They find being so close to you very calming and it makes them feel very loved. Learning how to safely pick these small animals, and carry him/her is very important for their safety and sense of security. How To Litter Train A Guinea Pig? (07/20/2007) By Guinea Pig Crazy. Another reason for biting is as simple as liking the salt of your finger or your pet might be just curious if you are actually edible. However, there are actually several different sounds a guinea pig makes that we might think of as squeaks. When you put your guinea pig back, carefully watch it to see if it just needed to satisfy a particular bodily need. Many vets consider four-year-old guinea pigs to be approaching their golden years, but there is no hard and fast rule. Start with your hand at ground level and lure them onto your hand with a treat. My little piggie Weasley really hates the paper bedding. How to Clean Guinea Pig Cages with Fleece or Other Fabrics Some keepers like to use fleece blankets or other fabric-based substrates for their guinea pigs. Besides being an excellent way to keep your guinea pig engaged in its environment, floor time is a great time for you to bond with your pet. If so, then you know that a guinea pig is a squirmy little creature -- averaging two to four pounds -- and they can race around their cages and habitat quickly. If he had his way he would stay inside and not go outside to do his business. As a general rule, young guinea pigs are more receptive to handling … A guinea pig will not recognize you when you walk up to their cage as they have very poor eyesight. Rex Guinea pig: Rex guinea pigs are very much known for their calm and friendly nature. If you are willing to give your guinea pig a good home with proper food, attention, living space, grooming, and veterinary care, you will be rewarded with a happy, healthy, cute, and fun guinea pig. This is how you safely hold a guinea pig. You need to approach the cage walking slowly and talking softly. Guinea pigs never cease to amaze and amuse their owners. Go to my You Tube site and view How to hold a guinea pig. The Benefits of Handling Your Guinea Pig. Gradually, as your guinea pig adjusts to you and your household, start handling her more so she becomes used to you. It is important to make sure that your piggy does not have tiny baby nails as these can be damaged easily. Signs of aging appear earlier in some guinea … You can find out about what they are like, how they respond to you, what there character traits are. I have been holding them frequently but they keep on squealing and squirming like they're afraid or uncomfortable. Once you train your pig they will do commands just hoping you have a piece of food. Doing so will help you train your guinea to get accustomed to the regular nail trimming. Guinea pigs are small pets, but they require plenty of space, time, effort, and human interaction. A guinea pig will usually return your affection, with a gurgle of contentment, a head butt or a loving nuzzle. Holding a guinea pig is the way you get to know them and the way they get to know you. If you leave things in the hand of a guinea hen, sadly, the keets will probably not survive. Let’s be clear, a newborn guinea pig should not leave its mother’s side for at least 3 weeks. Have you ever tried to catch a cute little wiggly piggly? Guinea pigs do not see directly in front of their noses, so being at least 5 inches away cuts down on the element of surprise and generates a true bond of trust between the two of you. how do i train my guinea pigs to be happy when theyre held? Guinea pigs make excellent pets for adults and children (older than 6 years old). i hold them with a small towel and keep them wrapped loosely so they can still move but i don't know why they are still so afraid and skiddish. for "poopy places" With patience and rewards (the edible kind :D) you can train guinea pigs to do many things! She will raise them as her own and take great care of them. Incubate the eggs and raise them as you would day old keets that you purchased. Tossing Head in the Air: A guinea pig getting annoyed with being petted will toss its head back as a way of asking you to stop. Teach your guinea pig to put their front paws up on your hand. I recently decided to give litter training my guinea pig … They are very easy to handle and are very strong. With the following cavy/guinea pig gestation period calculator, you will find it easier and faster to determine the estimated due date for your pregnant cavy to deliver her pups. Your pig needs to want and enjoy this work as much as you do, if not more. Part of that is due to the nature of the businesses that are opening up. A guinea pig’s mistrust is based on the concern that you will eat it, so defying its expectations and feeding it will go a long ways towards transforming the way it thinks about you. They are quite sociable and love receiving attention and affection; they love to be held and petted. True.Guinea pigs are generally hardy animals, but they are susceptible to many health problems if they are not cared for properly. Guinea pigs can be trained to do some basic actions, such as using a litter box. If a guinea pig is already used to being handled, that's great, and definitely speeds up the process, but still does not fully eliminate it. Gradually raise your hand higher off the ground as the guinea pig gains confidence. Dandruff refers to a specific skin condition, but it may be that your guinea pig has one or more reasons for debris on the skin that appears to flake off. Failure to do so will show how irresponsible the breeder is. 8. However, you are likely to get a lot of hair (even from short-haired piggies) as well as the odd poop. Either way, try returning your guinea pig to its cage for a bit. But as we got to know more about guinea pigs we realised how much value there was in regularly holding them. In the winter we sometimes have to do this with Bently just to get him to come out onto the porch. Fidgeting While Being Held: This can often be a sign that your guinea pig needs to go to the bathroom or that your guinea pig is just tired of being held. If you are thinking about getting a guinea pig, you will want to introduce the animals in a calm manner, such as the one described below. This often increases the amount of work you’ll need to do to keep your pet’s habitat clean, but it is an acceptable choice if … If it chews the bars of its hutch then this can indicate that your guinea pig is lonely and wanting to go and find a friend. Set a goal to hold your guinea pig for at least 30 minutes a day. Fly Away Little Guinea ***The AMPA Therapy Pig Training & Certification Program does not express or imply any legal rights or protections. Litter Box Training a Guinea Pig. The guinea pig will still need time to bond with their new owners and get used to their new environment. FLORIDA – Pet Supermarket is hosting an educational workshop designed to train people on how to properly care for guinea pigs. It takes a little patience, but is a very satisfying form of interaction with your pets. To calculate the gestation period for a guinea pig using this calculator, select the day … First, you will want to put your dog on a leash and put the guinea pig in a ball to keep it safe. You can train your dog to live with guinea pigs in peace. He loves to move it to one side of the cage and then avoids it. Eventually, you’ll be able to pick her up for a cuddle whenever you like — and she’ll enjoy it as much as you do. They are quiet, clean and require little care; however, they do need a lot of person-guinea pig interactions and socialization to be optimal companions. Practice until they will step up on your hand a few inches above the ground with less reliance on the food lure. Guinea pigs aren’t as easy to train as other rodents, but with patience you may be able to teach your guinea pig to run in a circle, to stand on a pedestal or to respond to his name. Some guinea pigs are smarter than others, so don’t be angry if your pet never quite gets the hang of it. They are also known as the most loving breed of guinea pig. Leaving a guinea pig alone or ignoring him, is like torturing the animal. Also, guinea pig might not be comfortable when you are holding it, if that is the case, you need to learn a go-to handling technique. American Guinea pig: American guinea pigs are very active, friendly, and have a lovable personality. Train your guinea pig to pirouette. Pick a set time each day, set up a guinea pig safe floor area with food and hideys, and give your cavy the exercise it needs. If you chose the right guinea pig you will have one that you will have a blase with as long as you are willing to put the time into it to train it. Here are the top guinea pig food products to keep your pet healthy: While some people may think that an older guinea pig will never become tame, this is simply not true. Floor time is a vital part of your daily guinea pig care schedule. When a guinea pig has “dandruff,” this constitutes a medical condition. I am a new guinea pig Mommy and I am still learning all these wonderful tricks. Un beknown to us they really love to be held. We ended up going to the fabric store and I bought 7 yards of fleece since I had coupons. Unless you hold your guinea pig for too long (15 minutes should be the maximum), they are unlikely to urinate on you. Just like us, guinea pigs age differently and at different rates. CAVY (Guinea Pig) What you can do in this project: Learn proper care, handling, feeding, habitat set-up, and how to train/teach tricks to a guinea pig; Gain knowledge and skills for showing cavies (this is for interest only; cavies are not shown at the OCF); Observe cavy behaviors and interactions with other cavies; Share cavy information and resources with others as you bridge new friendships This training course and certification by the American Mini Pig Association supports and encourages training of mini pigs for community services. In this video I show you how to potty train your guinea pig so it can be with you for extended amounts of time with out having a potty accident. When to Get a Baby Guinea Pig. Announce yourself by placing your hand at least 5 inches from your guinea pig’s eyes so that she can see you. Depending on which one your guinea pig makes, … Thank you so much for sharing this. With the correct technique, handling is a real pleasure for both you and your pet. They run away from you and hate being held or stroked. Other potential reasons for biting are to do with how your guinea pig is being kept. There are several reasons why a guinea pig would make a noise that sounds like a squeak. Put the guinea eggs under a broody hen. Ok, we aren’t talking about a full-on ballerina style pirouette here, but you can teach your guinea pig to move around in a circle and that’s still a very neat trick! 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