The Beg Trick

I've been practicing with my younger guinea pig Bean for some time now on teaching her to "beg." This means getting her to stand on her hind legs. How I learned to train her was by applying author Debbi Noble's advice.

I must say it was easier for me to train Bean because not only is she younger but she is more submissive, or more obedient. In the wild, guinea pigs live in herds with a dominant male and the rest of the females have their own ranks. The youngest ones end up in the lower ranks since they are more dependent on older pigs (22). That is why I focused training Bean first. Mochi knows she's the more dominant one and is always being followed by Bean.

             

The "beg" trick is one of the most common tricks to teach a pet. But since guinea pigs are not as intelligent as dogs or cats, "it can take a few weeks to teach this command, and you will need to practice it for 15 minutes each day" (30). In order to do that, I've spent the last two weeks with my guinea pigs to teach them this trick. Our "training time" would always be a few minutes into their play time--when they are comfortable walking around--and then I would take out the carrots. The carrots are used as an incentive to get their attention. After some time, the amount of treats should be decreased until the command is able to be done by your pet without any treats.

Right, now, how do you teach your guinea pig to beg? "Start by holding the food just out of their reach [above their head], and gradually hold it higher and higher until they are standing on their hind legs attempting to reach it" (30). I did this by first letting Bean take a bite of carrot, and once she wanted to take another piece, held it a couple inches above her head, while saying "beg." She caught on pretty quickly.

           

At first it was a little hard for Bean because her clubbed foot made her unbalanced. Her center of gravity wasn't exactly center at all. But after a few tries, she was able to get a few nips of carrot.

The above pictures are recent, meaning, unfortunately, Bean and I have not gone to the "no treats" stage yet. She still needs a few pieces of carrot to remember how to "beg."

Noble also suggests that for pets just beginning to learn this trick, it might help to have something to prop their upper bodies on to reach their treats. (60). I found this helpful for my other guinea pig. After I would train with Bean for about 15 minutes, I would focus on Mochi, who is more heavy-set. Her back legs are also pretty weak, but her sense of smell is strong, so she'd climb my legs and knees to reach the bag of carrots on my lap. When she did that, I'd treat her to a carrot while saying "beg" if she looks for a treat--that way, she gets a carrot and I help her take another step closer to learning to a command!

Carrots are great to use as an incentive for guinea pigs when training them. I'm wondering, what do you use or do to get your pet to pay attention when training them?

Noble, Debbie. Guinea Pig Pets: Train Your Guinea Pig The Easy Way! N.p.: Shaharm Publications, 2014-2015. E-book.