New Guinea pigs - I need help!

[FrankiesKnuckle]

Hi there

I have just become the proud owner of 2 male piggies - yesterday in fact!

They are roughly 3/4 months old so I'm told.
I've left them alone for a good 24 hours or so, checked the hutch and thought they'd actually made quite a mess for their first night - lots of poo and wee.
So I decided to have a little clean up.... obviously they are brand new and very skittish but I got so flustered trying to catch one of them! It took a good 5 minutes and I feel bad because I've probably just scared the hell out of it, this piggie does seem the more scared out of the 2.

I put them in their run with a hidey box, there were squeaks from them and I did manage to get to hold both who seemed calm once being held.

At one point I was holding the very scared one when the other jumped out of the box and landed on the garden table! He didn't run off, in fact he looked a bit surprised by it all!

I'm just so nervous of dropping them or hurting them, will I learn to be more confident around them? Just ridiculous as at work I'm very assertive!

They don't seem to be drinking but are eating, they love pepper and cucumbers but seem to dislike carrots 😁
No pigtures yet, sorry!

My 2 boys were like this when I first got them..

The way to their hearts is through their stomachs...mine eat for England!! They love strawberry tops at this time of year...!

And they are much more friendly now too- one will run over and climb into my hand when I open the hutch/run now (I'm not actually sure that he realises he's a guinea pig tbh)

Give them time to settle and they'll get easier to catch. I used to snuggle mine in a fleecy blanket in my lap and feed them parsley- one will fall asleep being brushed...!

What are their names? We need a picture definitely!! 🐹🐹

Can you over feed piggies?!

I did give extra cucumber after picking them up.

I've got some strawberries so maybe I'll try a couple of those.

Charlie and Ginger are their names, pigtures when they're not in hiding!

When I had guinea pigs I used to catch them in a small box, so much easier.

They wee a huge amount so the hutch does get dirty quickly. Mine hardly seem to drink anything at all, I don’t know if that’s normal but they have lots of fresh grass and cucumbers which have a high water content so maybe it’s not such an issue.

I would post a picture but my 7 year old is very protective of his pets and enforces a strict social media ban!

They would run into the box to avoid being caught by hand, but soon got used to running straight in whenever I put the box in the hutch or run.

GPs - a tiny bit mad. However many times u pick them up the are still a little bit convinced that you are going to eat them. However they can overcome all this anxiety with the idea of eating something nice!

Just give them tasty stuff - peppers, cucmbers, parsley etc and they will soon get used to you even though they know that you actually plan to eat them as soon ......

thier memory is short. Do not worry about traumatising them.

They need a diet which is mainly dust extracted hay.
Good quality GP pellets and a small amount of greens/veg/apple etc.
Absolutely no potato
Mine have cabbage/ pepper/ apple mostly.
They love carrot tops and parsley .
Carrots are very carby and cucumber has very little nutrients.
Fresh water and hay daily.
As they are boys they will need their bums/balls checking as they can get impacted, regular nail trims.
They will get used to being handled the more you do it.

I don't think so.... Mine eat better than we do. And it's all healthy salad stuff- must be good for them...?!

Mine didn't like carrot to start with, they will now eat small amounts. They love peppers, cucumbers, cherry tomatoes, kale, romaine lettuce, parsley, coriander, mint leaves, Dandelion leaves... At the moment they are on the lawn every day munching that.. They don't drink huge amounts.

I don't over feed the nuggets as that can make them fatter....

Oh, and I give them the really green Timothy Hay. They love that too.
You can buy readi grass too which is nice in winter when they are not out as much...

You can over feed pellets and they dont need lots of sweet fruit -they would probably disagree !

Dietary advice as above. Mine adored parsley as a lap treat.

Guinea pigs don't seem to have much understanding of height and have a tendency to leap out of your arms when they are young and nervous - sometimes with disastrous consequences. While they are so skittish, try to make sure you are sitting on the floor during lap time. That way, if they do make a jump for it, they won't have far to fall.

It sounds alarming, but with regular handling and treats they will grow into delightful, funny little pets.

Oh I love them already! Thanks for all the replies!

Mine loved dandelion leaves, so when i first had them and they were terrified that's what I did, hand fed them the leaves if they'd come to the edge of the pen. It did take a long time, but mine were 8 months ish when I got them and rarely handled. The most nervous, who I thought would never be tamed, is now lovely friendly 4 and a half year old piggie. Sadly her last sister died at Easter (PTS with a significant illness) so it's just her now.

Talk to them, time, leaves including some dandelion leaves and they'll be friendly little critters soom enough!