The Piggy Hierarchy

When we adopted our guinea pigs, we knew that having two will be a lot harder than taking care of one. Debbi Noble, in her novel Guinea Pig Pets: Train Your Guinea Pig The Easy Way! explaints that this is because guinea pigs naturally follow a hierarchy when they live with more than one of their kind. This social structure is very strong, and pigs will fight constantly when there are may of them in a herd. This social structure has existed even when guinea pigs were still in the wild (23).

The hierarchy goes as follows (from most powerful to least powerful):
One dominant male
Several females (who all have their own ranks within this rank)
The younger, more subordinate pigs (23).

Noble includes this detail that really applies to me: "When two female guinea pigs live together, they will mount and nip each other, and one guinea pig will quickly establish dominance over the other. In most cases, the fights between two females are not particularly dangerous, but you should observe the pets carefully, especially in the early days, because some very aggressive females will continue to harass weaker females to the point of seriously injuring them or even killing them" (23-24).

Thankfully, Mochi has not killed Bean yet, but I do remember their first days together: non-stop rumbling, teeth-chittering, and the smell of the pheromones that guinea pigs give off when they get territorial. Mochi has established herself as the dominant one mainly because Bean was still very young and dependent. But now that Bean is getting a lot bigger, the dominance-establishing-moments where they'll act up again has been happening more often.

In the following pictures and videos you can see how Bean follows Mochi around, but once the meet face to face, they will both raise their heads and begin trying to establish their dominance by rumbling (which is a vibrato-ish sound similar to a purr) or chitter their teeth. Whoever back down first (which is usually Bean) begins to stuff her snout under the other pig's neck, showing submission.

Noble says, which I think is pretty smart, that "the best way to break up a fight is to put a towel over one of the animals and pick it up, then place that animal in a different cage" (24). Thankfully Mochi and Bean haven' gotten to outright bullying and nasty fights, but Bean has gotten a few nips on her ears and bled. Instead of using a blanket, I use my disciplining methods from before and make a loud "tshk" sound, when they act up or are caught doing something they aren't supposed to do. That way, they can associate that sound with the thought of stopping whatever they're doing. Thus they can follow commands even when we're not necessarily right next to them to force them to quit whatever they're doing.

For those of you who have pets, How have you disciplined your pets when they do something wrong? If you have more than one pet, how did you get your pets to successfully stop fighting?



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

Up You Go!

All my past guinea pigs had had no problem climbing the stairs. They always followed our feet wherever we went, hoping their cutesy efforts would be rewarded with a treat.

But our two girls are different; they aren't dependent on us as our past pigs were. So I attempted to teach Mochi and Bean how to climb a stair.

In Debbi Noble's novel Guinea Pig Pets: Train Your Pig The Easy Way! Noble suggests that the easiest way to teach your cavy how to do this is by practicing on carpet stairs, and your pig should be close to fully grown, if it isn't already (21). This makes sense because carpet stairs aren't so slippery so your pig can have a good grip when making their jump. That's why I took Mochi, our full-grown pig, to our widest step (so she can have room to move around) on our carpeted staircase. Since she has an attachment to Bean, I put Bean on the stair above her so that Mochi has more motivation to go up.

To get your pig to climb a step, make sure it is facing the next stair and give it a little push on its rump (21). But if your pig has a harder time learning (as Mochi was), it'll need more encouragement. Noble says, "If your pig is in [this] category, simply place its front feet on the next step, so that it is standing up on its hind legs, and then give it a little push. It will go up. Congratulate it, and try again" (21). Since Mochi's hind legs are weaker than they should be and she's also very heavy for her size, I decided I needed to take this advice with her. I held her slightly off the ground (since the stair was a little high for her) and she took off right when she saw Bean and the pile of carrots that awaited her!








I think this is actually the most difficult trick to teach. For those of you with pets, What was the most difficult thing you had to teach your pet(s) while training them?


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

The "Come" Trick

How smart can your pet be? Have you tried teaching it to "come" or "come here"?

That's exactly what I worked on for the past few weeks with my two guinea pigs. I've noticed that they've already learned that the sound of the refrigerator opening is a sign that they will get fed, and will start squealing for food. I got to thinking that I could put this knowledge to good use.

Debbi Noble implies that it's pretty easy to teach your guinea pigs to "come." The command "can be taught using a treat, just like you would with a dog to 'heel' or come here'"(20). That's what I did with Mochi and Bean, but along with a treat, I would click my tongue multiple times, making loud and clear tsk, tsk sounds, after I opened the fridge and walked to their cage with their fresh veggies. Pretty quickly the cavies would associate the "tsk-tsk" sound with being fed, and would approach the one making the sound: me.

Consistency is important so I kept this up for several weeks, every time I went to feed them, which is once in the morning and once in the evening. Fresh veggies are supposed to be treats since a guinea pig's diet should mostly consist of hay and pellets. After I was sure that both Mochi and Bean knew what the "tsk-tsk" sound meant, I tried to see is they could learn the "come" command when they heard it during their playtime/exercise session.

Like with any lesson, practice is important, and the first ones should be simple, then the difficulty should increase over time. In Mochi and Bean's case, the difficulty increased when the distance between them and the food would increase (21). So for our first practice, a few minutes into their play, when I was about five feet away, I clicked my tongue the same way I would when I was about to feed them. Immediately, both pigs began squealing. Bean, the less cautious one, right away trotted her way to me, and quickly Mochi followed.

In other words, Trial 1 was a success!

                                 

After they finished half the lettuce, I had the pigs run around some more for a little bit as a break. The second and final trial for our first practice for the "come' command will determine if they really have the ability to learn it.

Once their break time was over, I made the call once again, this time while ten feet away. Surprisingly, it was Mochi this time who approached first! It was a success once again!

             

             

For those of you who have pets, what is the most successful experience you've had in training your pet?

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

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.

Piggy Hugs

Guinea pigs! Such a misleading name, for they are not pigs (they're rodents), nor are they from New Guinea (their original home is Peru). But that doesn't make these adorable, cuddly creatures any less lovable!

Cavies have always been a part of my life. In fact, my first pet was a guinea pig when I was five years old, and there hasn't been a time after that when our home wasn't shared with at least one of these cavy babies. I myself have my first female pigs at the moment: Mochi (1 year old) and Bean (7 months old).

Can you guess which is whom?

Well, you may ask, what makes guinea pigs so appealing? Guinea pigs are mostly very docile and are quick learners. And just like people, guinea pigs have their own personalities that bring them to life. Author Debbi Noble said that the personality and intellect of a guinea pig is largely dictated by its breed and the age it was adopted into a home (6). Mochi, the classic American, was around six months old when we rescued her. Bean, who is of the "Teddy" breed (distinguished by their short, fuzzy fur), was only two months old when we adopted her a short time after Mochi. Both are very clever girls, and I've taken this opportunity to teach them simple commands.

But first things first!

At the heart of any kind of training, one must remember the basics. In training your guinea pig, this means knowing the basic way of interacting with your pigs: picking them up and holding them. Noble warns piggy owners that that in itself can be a struggle, so she gives this advice. "Move slowly and cautiously, and once you've caught it, hold it gently. Keep two hands on it at all times, one above the animal and one below... One popular way of holding a guinea pig is to have your left hand on the bottom, with its head pointing to your left elbow and its rump on your left hand. Cover the guinea pig's shoulders with your right hand" (16, 17). I don't usually hold my pigs in this position, but the important thing is to "have good control of the animal and that the control is caused by having multiple points of contact with your pet" (18). I applied this advice with my pigs and held them in multiple positions: how Noble described and  how I usually hold them.

 I've found that what Noble said is true! Whatever position I held my pigs in, I found that once I placed both my hands on my her and made sure her lower body is properly supported, she would stop tensing up complaining and instead turn quiet and relaxed. This was the effect on both Mochi and Bean, especially when I had one hand over the top of their body and they were close to my own body, like a hug. Having as much physical contact as possible is important for your pet to feel safe when you are hold them, especially when moving around.

But the journey isn't over yet! Having your pet trust and feel safe around you is only laying down the fundamentals for training them. Next time, let's see how Mochi and Bean fare with being taught to "come here!"

I'm interested to know if any of you have pets. What was the most important part for you in training and teaching your pet(s)?

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