Toby, our boy baby, has started biting our daughter over the last few days. It's infrequent and has happened when she gives him treats, cleans his cage and even when being held. He's always enjoyed being held and was acting perfectly content right before he bit her. He's about 3 1/2 months old now.
I just read about it in the care guide & I had already thought about mites or something else making him not feel good. Any other ideas? We might need a trip to the vet to check for mites or whatever.
In other news, on of the baby girls (Wendy) is a chirper who has been waking us up in the middle of the night. Daughters have checked on her & she doesn't seem to be scared or disturbed.
Neely and her babies.
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Bookfan
- For the Love of Pigs
Toby, our boy baby, has started biting our daughter over the last few days. It's infrequent and has happened when she gives him treats, cleans his cage and even when being held. He's always enjoyed being held and was acting perfectly content right before he bit her. He lunged at her when she was taking his food bowl out. He's 3 1/2 months old.
I looked in the care guide & read about mites or other discomfort as a cause. Any other ideas.
I looked in the care guide & read about mites or other discomfort as a cause. Any other ideas.
When BJ had mites, he bit at himself. Even after we got rid of them, he still nibbled me whenever he got uncomfortable or just didn't want to be bothered. He never bit hard. It was a nibble that never drew blood, but those sharp incisors do hurt a little. Of course, he was about 5 whereas your boy is still a baby. Not sure if that makes a difference. My guinea pigs all lightly nip to tell me something. Most of the time when I'm holding them, it's their way of telling me to put them in their cage or get pottied on. Just something to consider if it doesn't stop after you treat for mites.
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Bookfan
- For the Love of Pigs
Weirdest thing happened this morning. Daughter went down with their breakfast carrot chips & gave them hay. There's usually wheeking, everyone running out and general commotion. Not so this morning. It was like they all just woke up & were groggy. But it looks like, based on poop locations, that they all were in their huts all night which is not typical. We were just about to call for a vet appt.
The older girls got back to normal faster than Neely's family. They all were eating and behaving normally within about 15 min. I can't figure it out. Maybe it's too cold down there, but we've had several nights colder than last night. I turned the heat up a couple of degrees & we'll see.
The older girls got back to normal faster than Neely's family. They all were eating and behaving normally within about 15 min. I can't figure it out. Maybe it's too cold down there, but we've had several nights colder than last night. I turned the heat up a couple of degrees & we'll see.
Mine burrow into their hay if it gets too cold. Skipper hid himself under the hay so well the other day that I thought he'd gotten out of his cage somehow. That would be very bad if it happened for several reasons. It's a 4 and a half foot drop for one. If he survived that intact, there are 3 dogs and 2 cats to contend with. None of the dogs would deliberately try to hurt him, but they all play pretty rough with their toys and each other. The cats are both mousers and might mistake a guinea pig on the floor for a big rat and hunt it.
Anyway, my point is that my pigs slow down quite a bit and burrow into their hay or ball up in their hideys if the room temperature drops too low.
Anyway, my point is that my pigs slow down quite a bit and burrow into their hay or ball up in their hideys if the room temperature drops too low.
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Bookfan
- For the Love of Pigs
Ha, ha! One of our pigs a long time ago did take a taste of my coffee.
Interesting, Renonvsparky. I bet it was the cold.
On another note, we have a chirper. Wendy's the main chirper, others have tried it. The first time was at 2:00 am and she woke all of us up. One daughter went down to check on things and held her. She didn't seem at all distressed. She tends to chirp from the top of a hut and doesn't necessarily stop when we come down.
Interesting, Renonvsparky. I bet it was the cold.
On another note, we have a chirper. Wendy's the main chirper, others have tried it. The first time was at 2:00 am and she woke all of us up. One daughter went down to check on things and held her. She didn't seem at all distressed. She tends to chirp from the top of a hut and doesn't necessarily stop when we come down.