Wheeking

[citronsoul]

Is there any way that you can tell the difference between wheeking for food or wheeking for attention?

Phoebe will sometimes wheek when she's on my lap or during floortime & I can't really figure out why. She does it during floortime when she tries to get close to me, but then chickens out. She'll then run off to hide & then starts wheeking. And on my lap...? I can't figure it out. At first I thought it was for food, but she'll do it sometimes even after I've given her veggies.

 

[MilesWaterson]

Mine do that sometimes. If they loose each other during floortime, they'll wheek until they find each other again. Sometimes they'll wheek if they hear something that sounds like vegetables being chopped. I think it's a general noise they make to get attention - which is usually if they think food might be on offer.

 

[mncavylover]

I think there are many different meanings for wheeking, but it's usually just a general attention-getter. If they're doing this to greet you, that may just mean that they're happy to see you. If they go up and beg on the walls, that usually means that they want food (at least for my pigs!) Also, it's really just dependent on the circumstances. As for the actual sound, it's no different from one meaning to the next.

 

[ChadWPB]

Is there any way that you can tell the difference between wheeking for food or wheeking for attention?

Phoebe will sometimes wheek when she's on my lap or during floortime & I can't really figure out why. She does it during floortime when she tries to get close to me, but then chickens out. She'll then run off to hide & then starts wheeking. And on my lap...? I can't figure it out. At first I thought it was for food, but she'll do it sometimes even after I've given her veggies.

Hm. Sounds like to me you have only one pig. She might be wheeking for attention since she is lonely. Guinea pigs are social creatures and crave interaction with other pigs.

Consider another sow for Phoebe. She will love you for it!

 

[citronsoul]

I'm looking into it. At the moment I still live with my parents & they're against getting another guinea pig. But hopefully within a year I'll be able to get another. I am home a lot, so she does get a lot of attention. In the meantime I've been doing a lot of research, trying to find shelters.

There are none in this country. So I'll probably be going to the closest shelter in the Netherlands, & I'm going to adopt one of their neutered males. The only other option I've found is breeders. I've noticed that a lot of people around here post on a site similar to ebay when they've got a litter or when a breeder no longer needs a sow. If I'd ever go that route, I'd probably get one of the sows. But I dunno...I don't support breeding, or just dumping a sow when it's no longer needed.

Oh yeah, I figured out why she wheeked during floortime. She likes to run around me & hide behind my back (in my sweater) when she's running around. If I'm sitting in a way that no longer allows her to do this, she wheeks. And laptime I'm still not sure. She hasn't done it anymore, except right before she peed on my bedsheets. So maybe she it's her letting me know that nature is calling.

 

[mncavylover]

How cute! I'm glad you figured it out, and I hope that you can get another cavy soon!