Cannible Guinea Pig

kailaeve1271

Post   » Mon Feb 26, 2018 10:20 am


A good friend of mine adopted two guinea pigs who ended up having babies. Unknowingly we ha a male. We separated the father quickly. Then once the babies were two months old I came to her house and divided the babies into males and females.We slowly introduced two male babies to the father over the course of a week and they did fine.

It’s been almost two weeks since then and I got a phone call saying the father and a baby were biting chunks off of the runt. We tried saving him but he ended up dying. With part of his face eaten and legs partially torn off.

Is there any reason for this behavior? And should she be concerned that the two cannibles will end up eating each other as well in the future?

WICharlie

Post   » Mon Feb 26, 2018 3:03 pm


This is so unusual that I have to ask, "Are you absolutely certain these are guinea pigs and not hamsters?" I have never heard of a guinea pig killing and eating another pig. There is occasionally talk about a mother pig killing it's young but what usually happens is that a baby was born dead and the mother gets too carried away with cleaning up. Can you post some photos of the two males?

bpatters
And got the T-shirt

Post   » Mon Feb 26, 2018 4:14 pm


Ditto. That's what hamsters do.

kailaeve1271

Post   » Mon Feb 26, 2018 6:33 pm


I am 100% sure they are guinea pigs not hamsters. I just asked her to send me photos of the two.

ClemmyOddieIndy

Post   » Mon Feb 26, 2018 7:48 pm


I had a cousin tell me once about her boar killing and eating his babies. I believe they were in a 10 gallon fish tank and there were multiple pig in it. So I think there was some other dynamics going on there. They were pigs in her case because I saw the male when he was a baby.

kailaeve1271

Post   » Tue Feb 27, 2018 10:17 am


The only picture I have of the make are from when he was a baby and we were trying to figure out his gender. I have a photo of all the babies born and also the mom but I cannot upload them onto here for some reason. Can I email them to someone who can?

User avatar
Sef
I dissent.

Post   » Tue Feb 27, 2018 9:01 pm


Unusual. I do know that overcrowding, malnourishment and stress may all be factors in certain situations. Our Gabriel was rescued from a hoarding/backyard breeding situation that involved numerous (20+) guinea pigs being housed together in an aquarium, babies and adults. They were all in rough shape; most of Gabe's toes had been chewed off and his siblings had missing ears (and I could be wrong, but I seem to recall that one had an entire leg chewed off).

I have a hard time believing that a father and baby would gang up on another baby, though -- especially if they were all being properly cared for.

User avatar
Kimera

Post   » Wed Feb 28, 2018 6:20 am


From what I know of pigs from overcrowded conditions, numerous had ears chewed to the point they looked like fringe as a result of constant fights and bites, never from cannibalistic tendencies. Chewed off toes were in turn results of infection and necrosis. Poor pigs chewed their own toes either from pain or because they have lost any sensation in them. I have seen also cases of paw self mutilation when the piggy was paralysed in that leg. But it was always a case of SELF mutilation.

User avatar
Lynx
Celebrate!!!

Post   » Wed Feb 28, 2018 5:21 pm


What Kimera describes is absolutely how I understand biting to happen (overcrowding, pain, or paralysis that renders a limb without feeling).

kailaeve1271

Post   » Fri Mar 02, 2018 10:07 am


Their cage was a Midwest cage with one adult and two babies (which I believe is a bit too small for the three of them) but she was in the process of making a large c&c cage.

They were all on paper bedding and had nothing wrong with their feet besides the fact that their toenails would get a bit long since she wouldn’t clip them alone and I had to come over and help. I couldn’t come every month so sometimes it would get close to two months before they were clipped but they never got super long.

They were chewing eat other feet. From what I have been told it was it’s face and shoulder area and the legs were mangled/torn but not eaten. Most of the damage was on the face.

I feel very bad. I was the one who recommended she gets guinea pigs for a pet and after this she wants nothing to do with them. I’m also now having to try and look for new homes for them because she doesn’t feel like she can handle keeping them after that. She’s kind of scared of them now

bpatters
And got the T-shirt

Post   » Fri Mar 02, 2018 11:24 am


A Midwest cage isn't really large enough for one pig, much less three, much less boars. And the enlarged cage should have been ready before they were all put together.

JX4

Post   » Fri Mar 02, 2018 5:20 pm


Sounds to me this was the result of overcrowding. A MUCH bigger cage is needed for the three of them, especially if they are boars, as bpatters said. I would say a 2 x 6 grid C&C cage is the minimum size for that many boars, but the bigger the better. I'm sorry this situation happened. It's traumatic for everyone involved.

Post Reply