guinea pig killed sister?

[alex84]

Hi there,
I have had my 2 guinea pigs since november, they are sisters and have lived together since they were born. I have never seen them fight and there has never been any evidence to make me think that they do fight. They live indoors in a huge cage together. One has always been a lot more nervous and doesnt like to be handled as the other one is placid, however we always get them out together. Yesterday morning my son and I woke up to find the quieter one dead in her bed with her whole nose missing and ears off. Her cheek was off and eye had been nibbled. There was no blood in the cage at all or on the other guinea pig. I assumed it could be fly strike so immediately took them both to the vets. The vet checked them both and said that it died from fight wounds. She told me being vegetarians guinea pigs would not eat each other so all injuries were from a fight. I obviously was extremely shocked as this had never even entered my mind and am now worried that our poor guinea pig had being living in fear for a while without me knowing? My children are absolutely distraught and are too scared to go anywhere near the cage so I am looking to rehome our existing one. I called the pet shop where we bought them to tell them and they said that it was unlikely they would kill each other but apparently when one dies it is common for the other to start eating it to leave its scent on the deseased to warn other predators away. Everything I am being told is contradicting each other. When I googled it it had mixed results with some ppl saying they would never do that and some saying its happened to them. I really dont know what to think but I am totally put off having animals again as obviously been so sad and destressing for the whole family.

 

[HannibalLecter]

If there was no blood, it means the wounds were created after death when the blood settles in the lowest part of the body. There is no reason for you to fear the current pig, please explain this to your children, there is no reason to rehome right now where it would be further traumatizing for the remaining pig.

If the pig actually killed the other, you would hear the screams & fighting. I also doubt the injuries would cause immediate death overnight.

Keep a close eye on the lone pig, as there might be an illness that caused the death of it's cagemate.

 

[Xeygwyn]

Firstly, let me tell you how sorry I am for your loss.

Guinea pigs have been known to chew on a deceased member before. I know this whole situation must be quite disturbing for you at the moment, so please tell me if I am intruding or not being gentle enough in what I ask. Did you notice any sort of dominance displays between the two? You can read up on those here: Guinea Pigs Social Life You can scroll down to the 'introductions' section for specifics. Were there other signs of a fight, such as tufts of fur, scratches, defensive wounds on the other pig? What sized cage did they live in, and did you notice any odd behavior from your now-passed piggy, such as listlessness, unwillingness to eat, or general lethargy?

Again, I am so sorry for your piggies and the situation.

ETA: Thank you Hannibal, I forgot about that as well. It honestly does not sound like a fight to me either. And yes, do remember that your children have nothing to fear.

 

[caddy21]

I'm no expert but the above does sound correct.

I have had hamsters who have died and overnight the other has eaten the dead one for whatever reason they do it.

I have been told that there are varying reasons from trying to cover the scent to, hiding the animal so it doesn't attract preditors.

It doesn't sound like they have fighted as there would be blood in the cage etc.

 

[HannibalLecter]

I would also strongly encourage you to do the opposite of what you're doing. Spend more time around the cage to look for any signs of a disease, and have more lap time with the current pig as depressions after the loss of a cagemate is really common. This is not the pigs fault & death comes with the ownership of animals.
Make sure you weigh the pig daily for now, as a decline in weight is a strong indicator of an illness. Also consider a new cavy savvy vet with more experience. Guinea pigs are also known to bury or move dead pigs in an attempt to disguise them. It's a natural, but scary behavior once you see it.

Explain to your children.This is an ideal time to educate them about life & death, and make the situation less traumatizing for them once they understand what happened.

Read through these links, as well as the rest of guinea lynx for care & symptoms to look for.
https://www.guinealynx.info/emergency.html
https://www.guinealynx.info/weigh.html

 

[alex84]

Ok thank you all for replies.
I did not see any strange behaviour before this happened. Both pigs were eating as normal and behaving as normal before the incident. I have never seen them fight and there has never been any cuts/hair loss or anything before to lead me to belive in previous fighting. They sometimes used to chase each other around the cage but I put that down to playing as always happened and they both seemed happy. As I said, the one which is still alive has always been more nervous but again thats been since the very start. My vet is actually a very good vet and she was as shocked as we all were. As for my children, for an 8 year old and 3 year old to see their pet which they loved like that is understandably very upsetting. Yes unfortunately the facts of life are very distressing no matter how you word things. And we did hold a 'buriel' where they got to say their goodbyes but understandably both are still upset. It is very difficult to know what to do for the best as every animal expert has their own views from rspca to the pet shop to the vet. I was told by 1 that the best thing is to have it put down as would be unhappy on its own and they would never risk introducing it to another pig. Whilst another said under no cimcumstances should they have told me that and it will be happy on its own. Very mixed advise.

 

[Xeygwyn]

Oh goodness DO NOT PUT HER DOWN! That is awful advice. Many piggies go through deaths of their cagemates, and continue to live full lives. Some don't even notice the passing of their partners, while some also have periods of depression, as stated. It could have simply been an underlying illness/genetic defect that went undetected, especially as this does not sound like a fight.

I understand your children would certainly be upset, and I am sure they are still in shock and distress. Take some time before you make a decision on the lone piggy, and see how you all feel. Although rehoming her is the last thing I would recommend, if you find your family cannot move past the experience and cannot provide her the love and attention as before, it is a consideration. She does deserve a good life regardless, which I'm sure you understand.

 

[HannibalLecter]

If there was no blood in the cage or on the pigs, the bites could not have happened while the pig was alive. There would be a bloodbath if the wounds where the cause of death or happened before the pig died. It was most likely an illness which they hide extremely well, or a genetic disease.

Giving you the advice to euthanize the remaining pig is extremely uneducated and there is no reason to not adopt a suitable friend down the line because of this, especially as there were never any sign of aggression between them. Guinea pigs don't turn around & kill each other out of nowhere. Many rescues & shelters will allow you to do introductions there to find a good match. I do recommend you to consider adopting when you & your family have had time to grieve.

I don't know where the cage is positioned in your home, but if there was a serious fight, someone would surely hear it. Guinea pigs are extremely loud in those situations, and a fight to the death would not go unnoticed when everyone's home.

 

[Wildcavy]

I have 5 pigs. One is a loner pig. She cannot tolerate other pigs. She lives a very happy life being spoiled rotten by her humans and her pen is right next to our two other pairs. There is NO reason to put her down. Please do not! I don't advocate single pigs for the most part -- they clearly are better with other pigs -- but whether this issue is a disease or behavioral one, she should be given a chance as a single for the time being.

I wish I lived near you -- I sincerely would take her in. I have that much confidence that it can be worked out.

I am very sorry you are going through all of this, as are your kids. I can't imagine the trauma for all of you and hope it gets sorted soon.

 

[pinky]

Years ago I did a guinea pig transport for my rescue. A female guinea pig that my local animal control boxed to transport the pigs to the rescue bit off the ears a pup that was also in that box along with his mother. She didn't do anything else to him, though. There was no blood, either. In your situation, it really sounds like the wounds were made after she was deceased. I had a mother and daughter guinea pig pair that lived peacefully together. One evening when we got home from work, we couldn't find the mother. It appeared that she had died and the daughter buried her and was almost sitting on her. I think they don't understand what's happened when their companion dies and they try and clean up the area. I don't believe what your guinea pig did was hostile.

 

[mufasa]

I agree with the others that there is absolutely no need to put the remaining guinea pig down. At best, something else killed the other pig so she's done nothing wrong. At worst, if she needs to be a lone pig, she can live a happy life that way. She's no danger to humans either way.

My sympathy goes out to you. It must have been such an awful trauma to find that scene. Hopefully at least your older child will be able to understand about prey animals and how they react to a dead companion, but I know it doesn't take away the shock.

 

[Dee_E]

There are Lone Pigs, I have one. Whenever I would try to bond Poppy, a male, he would go nuts, trying to attack the possible buddy. Give her the most time you can. Basically become her buddy.

 

[pinky]

She was probably upset about the loss of her friend. They're animals so their thought process is not like humans so you can't expect her to react the way people do. I have one guinea pig that's a single and three pairs. The single gets a lot of attention from us and seems very happy.