help them have more trust in you if they see another piggy interested in you. Good luck

There might be the cause of the fighting. A 2X4 is a bit tight for two males. While it's great that you made it two stories, it's important for the main running area to be large enough to house 2 males peacefully. For two males, a 2X5 would be great! Building out is more important than building up. Try that. I'll bet you will find them living much more peaceably.

I would even go wider than 2 grids if possible. If you wanted, you could build a big cage and divided down the middle. Watch their reaction closely through the grids and if and when you are comfortable with how things are going between them you can try them in a neutral territory then move on to the cage and take the dividers out. Make sure you clean everything very, very well before you try them out again in the cage.

Yeah, expanding out would be better. If the situation really feels bad to you (I can just imagine how annoyed I would be with two cages to clean!), have you considered adopting one out and then finding the remaining one a new friend? Perhaps you could neuter the remaining one and find him a girlfriend - less chance of fighting like this.

I'm know exactly how you feel! My boys are the same (and sadly I'm thinking the same thing which is not like me at all, my fur babies are for life...but...). I got a second pig because everyone told me that one was lonely, so I did and they just hate each other. So now they both live alone, and my work load has doubled. It would have been easier if I just stuck with one . And my cage was 24 sq ft (6ftx4ft) I'm not sure what that works out to in C&C measurements. I just think that some boars can't live together.

You may not like what I have to say, but I hope you take the time to read it and consider it.

Adopting any pet ever is a gamble. They can turn out to have an anti-social or even mean or aggressive personality or have bowel issues and poop/pee all over your house or develop a really serious illness a month after you get them. None of this negates your commitment or responsibility to them. Yes, cleaning two cages stinks. However, that doesn't outweigh your responsibility to these boys. They are not what you expected, but that's not their fault (it's not anyone's fault, actually) They still need you to give them the best care possible for the rest of their life. It's not about you at this point.

Sometimes it helps when you tell yourself it's not a choice (and it isn't). There are a lot of both long-term and short-term things I can't do because I have animals (I can't move to certain places I would like to because of breed-specific legislation; I can't pursue my passion of travel, because one of my pigs is sick and needs me there daily, and this may be for an indefinite amount of time), and you know, it really stinks. I DID NOT anticipate many if not most of those things, and my life has changed drastically just in the past few months. And the time commitment can stink too. You can think about all that next time - maybe not getting pets or getting fewer will be what you decide (it's something I know I will definitely consider), but for now you made a life commitment to these boys, so that's the only road.

And you know what? In the end, a weird thing happens, at least to me. It's not the life you might be expecting, but it turns out that you get things you don't expect either. I hope my girl lives for years to come, even if that means that I willhave to be there day in and day out and put some of my dreams or desires on hold. You may start feeling like that about your time and your boys too.

Also, on a practical side, get professioanlly-made liners (so you don't have to put anything together) and a vaccum https://www.amazon.com/BISSELL-Eras...id=1366997262&sr=8-1&keywords=pet+hair+vacuum It makes things easier.

Things will get better.

I'm sorry to hear that you might be re-homing them.
If they have a traumatic past then let me be the first one to tell you that it can take longer than 6 months for them to warm up to you.
My piggy, George, had a traumatic past as well and it took a little more than a year for him to really become comfortable with me. He's still iffy about me sometimes, and while it can hurt my feelings, I realize that with time, patience, love, and lots of veggies he will become even more trusting of me.
Just some food for thought.

Also, as previously said, a 2x4 can be cramped for two males.
I would recommend making it a 2x6 or bigger. Even a 3x6 or 3x5 would be good, although it might make it slightly harder to catch them if they run when you try to pick them up.

I belive, like meany others hear that once u get a animal it is for life. My oldest piggie is Oliver, and I have had him know for almost a year. Then there's nibbler whom iv had for 3 years and I got Riley around the same time. After three years with Riley she is just know starting to warm up to me. Nibbler took severel months to get used to me. And Oliver? We'll he's the odd man out cuz form day one he was a mommys boy and always will be. When I made that dision to get pigs three years ago I knew it was not always going to be easy, me and my little family have gone threw, illness, hart break, death, long nights with no sleep and so much more but the joy of hearing them week for food, Oliver running to the side of the cage to get cuddles, that moment when Riley let me pet her in the cage for the first time, hearing my baby's chirp for joy... All of this out ways the bad.. You might feel like your fighting a war sometimes, belive me I know. But it is the little victorys that will always keep use going.
If u truly belive u can not do this anymore then plz by all means give them up. They disserve to be in a home that will love them unconditionly and fight for them when things go bad. They deserve a forever home, and just because u didn't get your picture you had in your head, does not mean they need to suffer at the expanse of your unprepared and un realistic views.
Things do not always work out the way u want them. But the way I was raised.. You work with what u have and be happy that you have it because there's people out there who have alot less and only dream to have what u take for granted.

My sow, Sarabi, is VERY shy! I have only had her for a few weeks but the only head way we have gotten is that she will go out in the open to grab a piece of lettuce then scurry away to a hidey. It will take months if not years for her to warm up to me, and I am OK with that. She also isn't the sweetest with my girls but they have cute little moments that make all of this worth it.

Nala and Pumpkin took 6 months for me to be able to even pet them in the cage, and that's only Nala on a good day. They are acting better than right after I got them, but they are still shy. They will always be shy but sometimes it gets better, some times it doesn't. They are super sweet pigs, but they are skiddish.

You cannot expect them to be perfect little piggies, like what you see on TV. For starters, pigs prefer to be with other pigs, than with us. We need to respect the fact that they are prey animals and they are skiddish creatures.

Have you tried taming your piggies while following the instructions of a taming guide? Guinea pigs DO NOT naturally take to humans like doggies, not even over time (especially if you don't tame them over that time).
This is the first one off google and it had everything I needed to know.
How to Tame a Guinea Pig in Two Weeks - Yahoo! Voices - voices.yahoo.com
I had 2 sows so maybe that makes it easier. When I first got them, they didn't like me, my home or each other. In about a month's taming now they don't like being taken off once I put them on my lap. They are still nervous when I pick them up but that's about it.

Zubbus said:

Have you tried taming your piggies while following the instructions of a taming guide? Guinea pigs DO NOT naturally take to humans like doggies, not even over time (especially if you don't tame them over that time).
This is the first one off google and it had everything I needed to know.
How to Tame a Guinea Pig in Two Weeks - Yahoo! Voices - voices.yahoo.com
I had 2 sows so maybe that makes it easier. When I first got them, they didn't like me, my home or each other. In about a month's taming now they don't like being taken off once I put them on my lap. They are still nervous when I pick them up but that's about it.

Click to expand...

I don't like the article too much. I don't think it's OK to tap them on the nose or force them to be petted (not all piggies like that, and they all have areas they don't like touched). Also, no, grumbly noises do not mean they will bite. Furthermore, apple is not an OK treat more than maybe once a week. You have to be really cautious with fresh grass due to pesticides and possible diarrhea (it has to be introduced slowly). And carrots, while an acceptable food, I guess, is not a good food for them - it's more like soda for people.

couchon said:

I don't like the article too much.

Click to expand...

Don't feel you can't recommend a better taming guide.

@Zubbus it is nearly impossible to tame a guinea pig in two weeks, let alone two months. Felix still scurries and runs and I've had him a year. It's wired into every cell in his body.

Also, tapping a pig on the noise will only scare them further. Physical violence won't help matters at all.. just scare the poor animal.

It takes time to tame guinea pigs and if you think you can't care for them anymore, then maybe it's best to adopt them out. You should expand the cage though, and try some other things first before giving up.

This is a tough situation.

If having two separate cages is truly a problem then I would consider rehoming one, work with a rescue and explain the situation. The local rescue to me works with people who's guinea pigs do not get along to try to find a match.

The other thing would be to look at the cage situation. Is it really too much trouble having two cages or is it just that you didn't want two cages and now don't like it therefor want to change it by rehoming the pigs? Don't take that as critical of you, please don't. As a mother of two special needs kids this is an emotion I am very familiar with. The feeling of being unhappy because things didn't go the way you wanted or planned. Just do what you feel is right. We don't know you or the situation in full. For all we know you could be working 12 hour days and cleaning two cages is really a burden.

On a personally note, I had to rehome a guinea pig that I adopted because he would not get along with my current guinea pigs. At the time my kids were younger and I felt that they would not understand why the guinea pigs had to be separated and might put the guinea pigs together. It would be easier on everyone for the guinea pig to find a new home. I found him a GREAT home by the way. I still get updates. The lady that adopted him had him neutered and now he has 3 girlfriend. lol So it worked out for all those involved. More recently my little herd got into a fight and I had to separate everyone. I just built additional cages. This was almost 2 years after rehoming the one male so I was not so worried about the kids anymore.

Edit: Some guinea pigs just are not very friendly and cuddly. My Buddy is certain at any moment we are going to fry him up into tiny guinea pig bacon. We have had him since he was just a little baby and he is now almost 2 years old. I can't change his mind and have just accepted that he will always see himself as our dinner and not as our pet. This does not stop me from holding him and cuddling him though.