Guinea pig behavior?

[piggy1029]

I was wondering if a guinea pig nipping another guinea pig is normal? I recently bought two guinea pigs at Petsmart. I noticed that since the day we took them home one of them nips the other one a lot. They are both female. The one that nips is bigger and seems more dominant. Is there anything we can do to stop the nipping. Is it a personality issue? When we let them exercise outside of the cage, they chase after each other in a fun way and sometimes seem to get along fine. The one getting nipped makes very loud wheeks when it happens so I'm worried that she's getting hurt. Thank you.

 

[rabbitsncavyluv]

What size cage do you have? Is there at least 2 of everything in the cage? They are more likely to fight if they don't have enough space.

Are you sure they are both females?

If they came from Petstupid, they likely have mites which can make them irritable. They could be pregnant too.

 

[PookiesPiggies]

I agree with Rabbitsncavyluv. The size of the cage could be the main issue. If the cage is no less then 7.5 sq feet, 10.5 being even better, then it could be they need time to adjust. There is alot of great information here on buddy baths and floor time. I'd start with making sure the cage is big enough first.

 

[piggy1029]

Thanks for your answers. The cage is big enough. The cage given to me by Petsmart wasn't big enough but I started doing my own research and got a much larger cage. There is 2 of everything in the cage. They don't seem to fight over anything, it seems like when one gets near the other one, she starts to nip. I took them to the vet and they do have mites and it's being treated right now. The vet verified they are both female. Maybe she's just very irritable then. I really want them to get along. It's painful to see one nipping the other.

 

[VoodooJoint]

In all honesty most pigs don't fight over stuff. They fight over personal space. Please do read over the homepage of this site to make certain your cage really is big enough.