Why Is My Guinea Pig Still Scared of Me? (The Alarming Truth)
You’ve had guinea pigs for a while now, and you thought that by this time they would have gotten used to you. But even though you provide them with food, water, attention, and a clean cage, they’re still scared of you.
So, what the deal?
There’s many reasons why your guinea pig might still be scared of you. They’re prey animals, so their natural instinct is to be scared. Previous trauma can make them not trust you at first. A stressful environment can also make them fearful.
It could be that during your first introduction, you made some bonding mistakes. You might not be spending enough time with your piggies.
Let’s take a look at some possible explanations in detail so you can understand why your fur baby is afraid of you….and how to improve your relationship ASAP.
Why Is My Guinea Pig Still Scared Of Me?
It’s possible that a traumatic experience or stress from their environment has made your guinea pig scared of you – even after you’ve had them with you for a long time.
If you make some mistakes when trying to bond with them, it could make things worse. It also doesn’t help if you’re too busy to spend time with them. Their temperament and natural instinct also play a part.
Previous Trauma
Sometimes a guinea pig has had a bad experience with humans before arriving in your care. Often, these piggies will not like to be touched by humans after their experience. The bad experience gives them trauma when interacting with humans.
Guinea pigs can become reluctant to trust humans. This might mean that your guinea pig will not easily bond with you. It will take time to build their trust and you might need to be patient.
Stressful Environment
If your guinea pig is stressed, it’ll be difficult for it to form a bond with you. Actually, continuous stress can even kill your guinea pig. Make sure that their environment is safe and peaceful so they can relax.
There’s several factors that make a guinea pig’s environment a good one – instead of an anxiety-inducing stress factory. These include:
- A quiet environment without loud noises
- Wide enclosure to allow them to move around
- Well ventilated
- Lots of hideys
Hides are important for guinea pigs because they make the animals feel safe. Guinea pigs are prey animals, which means they feel scared when there is nowhere to hide.
Bonding Mistakes
It’s important to bond with your guinea pig properly. If you don’t, your relationship with your fuzz spud may be difficult. Make sure to take the time to get to know your little pet and build trust.
Remember that we are predators to guinea pigs. We are taller than they are and can easily scare them. Your first introduction needs to follow the steps below in order to help with your bonding:
- Prepare some fleece liners and lay your guinea pigs on them. Lie down with your piggie.
- Feed them treats, veggies, or hay straight from your hand. This will increase your chances of bonding.
- Talk to them as you feed them. They will learn your voice and recognize it.
- Remember to also look your guinea pigs in the eye as you bond. It will help build trust. Make sure you’re in front of them so that they can anticipate your movements. This will help them relax.
- If you keep doing this, they’ll slowly start to warm up to you. They will start to associate you with giving them delicious food. Remember to also play with them to bond further.
When you pick up your guinea pigs, be as slow as possible. You can even lie down. DO NOT pick them up like people do with cats and puppies. That’s usually a disaster. In the wild, predators often swoop down from above to swipe up and kill piggies. So, if you do the same thing, you’re going to scare your fur babies.
Too Little Quality Time
To bond with your guinea pigs, you need to be familiar with them. This means spending time with them often.
It’s important to make time for your piggie. You can find time after work, during the evening. When you get home, sit down and spend some time with them. You can also hold them in your arms or sit them on your lap.
Another way to bond with your fur baby is by giving them a warm bath. As you bathe them, talk to them slowly. You can try cuddling them a bit as you dry them off.
Be consistent with the time you spend with your guinea pig. Guinea pigs like to be on a schedule. If they know at a specific time you come and give them treats, it will make your bond stronger.
Powerful Natural Instinct
Sometimes, your piggie might not warm up to you. This could be because their instinct is warning them off, or because of their temperament.
Piggie parents will often tell you that not all pets behave the same.
Some pigs might never like you, but others will be very friendly to you. As a parent, you will have to accept this situation.
Wanna know more about the source of your fur babies’ fears? Read The Truth About Guinea Pig Fear (Are They Naturally Scared?)
How Do I Get My Guinea Pig To Stop Being Scared Of Me?
To get your guinea pig to stop being scared of you, set a schedule for bonding with your guinea pig and stick to it. This’ll help them know what to expect from you.
You can reduce their stress by removing anything that makes them anxious and adding hiding places so they feel safe. Increase your bonding time and wait patiently for them to trust you.
Set A Bonding Schedule
Having a regular schedule for bonding with your guinea pig will help both of you. Guinea pigs are creatures of habit and they will know when to expect you. This way, you can be sure to have some quality time together.
Remember to plan properly so that other activities don’t interfere with this time. It will help to have set times that you spend with them. Ensure that you spend time with them at least once a day.
Arrive with treats and veggies. Let them eat off your hand. It will get them used to your scent. Don’t forget to talk to them and look them in the eye as you feed them.
Anything that you give to a guinea pig by hand will be considered a treat. They’ll start to associate you with treats, and they’ll also enjoy playing with you.
Over time, you’ll notice a friendlier piggie.
You know you’ve succeeded when they squeal loudly whenever they see you. Don’t take offense if they’re excited about the food. You’re part of the package deal, okay?
Don’t overfeed your guinea pig treats or veggies. You don’t want to cause them stomach pain or make them overweight. Remember, anything you hand-feed them counts as treats. So don’t be afraid to hand-feed them hay sometimes too.
Destress The Environment
If your guinea pig is stressed, try to remove anything that is causing the stress. If it’s a loud noise or a large pet, get rid of it. Guinea pigs need to feel safe in their enclosure.
If what’s causing them stress is another guinea pig, consider separating them. Allergies can also cause them stress, so lookout for that too.
If your guinea pig’s enclosure is small, make it wider. Guinea pigs need a lot of space, so try to make the enclosure as large as possible.
Remember to spot clean their enclosure every day and clean it completely at least once a week. Change their bedding at least once every three days.
Make sure you give them fresh hay and water every day. Provide them with hideouts they can run to when scared.
To know what’s stressing your guinea pig, observe them. You can see how they’re behaving and tell if they’re anxious. Then get rid of (or at least minimize) the stressor – whether it’s a loud environment or another pet in the household.
Increase Your Bonding Time
You should always give your pet plenty of time to get to know you. Remember that it’s like meeting a new friend. When you meet someone new, you can’t just expect a friendship to blossom like you’ve known them for years. Right?
You’ve got to give your piggie time to adjust. Try a few different things like:
- Make sure you’re spending at least 30 minutes each day bonding with your guinea pig.
- Try sitting on the floor and reading a book near their cage. Or, place your little friends in a cuddle cup in your lap while you watch TV.
- Drape a piece of clothing you’ve worn over their cage to help them get used to your smell.
- Carry them around the house in your hoodie…carefully, that is.
Over time your fur babies will start to realize that you’re a friend and not some sort of monster that plans on gobbling them up.
One of the easiest ways to get them to like you more is by feeding them treats. Hand feed them so they can get close to you.
I wrote more about this process in Do Guinea Pigs Like Being Held? (+ 6 Amazing Tips). You should take a look at it.
While you’re feeding them, chat with them or maybe even sing a few songs. It does take some getting used to, but the constant chatter will pay off in the end. This will help you bond with them.
When you’re bonding with your fur baby, it’s important to be on their level. Literally. Don’t hover over them. This way, they won’t be afraid of you and will be more likely to trust you. You can sit down or even lay down next to them so that they can come to you.
Be Patient and Realistic
Guinea pigs are prey animals, which means that they will naturally see you as a predator. You will need to be patient when bonding with your guinea pig, as it may take some time for them to get used to you.
Take your time when getting to know your guinea pig. Remember that some guinea pigs will never like you.
Some pigs never get over their fear of humans. It’s sad when that happens.
But, it’s something that you should be prepared for. There’s people who’ve had piggies for years that say they’ve had AT LEAST one (and sometimes more than one) who still runs and hides from them.
So please remember to be patient, understanding, and realistic.
To learn more about the ins and outs of guinea pig fear, check out: 5 Surprising Reasons Why Your Guinea Pig is Still Scared of You and 3 Common Reasons Why Guinea Pigs Are Suddenly Scared
Will My Guinea Pig Ever Stop Being Scared Of Me?
Some guinea pigs will never stop being scared of their owner, but other guinea pigs will get used to their owner over time. A lot will depend on the personality of your guinea pig and how much time and effort you put into developing your relationship with your fur babies.
Be patient with your pet and spend more time with them. Sit down or lay down so you’re not hovering over them like some sort of stalker (yep, I said it). Once again, handfeeding is always a win.
Make sure you talk to them so that they learn your voice. As long as you do everything right and with patience, you will see results.
If your guinea pig is scared of you, give them some space. Remember that your pet should feel as comfortable as possible.
How Long Does It Take For A Guinea Pig To Trust You?
It can take a few days, weeks or even months for a guinea pig to get used to you. This depends on the individual guinea pig and their personality.
I manually surveyed 125 piggie parents to find out how long their bonding process took.
- 57 of the respondents (45%) said it took them a few weeks. It varied from one week to seven weeks. Many parents knew their piggie had gotten used to them when they started eating from their hands.
- 44 of the respondents (35%) said it took them several months. I varied from two months to eight months for others.
- One parent said his little cavy didn’t seem to enjoy being picked but loved being held. He would purr when he was already in his arms.
- 19 of the respondents (15%) said it took them a few days. Some parents said his piggie comfortably cuddled in his arms after two days. The piggies quickly ate out of the hands within days. But, that’s definitely an exception.
- 5% of the respondent’s guinea pigs still hid when they saw them. Efforts to bond had failed so they settled with just watching them.
The time it took to bond with pets varied greatly. Most pet owners say that you should be patient and let them warm up to you.
Types of Beddings Used
Beddings were varied in the cavy community but there were some common ones including:
- Carefresh Paper bedding – This was the most common that many parents seemed to love. They praised its softness and high absorption rate.
- Fleece liners – Fleece was also pretty common. It was considered the best bedding since it wasn’t dusty and is washable. Fleece liners are a bit more expensive.
- Wood bedding – The main types were aspen and kiln-dried pine. Aspen was more common as many parents didn’t trust pine. Many stayed away from regular or kiln-dried pine.
- Noodle Bath Mats – These were pretty common for many starting parents. They’re soft and absorb very well. They aren’t messy either. And that’s definitely a plus.
- Towels – Many new parents or starting out piggie owners used towels. They bought cotton towels and lined the cages with them. Towels aren’t the best bedding since they’re poor absorbers.
Highlights from the Survey
- You can tell your guinea pig is bonded with you if they’re comfortable eating out of your hand.
- Bonding can take weeks to months. Piggies are prey animals so they don’t get over their fear easily.
- Use treats to get them to love you.
- Talk to your little furry buddy. It makes bonding faster.
- Some guinea pigs will never bond with you and that’s okay.
- Be ready to be peed on. This is something to expect as you handle your guinea pigs.
As you can see, time is different for every guinea pig parent. So take your time with your furry potato. Don’t rush it.
How Do You Bond With A Scared Guinea Pig?
to bond with a scared guinea pig, lie down so that you don’t tower over them. Give them treats and veggies to eat off your hand.
Talk to them calmly and let them get used to your voice. Look them directly in the eyes. Only pick them from the front where they can see you. Don’t pick them up from above.
What Breed Of Guinea Pig Is The Friendliest?
The Abyssinian breed is known to be the friendliest breed of guinea pig. They’re also known to be very energetic.
The fur on their back is medium-length and is made up of eight to ten rosettes. They can be any color or a combination of colors.
But, it’s important to remember that personality and temperament have much more to do with guinea pig friendliness instead of breed.
Final Thoughts About Why Your Guinea Pig Is Still Scared Of You
It can take a while for a guinea pig to get used to you. They’re naturally afraid of us because we look like predators to them. We even act like predators, too, sometimes.
You need to spend more time with your piggies. Make sure you set aside a specific time every day to spend with them. When you’re with them, give them treats and talk softly to them so they will get to know your voice.
Lie down when interacting with them. Don’t stand over them. Wait for them to come to you rather than reaching out for them.
And lastly, just wait. Wait and see if your efforts pay off.
There really isn’t much to it as long as you have done your part.