Behaviour – an overview of normal behaviour

There are many different body languages, which guinea pigs display, the following list is not exhaustive but describes some of the most common behaviours you are likely to see.

Popcorning’ – this is when guineas pigs will buck and bounce, they do this when they are excited and very happy and will often run very fast around their enclosures.

Mutual and dominance grooming – guinea pigs will mutually groom each other, often around the face and sometimes the ears, excessive grooming and ear pulling can be a dominance sign, the guinea pig receiving being the lower ranking in the hierarchy.

Head-butting – guinea pigs will often head butt one another when squabbling over food or resources, this is sometimes accompanied with nipping.

Rumble strutting – this behaviour is when the guinea pig purrs and rocks from side to side on their hind limbs, it’s often seen as a sexual behaviour in both sexes and it is seen in times of dominance.

Head/nose raising – this is where two or more guinea pigs will raise their noses up at one another and is a way to settle an argument peacefully, the last guinea pig with the nose up wins.

Chasing – both sexes will often chase one another for several reasons including sexual mounting behaviour and sometimes during times of dominance and aggression. Fights can also break out over food.

Biting and nipping – guinea pigs rarely bite their owners, but they do occasionally nip one another when bickering. Nipping is perfectly normal and does not need intervention providing it doesn’t break the skin or cause excess distress. Biting which breaks the skin and causes trauma does need addressing and sometimes guinea pigs will need to be either separated permanently and/or either reintroduced or given a more appropriate enclosure.

Kicking – much like head-butting they will sometimes kick one another with their back legs when squabbling, often over the food bowl.

Mounting – this is both a sexual and dominance behaviour seen in both sexes.

Urine spraying – Sows will often display this behaviour more often than boars and simply means ‘go away’, guinea pigs do not usually spray urine to scent mark like some other species.

Coprophagia – As part of the normal digestive function guinea pigs will eat their own faeces and reabsorb nutrients (such as vitamin B) from them, you can spot them doing this when they bend over to retrieve a pellet from their rectum.

Wheeking – This is the most well-known noise that guinea pigs make, and is a high-pitched squeak, this simply is a call for attention and will often be heard when the fridge door is opened or a bag of food rustled.

Purring – Purring (sometimes called a ‘durr’) is usually a happy noise and guinea pigs will often make this noise when being stroked or tickled, purring whilst ‘rumble strutting’ has a different meaning (see above). The sound is not quite like a cat’s purr.

Squealing – guinea pigs squeal when they are frightened. Sometimes they will make this noise when being picked up or when being bullied or nipped by a companion. Often, they will make this noise as a simple deterrent to other guinea pigs even if they are not being physically bitten by another.

Chutting – this is a content noise which guinea pigs make when pottering around their enclosures together, it sounds like a gentle ‘cluck’ or ‘chut’ type noise and will often do this in time with their walking.

Whining – this is high pitched moaning like noise, this is a protesting noise which they usually do when they are being disturbed or they are feeling anxious. It can vary in volume; the volume of the whine usually denotes the level of anxiety and unhappiness the guinea pig is feeling.

Chirping – this noise sounds like a chirping bird and is not always heard from every guinea pig, the reason behind this noise is not fully understood but many think it is an alarm call to warn of predators.

Teeth chattering – This noise is made when a guinea pig chatters their teeth together quickly and can often be quite loud. This is a moderate sign of dominance and aggression and will escalate louder the more aggressive the animal is becoming, even well bonded guinea pigs will sometimes teeth chatter at one another.

Teeth baring – This behaviour can be mistaken for yawning, (guinea pigs do yawn often too), however teeth baring is seen as a sign of aggression when one or more guinea pigs are having an altercation. It is usually accompanied by teeth chattering and rearing behaviours and is the sign of a potential imminent fight.

Lunging and rearing – When fighting guinea pigs will often rear up slightly onto their back legs with their head in the air showing their teeth. They also sometimes lunge at one another to bite. If guinea pigs are doing this constantly at each other they need to be separated.

Fighting – Full on fighting between two guinea pigs is not a nice sight, they will often roll together whilst trying to bite one another hard, they will try to bite around the face and lips and rump area. Guinea pigs need to be separated if fighting occurs but always ensure you use a towel or pair of thick gloves to do this as you are likely to be bitten accidently. There is a common misconception that boars do not get on well together. If two males are bonded properly together and have adequate space, then they usually get on well. However, a group of males do not work well, usually due to an inadequate amount of space. Two males cannot live with females, even when they are neutered, as they will often fight due to this. To ensure a good bond is kept, always make sure that they have space to get away from one another and there are two lots of food sources, ie two water bottles, two bowls, two hay racks, etc. Neutering does not necessarily stop aggressive behaviour in boars.

Males will show courtship like behaviours such as rumble strutting often. They will do this with both other males and females. They will also mount females if the sow is being receptive and mount other males as a sign of dominance.

Sometimes during the courtship behaviour males will urinate on the females.

Females will show reproductive behaviour in the form of rumble strutting when they are in season, this is approximately every 16 days. They will also mount other females as a sign of dominance.

As guinea pigs are a prey species, they will often show signs of nervousness, especially in new environments and when they have not been handled regularly. Signs of nervousness include freezing still and standing wherever they are, running at high speeds and hiding to evade handling, squealing and some guinea pigs who are very nervous will shake when being handled.

Nervous behaviour can be overcome by handling your guinea pigs regularly, ensuring that their environment is free from loud or sudden noises and also by positive reinforcement. This means making every time you pick your guinea pig up a positive experience by offering their favourite foods for example. Initially you may find that some nervous guinea pigs will not accept food being offered by hand until they have become more relaxed with handling and interaction.

Guinea pigs who are bored will often bite the bars of their cage or hutch, they will sometimes do this at dinner time as a sign of frustration as if to say ‘hurry up I’m hungry’. Some guinea pigs will also chew and play with water bottle spouts.

Barbering is also seen in guinea pigs, this is where they chew and eat one another’s hair, the behaviour is not fully understood but some suggestions say that this behaviour is due to boredom and some say it is a sign of dominance towards the affected guinea pig. Self-barbering is a potential sign of illness.

There are many signs your guinea pig can show in times of illness but the most common signs of your guinea pigs being unwell could include:

• Reluctance to move and interact
• Refusing to eat
• Teeth grinding
• A hunched body posture
• Hairs sticking up (piloerection)
• Vocalising whilst passing urine or pellets
• Excessive scratching
• Aggressive towards other companions when usually docile
• Excessive salivation (drooling)