Taming the guinea pig
Guinea pigs are animals that are extremely fearful and distrustful of new people, especially females. Males are usually a bit more courageous and find themselves in contact with people sooner. Taming a guinea pig can be quite time consuming and may take up to several months.
It must be remembered that if the guinea pig is frightened in the face of a threat which it also seems to be an unknown person, it freezes with fear or simply runs away. She will not be able to run a long distance because her little heart cannot cope with it and may suffer a heart attack if you run longer. Therefore, guinea pigs should not be too stressed by us. Even the very change of the place of residence, a new cage, a new smell or the sound around it is stressful for a pet. In the first few days, in a new room, do not add any additional stress to the pigs and do not take them out of the cage. During the first three days, we should give the pigs time to acclimatize.
To tame a guinea pig, we should first of all be patient. The taming period may take up to several months. Some pigs will get used to it faster and others will get used to it more slowly. One pig is more trusting and open, while another is less. It is much easier to tame a curious pig than one that stays in a corner of a cage or a house.
The initial taming task on our part should be sitting quietly near the cage and watching the animals. Remember that quick and impetuous movements will make the guinea pigs scare and run to their home, where they feel most confident. Noises are also not for taming, so let’s turn off the TV. So that nothing disturbs us and the pigs. Sitting close to the cage, we can start talking to the animals in a gentle voice. They will quickly get used to it and after some time they will know that they are safe from our side.
If the guinea pigs no longer hide in the house when we see us, we can go a little further in taming them. The next task will be to teach the pigs that when we are close to them, something nice will always happen to them. That is why we should stock up on delicacies such as fresh dandelions, grass or chicory or cucumbers and give them to pigs straight from the hand. They will be afraid of us at first. We shouldn’t stick their food straight into their mouths. Pigs have an extremely sensitive sense of smell and eyesight. They will know perfectly well what is on your hand. Before they reach for the treat, however, they will think for a long time. This may take up to a minute. It is best to approach them around feeding, then they will not resist for too long. At the same time, we can start to touch them – scratch slightly behind the ear, on the back and under the chin (then the noses stick up and make incredibly funny faces!).
When the pet trusts us and will not run away during everyday touching, and eat them out of our hand. We can start to put them on our lap very soon. They will certainly be afraid at first. We can tell by the “freezing” of the pig, it will not make any movements and its pupils will dilate so that you can see the whites of the eyes.
The guinea pig will relax over time as it gets to know us, our warmth and stroking. Its body will then become soft and it will start to extend its hind leg to the side and put its head on our shoulder or knee. If she enjoys being stroked, she will start to bounce gently. We can then consider that the pig has been tamed.
