Cannoli's Progress

Blogging has changed how I observe my guinea pigs.  I hadn't started writing when I adopted Bertie and Pinniped; I recall that they were skittish for a while, then suddenly settled in.  This time around, however, I'm noticing the little changes in Cannoli from week to week.  I think it's because I've conditioned myself to pick up on anything worth writing about.  So I'm tuned in to the progression of Cannoli's behavior.

It's been a month since Cannoli came home with us from Nevins Farm.  She still runs away when I come in the room and tries not to get picked up.  I realize it could be months before she willingly comes forward to beg for attention or treats.  But there has been lots of progress.  Cannoli got the hang of the new cage within the first day or two.  The upper levels were challenging at first (especially that first leap up), but now she runs up and down them like a pro.  She loves the hammock and I've seen her do a crazy nothing-but-net leap into it from the side.  Swish!

Rodent Relations III: Stealing

I've covered Biting and Bickering.  The last bit in this series is stealing.  I'm sure there are more types of bad behavior between bonded pigs.  These are just what sprang to mind when Pinni and Bertie's actions upset The Girls Next Door.

Guinea pigs are willful little creatures.  Pinni loves to oust Bertie from some good sleeping spot or force her to move to some other spot in the cage.  Abercrombie loved to pull the treat bowl into the hidey house and block the entrance so she could eat all the treat by herself.  And all guinea pigs, even the most bonded pair, will steal food from each other.  Often it's straight out from the other's mouth.  Some people view this as being mean, but it's really just par for the course for any herd of guinea pigs.  Obviously, what one pig is eating must taste better than anything else in the cage, so why should that pig get to eat it all?  If it's a really good morsel, then the idea is to snatch it from the one eating it, and high-tail it to another corner of the cage to eat as much as possible before the first pig (or some other pig) comes to take it.  I used this piggy attitude when Willow was on her own to entice her to eat more hay (Healthy Competition).

Rodent Relations I: Biting

This winter I had the Girls Next Door watch Bertie and Pinniped while we were out of town.  When I came back they told me all about feeding and caring for them.  Then they told me how Pinni bit Bertie and how they had to break up the two of them.

The twins knew Willow had lived alone because the Newbies bit her and I think they were a little sensitive to Pinni and Bertie's behavior.  They thought the two pigs were having a falling out.  And they aren't the only ones who are nervous about what constitutes normal guinea pig behavior.  This type of question comes up a lot.  New owners often separate their guinea pigs for fear that they're fighting when the pigs were just trying to establish boundaries and pecking order.  They also fear that pigs that don't cuddle together all the time don't really like each other.  Piggy politics can be complicated, and sometimes there are only subtle signs to indicate that two (or more) pigs are actually quite happy to be together.

Bertie and Pinni are one of the strongest bonded pair of pigs I've had (my best bonded were Vicky and Athena).  But like any close couple, they have their off days and spats.  When they do, they can really dish it out.  And because there is so much badness two pigs can get into - I'm going to cover it in a trilogy of posts.

Today's unseemly behavior:  biting, snapping, hissing and lunging.

Back Step Confession

I've seen at the Boston Pignic how grazing guinea pigs can attract a passer-by to stop and watch.  A few weekends ago I got to see this in action in my own back yard.  We had the pigs out one evening for less than an hour before it came to the attention of The Girls Next Door and their friend.  It was fun.  They fed clover and dandelion leaves to the pigs, told me what adventures they had been up to and showed off their ability to do cartwheels in the yard.  It was the typical all-over-the-place conversation of young girls and I enjoyed taking it all in. 

One of the twins, her friend and I ended up sitting on the back steps to watch the pigs and chat about our summer plans.  The subject matter meandered and at some point the friend confessed she had believed I was a mean person because mean people lived in our house.  (I'm not sure how that rumor came about, since the landlord and his family, who lived here before us, are the some of nicest people I've met.)

Bertie's Third Birthday

Bertie is the youngest of my pair.  And she's turning three.  Goodness.

Bertie and I had a rough time last summer.  I felt so bad that I was too sick to deal with her illness when I first thought something was wrong.  I'm so glad she pulled through.  This summer we're both much better.  

Bertie is still a very timid pig (as we discovered with this photo shoot).  Even so, she's warmed up a lot over the years.  On the surface, she's still the utterly cute ditzy-dope of her namesake.  I'm starting to suspect that's an act; Bertie appears to be the more intelligent of my pair of pigs.  She has learned how to beg on command (although if she's too scared, she'll refuse to do it).  She has also learned that if she sits still in the cozy that the Girls Next Door will hold her nicely, and being fawned over really isn't that bad.  And, of course, she picked up how to properly chew bars from Willow.

Bertie found her voice over the last year.  I find her chortling around the cage and have occasionally been surprised by a wheek that isn't Pinni.  Bertie still prefers biting the bars, though, to get my attention in the kitchen.  Neither one of these dopes have figured out how to do the full-blown I AM STARVING wheek like some of my previous pigs.

Of course, her big accomplishment this year was regaining her rightful place in the hay rack.  After a long and drawn out battle, I had to concede the hay rack was hers to do with as she pleased.

Happy Birthday, Bertie, my little feckless, yet determined, little pig.

Trouble on the Floor

Us?  Trouble?  How could you think such a thing?

Pinniped and Bertie have seemed bored lately.  It's still too cold to let them outdoors to let them stretch their legs.  I don't let them have a lot of floor time in the winter because the tile floor is cold and drafty.  Plus, I have to pig-proof everything.  They're allowed in the kitchen and the living room and occasionally the front hall.  Most of it is tiled.  They're generally pretty good about not peeing on the carpet, but accidents happen.  A few weeks ago, during a visit with the Girls Next Door, Pinni and Bertie discovered they could move the grids and get behind the couch.  Oh, joy!  It was a new place to explore, pee and poop on, and to hide from everyone.

I did not share their joy.

Pinniped Turns Three

Poof!  Another year has passed.  Today we celebrate Pinniped's third birthday.

Pinni has at long last achieved her dream of being the (mostly) undisputed Queen Pig of our household.  She spends her days lounging around, eating hay and chortling to herself.  Since Willow has gone, Pinni has become much more vocal.  I often catch her talking to herself as she putters around the cage.

The last year brought about a few new things, including the first trip to the vet.  Bladder sludge is not so fun.  Pinni has made some new friends (the Girls Next Door) and lost some weight (no longer tipping the scales at 1400g).  There's still plenty to squeeze and Pinni gets lots of attention, often to her dismay and disapproval. 

She has mellowed a bit over the years and figures people aren't all that bad.  Neither of the Newbies is as people-oriented as Willow, but Pinni is the most likely to sit still and let someone rub her nose or snorgle fingers in hope of treats.  It's hard to resist her whiskery nose waving about as she begs for carrot or cantaloupe. 

Happy Birthday, Pinni!

A Piggy Present

Unstoppable Bertie vs an immovable tunnel

A fellow guinea pig slave and member of the pignic Pig Patrol came to my Tea last week.  She arrived with her version of Bad Pig Stew (cavy-free, of course) in one hand and a piggy present in the other.  I may need to invite her over to my house more often....

Pinni and Bertie had just survived a loud and exciting evening with the Girls Next Door.  (The twins were thrilled I waited to clean the cage until they were available and the pigs were being silly, so loud outbursts ensued, much to the Newbie's dismay.)  I imagine Pinni and Bertie were not pleased that the house was invaded by more people only 16 hours later.  The two of them were shier than usual.

Willow

I picked Willow up on Saturday morning to weigh and medicate her and immediately knew things weren't right.  She had a sudden jump in weight since Friday night, but her belly was enlarged and squishy and her bottom was swollen.  I immediately called Windhover, but my vet was not in and the other vet does not see guinea pigs.  The staff told me Willow should be seen by a vet immediately.

I was distraught, calling veterinary practices in the area, trying to save us from driving into Boston.  No guinea pig vets were working that morning, so Rob called Angell Memorial to say we were coming and off we went.

The drive up was rough.  I could see Willow was hurting.  She didn't flirt or seemed interested in the drive, which was unusual.  She chewed on the towel eventually sat very still in one place and her eyes become dull.  I don't know how else to describe it -- I just watched the spark go out of them.

The Girls Next Door

The twin girls that live next door recently discovered that we have three guinea pigs.  A week or two after this discovery I answered the door to find the twins and a friend standing on my porch.  Could they visit with the pigs? 

I suspected that the friend was added in hopes that if I let them play with my guinea pigs, no one would feel neglected:  there would be one little girl per one guinea pig.  And their timing couldn't have been better.  They rang the doorbell just as I was getting ready to clean the cages. 

I invited them in and told them they could hold the pigs for as long as it took me to clean the cages.  They swept through the living room descended on the cages like a force of nature, a whirlwind.  I pig-proofed the kitchen and ushered the girls in.  They sat on the floor, each with their own pig, asked me questions and babbled to each other all at once.  Wow.  The pigs didn't know what to make of it either.  Bertie was terrified; she wouldn't come out of her cozy.  Pinni managed to pee on one of the girls, twice.  Willow, meanwhile, charmed everyone and basked in the attention.  The girls were thrilled - they got play with the pigs and feed them bits of lettuce and cantaloupe while I cleaned the cages.

One of them asked how often I cleaned the cages and was surprised that this was a weekly chore.  Every Saturday?  Oh, joy!  I now listen for the doorbell on Saturday afternoons, when they know I should be cleaning the cages.  The pigs require supervision, right?

Subsequent visits have been calmer, if not quieter.  Even Bertie has relaxed a little.  Pinni still manages to pee on at least one of the girls each time.  None of the pigs are too certain about being bundled up in cozies then cradled, rocked and cooed over like babies.  That may take a bit more adjustment.

I find myself attempting to answer questions asked by two or three kids at once.  Occasionally I'm answering one's question while another is relating some story of family pets.  It's tricky keeping track of pigs, kids, stories and questions all while I'm trying get things done.  It's a lot like juggling.

Pinniped is exhausted after entertaining three little girls.

After an hour or so, I finished cleaning the cages.  The pigs went back into their cages with sighs of relief.  The little girls, for the most part, were sated.  They gave  farewell pats to the pigs, parting questions to me and informed me they'd be back next week for another visit.

My trio were exhausted; I soon found them flopped all over their cages.  I was pretty tired, too.  It's a lot of work to clean two pig cages while supervising kids and pigs to ensure they don't accidentally hurt each other.  I don't think the pigs or I could handle this much excitement more than once a week.  Don't get me wrong - it's a delight to have the little girls for a visit.  They were so excited to have some one-on-one time with my pigs.  I'm just glad I have enough well behaved (non-biting) pigs to go around.