The Big Fluffy Fun World of Cuys!!

[jacqueline]

So, if you want the whole back story of ow Alexandria and Rosalinda came into my life, browse here:
http://www.guinealynx.info/forums/viewtopic.php?t=70863

I picked Alex and Rosie up at Reagan Washington airport 10 p.m. january 8. Today I mlved them into their new dogs with my other three girls, separated by a grid for now:



And here is "Ghost" (my newest white pig rescue who needs a new name!) sayng hello to Rosie:



Just moments ago,Alex and Rosie were chasing each other around the cage. They're not as dainty or light on their feet. Think thunder. . .

It looks like I'll be bringing Rosie out to the vet's soon. I saw a white cloudy thing in her right eye. It looks to me like a cataract, but I do need to have it checked.

[clairey]

Yay, a giant pigs chronicle.

Maybe Rosie has a little hay poke from the trip? It's lovely to see her chatting over the garden fence to their new neighbour.

[snowflakey]

So cute! I think Ghost is a fine name for your white pig.

[JaneDoe]

Does Ghost have black eyes?

[jacqueline]

Ghost is all white except for a little tan patch on the top of her head, over her ear that looks kind of like a beret.

Yes, she has dark eyes, maybe black. Definitely not red of any shade.

[JaneDoe]

Looks like a giant version of Pandora. What does she weigh?

[jacqueline]

I think the angle is what makes her look so big. She's only about 900 grams or so.

[JaneDoe]

Such a pretty girl!

[Wheekers3]

Gotta love those ears! I wanna kiss them.

[TexCavy]

Did my info help at all? I am glad they made it to you! They are so cute. A cool synonym of Ghost is Mirage. Just an idea.

[JaneDoe]

Tex, I remember one of my FB friends thought Milkyway was a cuy :)

[jacqueline]

So, Alex and Rosie seem to enjoy chasing each other in zoomies around the cage. Quite a sight to see, and hear

I can see signs of them settling in a bit. Right now Alex is sprawled out in the open, butt sticking through the grids. I think they're starting to get a sense of the routine, and how close I can get to them before they feel compelled to run and hide.

I feel lucky that all my cages surround my sofa in the livingroom, so I get to watch them whenever I'm home.

They seem to have a bursts of energy once I turn out the lights and head into bed. I can hear them galumphing around and squealing. Alex is a very loudly vocal pig. She's also the boldest and bravest.

It would be great to set up some sort of camera that I could record some of their antics. Is there an easy way to do that? anyone care to offer some suggestions?

[LS in AK]

They seem to have a bursts of energy once I turn out the lights and head into bed. I can hear them galumphing around and squealing.

Sounds like a bunch of little girls having a sleep-over party.

I bet they think they've died and gone to heaven.

Don't know anything about rigging up a camera, but it will be interesting to read about your cuys. Not sure there are any other chronicle threads focused on just this breed.

I think it is always so satisfying to bring home an animal and work to gain its trust so that it feels happy and healthy and safe in your presence and care. Especially with those that may be more difficult to settle.

PS my (relatively) new little girl looks just like your Ghostie pig: DEW with some brown around her eyes. Very pretty.

[jacqueline]

Ha! Yes - pre-teens at a sleepover!

There are times when they're chasing each other that I wonder if they're playing or fighting, but no one seems to get hurt. I have to remind myself that these two girls were their own "herd" and managed to scavenge in the wild for a year - so they really are bonded

[snowflakey]

Those wildlife cameras might be good; I think they work in very low light.

[jacqueline]

Well, I wanted to test the waters today, and see how the girls might get along. Oops! Too soon I suspect. The big girls just got into this space on Saturday. . .

The good news is: cuys, being skittish, are easy to chase off of another pig - a stern shout and they run; the "regular pigs can run faster.

The bad news is: cuys are very big - everything is big - including their teeth; it looks like they don't give much warning to an attack - they just lunge!

Needless to say, there was a bit of aggression. Rosie is the more aggressive of the two cuys. She even chases Alex around - I think it's playful, but it's not always obvious to me.

Alex went after Isabelle a couple times. Knocked her down and sank into her butt. Isabelle, with her neurological problem, can't get up fast enough. Then Rosie also went after Meagan (formerly Ghost), but a loud shout from me, and a fast get away from Meagan prevented injury.

I put the grid back up and called it a day after about 20 minutes. I'll give it some time, maybe think of some other things to do.

At this pint Rosie is chewing at the grids, which she never did, and chasing after Alex. I think she just got worked up. But, boy, is Rosie ever a power house!!! Like a feaking mack truck!

[bpatters]

Erm, just taking grids down isn't a great way to introduce pigs. The received wisdom says that you introduce in a neutral space and then put them back in a cleaned cage that has absolutely nothing in it that smells like any of the pigs -- prevents territorial defense, I guess.

And I don't know that I'd put them in with Isabelle, given her difficulties in righting herself when she tips over. Since they're so skittish, she may get knocked down a lot.

[jacqueline]

Yeah, I know. Really bad on my part. I guess I was hoping that since the space is really "one" only divided by grids, that it wouldn't be a problem. I know, dumb idea. I know better. They've been curious about ine another, and sniffing at each other through the grids.

I'm just not sure what to do with Isabelle. I guess I'm hoping some pig will step up and be her protector. Probably not realistic, but still .. .

But, she's quite a brave soul. Even after being pushed about by Rosie, she went back up the ramp several more times!

[bpatters]

The grid separation/removal didn't even work with my two when Flourish had stone surgery. I thought that since they'd been in the same cage their entire lives, were only separated by a grid while she was convalescing, and had never squabbled with each other, it would be ok to just remove the grids. Wrong!

[jacqueline]

Yeah. Ugh!!

If only our piggies could be reasoned with!

One of my concerns is that I pretty much counted on being able to join the girls together in one herd, which I know was a little foolish on my part.

That second level, the bottom shelf of the stand, is hard to access. It's in a bad spot. It's okay, when the space is open and the pigs have the top and bottom level. But to have pigs permanently on that level is going to be challenging.

It would also be nice to have the cuys in a place where it's easier for me to have contact and work with them.

My current set-up basically consists of 2 wood stands with 2 shelves each. The stand on the left has a 3x5 C&C cage on the top with 2 boys. On the bottom is the herd of 5 boars. They have the bottom shelf, and a modified free-range space.

The stand on the right is identically built. The top has a 3x5 C&C with 2 males; The bottom space has the 2 cuys and the 3 cuys.

I'll have to think about shuffling things around a bit. I don't have much wiggle room. I could perhaps try to unite the the boys that are in the two top cages and put them in the bottom right space.

IF that works, I could put the 3 girls in one top cage ad the cuys in the other.

Maybe I'll give that a shot and try to work more with the cuys. I have to tell you that Rosie makes me nervous. This sounds so odd to me, but she's a little intimidating.

As I already mentioned, I don't see any fore-warning of an attack. There didn't seem to be any teeth chattering, or rumble strutting. Just a lunge out of the blue.

Yes, they're skittish, but not - what? - shy? If Rosie(at least) feels threatened (I don't want to generalize here yet) she can be quite aggressive.

Yup - cuys are NOT for the novice!!