Do Guinea pigs get stressed up?

There are several situations that can create stress in your pig. Just bringing him home to new surroundings is traumatic. To minimize his anxiety, make sure his cage is ready—complete with bedding, food, water and toys—when you get home with him.

Then quietly place him in the cage and leave him alone for the first few hours. If your kids want to play with him, warn them in advance that he needs to get used to his new home first. After some time has passed, look in on him and speak to him softly and reassuringly to start building his trust and allaying his fears about the new environment.

Changing what you feed your guinea pig or even changing the food dish or where the dish is located can also panic your pet. If you need to alter your guinea pig’s cuisine, do it gradually, mixing the old with the new in decreasing portions until he is "weaned" from the old and used to the new. Also, try to feed him at the same time every day and use the same dish in the same location.

Other sources of stress for guinea pigs include loud noises, excessive handling and severe temperature changes—avoid exposing your pet to these health hazards. In addition, if you have two or more pigs in the same cage, they will fight to establish a clear "pigging order" (pun intended). A higher ranked female may repeatedly harass a lower ranked female and the battling will create stress for both. If the fighting continues, separate the two pigs.

Stress can manifest in your guinea pig as loss of appetite or diarrhea, but these symptoms are common to many illnesses. Consult with your veterinarian to make sure your pet isn’t sick. If he’s not, then figure out what’s happened to disturb his routine and fix the problem. In the case of diarrhea, don’t feed him any vegetables for a day, but keep the rest of his routine the same. This may correct the "nervous stomach" problems.

The best way to treat stress in your guinea pig, of course, is to head it off at the pass and that is easily accomplished by sticking to his favorite routine and avoiding any environmental disturbances or untoward handling behavior that will freak him out.