Meet Barley, our cute but socially inept guinea pig
He is adorable, isn't he? :) He has a lot of personality, too.
When we saw how skittish Barley was, we gave him extra time to adapt to our home. He spent the past three weeks in a little cage next to the cage Frost and Milo share. They were all very curious about each other! No grumbling, just curious.
Tonight we noticed that Frost appears to be retaining his top-level alpha male status, but sweet little Milo has become his enforcer. The squabbling seems to be lessening a bit, but there are many bits of fur from all three guys in the cage.
I did take Frost out for an hour and he napped with me on the sofa. Poor guy was tuckered out.
When we saw how skittish Barley was, we gave him extra time to adapt to our home. He spent the past three weeks in a little cage next to the cage Frost and Milo share. They were all very curious about each other! No grumbling, just curious.
Tonight we noticed that Frost appears to be retaining his top-level alpha male status, but sweet little Milo has become his enforcer. The squabbling seems to be lessening a bit, but there are many bits of fur from all three guys in the cage.
I did take Frost out for an hour and he napped with me on the sofa. Poor guy was tuckered out.
So. I think our boys need anxiety meds and group therapy. None of them are fighting for dominance, but they're all scaring each other beyond reason. Barley likes to walk around and nose the other guys when they're sleeping, like he's checking on them. This wakes them up and freaks them out. Milo and Frost like to eat hay and drink water while Barley is sleeping. This wakes Barley up and freaks him out.
We're spending a lot of time reassuring everyone that they're safe, but they're all getting paranoid and worried. Barley is the ninth pig to join our household and I can honestly say we've never seen anything like this before.
We're spending a lot of time reassuring everyone that they're safe, but they're all getting paranoid and worried. Barley is the ninth pig to join our household and I can honestly say we've never seen anything like this before.
Yesterday, we came home to find Frost screaming his head off, hoping we would rescue him from Barley. Frost had not been eating or drinking because he was hyperalert, and was shaky when we took him out of the cage. I fed him critical care and syringed him water and we took turns holding him so that he could nap, which he did for almost two hours. He was that tired.
So, Barley is temporarily separated again. Barley and Milo were getting along well. I think we'll give them floor time. We're watching Frost to make sure there are no other serious health problems going on. We just don't need our senior pig getting sick with worry - literally - because of the new guy.
So, Barley is temporarily separated again. Barley and Milo were getting along well. I think we'll give them floor time. We're watching Frost to make sure there are no other serious health problems going on. We just don't need our senior pig getting sick with worry - literally - because of the new guy.