Brand new here, and a new piggy! :) Need socializing tips

Welcome! I love his name. Where did you adopt him from?

welcome! Possibly a baby might suit him better, a pig that is not that onld maybe like 5 weeks or so.. not all male cavies are interested in beingthe boss

Lady Amelia said:

Welcome! I love his name. Where did you adopt him from?

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i adopted him from cavy care. a guinea pig rescue. any socializing tips?

Bacon4EverEver said:

welcome! Possibly a baby might suit him better, a pig that is not that onld maybe like 5 weeks or so.. not all male cavies are interested in beingthe boss

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we tried but he does not get along well unless separated by a cage. any socializing tips?

How does he act now around another piggy? I have a guinea pig like that he doesnt like my other guinea pig, and what i did was i bought a big cage and i bought two houses, two water bottles and when they dont get along they will run into their own cages. or you can nueter him and put him with a female

The other issue at hand is that Scotch is 9 months old, and 9 month old piggies are in piggie adolescence. So he might just be too crazy wild to have a buddy right now, but like human teenagers, things can change once he's a full grown adult (about 1-1.5 years old).

Not everything is absolutely solved by adopting a tiny baby. Actually that can be a problem sometimes when the baby goes through adolescence, because their personality can change and cause irreconcilable differences with the larger pig. Sometimes it's better to just get an adult, because then you know what their adult personality will be like.

Neutering and pairing with a female is always an option, but it seems that you got him from a reputable rescue, so if they say he's a single then he just might be.
@Bacon4EverEver - do you mean they run into their own houses, not cages?

On getting Scotch used to you: hand feeding is the bomb! It makes your pigs so much more interested in you. I've got 5 girls and if they think I have veggies they'll come right out into the open and stand on their back feet and beg like crazy because they know that's how they get veggies! Also just letting your hand sit in his cage, so he gets used to it not always scooping him up can be good. Mine are learning one hand pets and two hands scoop... Hopefully. I think some of them get it.

I live near Cavy Care and they usually do a good job of adopting out in pairs or making sure you have another guinea pig. Every once in a while, they will have a guinea pig that just doesn't get along with others after Cavy Care tries multiple pairings. I'm guessing you adopted one that was also being housed alone at the rescue? You could try pairing when he gets older but I know Cavy Care already tries very hard to keep piggies in pairs or more if possible.

As far as bonding with you, hand feeding treats is the best way to do it, as someone else mentioned. Romaine lettuce, a baby carrot, or bell peppers are good to start with. I used to talk to my piggies a lot when I first got them and then they got used to my voice. I'm not sure if this is as helpful with guinea pigs, but when I got rats they recommended that I put an old t-shirt or sock that I wore in the cage for them to cuddle with. That way, they also get used to your scent.

Bacon4EverEver said:

How does he act now around another piggy? I have a guinea pig like that he doesnt like my other guinea pig, and what i did was i bought a big cage and i bought two houses, two water bottles and when they dont get along they will run into their own cages. or you can nueter him and put him with a female

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He runs into his cage. And the past guinea his was with he had a fight with him. We might consider thr female thing. But first we want him used to us

PandaPiggle said:

The other issue at hand is that Scotch is 9 months old, and 9 month old piggies are in piggie adolescence. So he might just be too crazy wild to have a buddy right now, but like human teenagers, things can change once he's a full grown adult (about 1-1.5 years old).

Not everything is absolutely solved by adopting a tiny baby. Actually that can be a problem sometimes when the baby goes through adolescence, because their personality can change and cause irreconcilable differences with the larger pig. Sometimes it's better to just get an adult, because then you know what their adult personality will be like.

Neutering and pairing with a female is always an option, but it seems that you got him from a reputable rescue, so if they say he's a single then he just might be.
@Bacon4EverEver - do you mean they run into their own houses, not cages?

On getting Scotch used to you: hand feeding is the bomb! It makes your pigs so much more interested in you. I've got 5 girls and if they think I have veggies they'll come right out into the open and stand on their back feet and beg like crazy because they know that's how they get veggies! Also just letting your hand sit in his cage, so he gets used to it not always scooping him up can be good. Mine are learning one hand pets and two hands scoop... Hopefully. I think some of them get it.

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yeah he is very young so we're waiting till he matures. I'm glad he's comfortable enough to eat from my hand even out of his cage.

allisonj30 said:

I live near Cavy Care and they usually do a good job of adopting out in pairs or making sure you have another guinea pig. Every once in a while, they will have a guinea pig that just doesn't get along with others after Cavy Care tries multiple pairings. I'm guessing you adopted one that was also being housed alone at the rescue? You could try pairing when he gets older but I know Cavy Care already tries very hard to keep piggies in pairs or more if possible.

As far as bonding with you, hand feeding treats is the best way to do it, as someone else mentioned. Romaine lettuce, a baby carrot, or bell peppers are good to start with. I used to talk to my piggies a lot when I first got them and then they got used to my voice. I'm not sure if this is as helpful with guinea pigs, but when I got rats they recommended that I put an old t-shirt or sock that I wore in the cage for them to cuddle with. That way, they also get used to your scent.

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cavy care did try to pair him :/ but thanks for the tips!

Yup! My 8 month old Bridget is a little holy terror! I love her to bits and pieces, but she absolutely hates introductions and takes a long time to get used to new pigs. Clarissa (the Peruvian) joined the herd about a week ago, and Bridget is still chattering and fluffing her fur at Clare, but it's getting better. It's kind of funny looking because... Well this is the two of them posed for a photo shoot:

@PandaPiggle Yes how cute! They're gorgeous piggies! At the rescue Scotch would squeal to be carried, but he is scared now. I do understand to give him time and that he is stressed.

Aww Scotch! He's too precious!!! And yes he might be shy for a while, my ClareBear is still shy too, but he'll come around

@PandaPiggle They are so adorable in their matching colors <3 And does Clarissa have a head tilt??

It's crazy because it's just such a random pattern to wind up with two alike! And @Rocky5, no Miss Clare doesn't have head tilt, she was just being silly. But thank you for the concern, it's sweet [emoji173]️

@PandaPiggle Hershey the foster pig and Gibson had the exact same pattern but just different colors. Hershey was brown and white and Gibson was Black and white. It was so weird. My pigs lied to me today. I was in the kitchen and I had Blake and Snickers out for floor time and they started making sounds like they were fighting and I ran back with a towel to stop the fight and they were just calmly sitting next to each other, under neath the table, huffing and puffing their chests. They were also kneading their paws on my wood floors like a cat, making scritch-scratch noises.

PandaPiggle said:

@Bacon4EverEver - do you mean they run into their own houses, not cages?

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yes! houses! that is what i meant!

that is a good idea.. is is still young yet. Hand feeding is good, 1 would have lap time for an hour a night while i watch tv or browse the internet.

If he was pretty calm at the rescue, it might not take too long for him to warm up to you. We got Lucy and Snickers about 1.5 weeks ago. When we visited at the rescue, they were pretty calm and my kids and I could hold and pet them. Once we got home, they were skittish for a bit. But after a week, I got a good 30 minute snuggle session with Lucy on my lap while I played my tablet! I think it helped that it was after the kids went to bed, so it was calm and quiet!