Sounds What it that sound?

[Morningstar_S]

So I'm new to guinea pis and broke my arm 3 days after adopting my first pair. This week has been extremely hectic and stressful for everyone including the pigs. This morning my pigs have been making this really weird warbling sound. Its low and kind of a purr but broken up, unlike a cats. They are standing nose to nose when they do it. Neither seems injured, sick, or scared. what the heck is the noise??

 

[MaggieMae]

Sounds like a dominance stand off thing. I would consider that a rumble strut noise. Totally normal. Just keep your eye on them for over the top fighting. A little of that is fine as long as they aren't biting into each other and drawing blood. Mine have been doing this a lot.

 

[PiggiePaws]

Are they moving their rears back in forth when they do it? If so then it is definitely rumblestrutting, which is nothing to worry about and is just a dominance thing.

 

[Morningstar_S]

No butt moving, but they seem to be grumbling over food. Thgese girls are in their third home that I know of, Is it possible they have some food issues leftover from past caretakers? (like how starved dogs will become protective over food?)

 

[MissSofi]

It sound like they are "Chuttering" ( I hope thats the right terminology )as said above, it's a normal dominance sound, even if they are not strutting. Piggies often make this noise when annoyed. It's nothing to worry about at all so long as they dont start getting in serios fights. One of my piggies only chutters at at ME If she doesn't think I'm handing out her veggies fast enough and my boss pig Lucy will do it to any of my other piggies when they get out of line.

This should all subside over time as they get nice and settled in.

 

[MaggieMae]

Guinea pigs are pretty protective when it comes to their food obsession. It is probably a more normal sign that they are doing it over food. They just want to make sure they get THEIR share of the food and are warning to other one not to try and sneak more. I wouldn't worry about it.

And no they didn't necessarily have issues with food at their last home. They are probably just a little unsure of the new place and how food is being dished out. Although its possible.

 

[Katrinah]

Mine would do the same thing. I ended up getting a 2nd cermamic dish for pellets so they each have their own and then a bigger ceramic dish that they both had room to nose around in the veggies. This stopped the food behavior with my two.

 

[Sekhmet]

you may want to visit Guinea Pig Sounds to get a clue of the identification of sounds that guinea pigs makes. It helped me to get an idea.

 

[Molly75]

It definitely sounds like rumblestrutting...but without the "strutting" part My pigs usually do this on occasion, but over these past several days my younger 5 month old seems to be challenging the dominance of the 9 month old! So they're both doing it a lot to each other. As long as they aren't getting into brawls, it's fine. It's a standard dominance thing and needs to be done (or so I read). Just make sure they have their own hidey houses, two water bottles, and some toys to distract themselves. When I feed veggies in the cage, I do it in two separate bowls in separate parts of the cage. My reason for this is that I can put the same amount in each bowl and HOPE they're each getting the same amount. One isn't over eating and the other under eating. I found that if they're both at one bowl, the dominant one will actually take food out of the other pig's mouth! They're also more frantic about eating it if they share a bowl or if the two bowls are side-by-side. Of course when one finishes first then she'll go over to the other one's bowl and start eating her food. But what can you do? lol

 

[pinky]

With multiple pigs, I like to have more than one water bottle and food dish so everyone can eat and drink without one of the others trying to keep them from doing so. When I introduced a third to my other two, she immediately began guarding everything in that cage. Pigloos, dishes, water bottles. Having multiples tired her out so she couldn't be everywhere at once. She finally gave up and everything is peaceful.

 

[Morningstar_S]

ahhh okie! two food bowls and water bottles it is! Thanks everyone! I did see the larger one strut today too! it was cute!

 

[PiggyKat]

Yeah mine girls do this too. It is amusing so long as they are not really fighting. They do get grumpy about sharing don't they! ha ha

 

[Molly75]

I also read that girls go into heat roughly every 17 days and they'll get grumpy during that time, both towards their humans and other pigs.

 

[Sarah84]

My Shmor rubblestruts over the hay ALL THE TIME, she has even nipped at Lola before, but no blood shed, so I leave them alone. if it gets a little to intense for my liking then I will walk over to the cage, and they separate, but again, we've never had any blood shed. Lola usually runs off before anything really gets started.

 

[Morningstar_S]

The two veggie bowls worked out great! I talk to my pigs constantly so if i hear them start I talk to them and they seem to calm down. Both of these have helped tenfold!