AJuff Posted June 2, 2007 Share Posted June 2, 2007 Our two male guinea piggies are now 8 months old. They are handled every day, fed dandelion leaves, organic carrots and other things they love but they still run away from us. As soon as we approach they run and hide inside the eglu and when you open the door they run out, if the doors closed they hide near it or prise themselves under the hay rack to avoid being picked up. Is this normal? Will they ever come and greet us? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ziggy Posted June 5, 2007 Share Posted June 5, 2007 Hi there, I have had five guinea pigs over the years, and what you described, though not the norm, is not that uncommon. My first guinea was friendly to the point of being bossy. My second one was shy all her life, disliking being handled and fussed over, and only happy if left well alone. We got her from a pet shop when she was just a few weeks old, but she had obviously been kept with male guineas before that, as she gave us three babies soon after she came to us. I always thought the shyness was some kind of protective motherly instinct, but then one of the babies, who all lived with us in exactly the same conditions, remained shy for all her life too, never really enjoying picked up and fussed over... Have you tried bribing your GPs with their favourite food? Maybe handfeeding them treats will make them more interested in their human companions? Good luck Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tricky Posted July 24, 2007 Share Posted July 24, 2007 This behaviour is in built in Guinea Pigs.It is the only defence they have n the wild They just have to run. It is important to persevere with them however as you need to check them over regularly, toes, teeth, coat for mites etc. Piggies that are kept in the house do become much friendlier Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
flj Posted July 25, 2007 Share Posted July 25, 2007 They may become more friendly as they get older, although one of the things I love about piggies is the fact that they all have such different personalities, so don't expect them to be the same even if they do get a little more cuddly! I have six piggies, varying from the 'friendly to the point of being bossy' to the 'snatch food out of your hand and run away and hide' ends of the spectrum. They're all indoor pigs though so they get lots of conversation and cuddles so hopefully the shy ones will grow up to be much more sociable than they are now. Spend time with them, talk to them, get a routine going so they are expecting you at certain times and try and hand feed them (if you can get them to expect mealtimes this gets easier, I promise!). Good luck - let us know how you get on fi Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RubyMurray Posted October 16, 2007 Share Posted October 16, 2007 Our two male guinea piggies are now 8 months old. They are handled every day, fed dandelion leaves, organic carrots and other things they love but they still run away from us. As soon as we approach they run and hide inside the eglu and when you open the door they run out, if the doors closed they hide near it or prise themselves under the hay rack to avoid being picked up. Is this normal? Will they ever come and greet us? Hi there, I've kept Guinea pigs for 10 years now, most of them have been very friendly but my latest male 'Fred' is 3 years old and you can't handle him, he's petrified!! Must just be his charactor, I also have 6 girls and 1 of those doesn't like being handled either, she doesn't bite but tries to jump back down. Don't worry about it, animals are all different the same as people. Persevier (dont think thats spelt right?) I have 1 cockerel Bert, he's very friendly and 7 hens the 2 Rhode Island Reds are very friendly and eat from your hand but the light sussex are not so sure. Kind Regards, Dyan (RubyMurray) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
