Guinea Pigs Lie: Rick

AJ and Rick (hiding in the shadows)

If you’ve owned guinea pigs for any length of time, you’ve probably discovered that they can be drama queens.  They’re good at telling tall tales of woe (“we haven’t been fed in days!”) or exaggerating things all out of proportion (“The vet tried to kill me!”).  But some people look at me askance when I first tell them that guinea pigs can lie.  They do.  Don’t let their fuzzy little cuteness fool you.

My first experience with a piggy liar was nearly three decades ago with Rick.  AJ, her sister, was the dominant pig of the pair.  AJ would occasionally harass Rick.  Over the years, Rick learned that if she cried loudly (“Mom! AJ’s picking on me!”) I would come to the cage and reprimand AJ.

One afternoon, I was in a nearby room and I heard Rick cry.  So I came to the cage and told AJ to knock it off.  Even though they weren’t sitting next to each other I figured AJ had pulled Rick’s fur and that Rick had moved away by the time I arrived.  Five minutes later Rick cried out again, so I went in and again told AJ she was a bad pig and to leave her sister alone.  A while later, I walked into their room just as Rick cried out.  And what did I see?!?  Rick on one side of the cage and AJ sleeping in the opposite corner of the cage.  Nowhere near each other!  Busted!  Instead of getting soothed, Rick was reprimanded.  After that, if Rick cried out in a tattletale sort of voice, I didn’t assume that AJ was picking on her.  What a sneaky little pig!