If you’re patient and persistent, you can teach your pet guinea pigs a variety of commands and tricks. Guinea pigs are excellent pets.
How do Guinea Pigs recognize sound?
Guinea pigs have remarkable capabilities in this regard. Their ears are able to amplify noises that are coming from a considerable distance away.
Guinea pigs have remarkable hearing skills as a result of this structure, which directs sound waves that have been amplified down into their ear canals. Due to the fact that guinea pigs are prey animals, it is vital for them to have a highly developed sense of hearing in order to live and prosper.
According to the findings of many pieces of study, guinea pigs are capable of comprehending noises and correlating those sounds with particular actions and responses. This kind of training is known as “classical conditioning,” and it’s been around for a long time.
Whenever guinea pigs hear a particular piece of music or tone that is played on a regular basis before performing any action, they will learn to anticipate an appropriate response whenever they hear the piece of music or tone played before performing any action if the piece of music or tone is played on a regular basis before performing any action.
Guinea pigs, for instance, could figure out that the sound of the refrigerator door opening is a sign that there is food in the room. When they hear the crackling sound of a hay bag, it means that fresh hay is going to be delivered to them. In addition to this, the sound of the door opening is a sign that the owner of the house has arrived home from their place of job.
How many words can a Guinea Pig learn?
According to the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA), owners of guinea pigs may teach their pets a range of orders by keeping the commands brief and straightforward so that their pets can understand them.
The following are typical words and phrases used to refer to guinea pigs:
- No
- Please come here.
- Towards the top (to make them sit on the sofa or bed)
- Then there’s the fact that (to make them come down of couch or bed)
- It’s all right (comforting them if they are scared)
- Either go to bed or go inside (move back to the cage for sleep)
Your guinea pig will react to the pitch of your voice in addition to the volume that you use while speaking to it. Because you do not want your guinea pigs to grow frightened, the vast majority of directions should be given in a soothing and low-key manner.
Also read: Do guinea pigs remember things?
Guinea Pig hearing range
Studies have shown that the hearing range of guinea pigs of low noises is between 54 Hz and high sounds up to 54 KHz. This is a higher range of hearing than that of their human companions, who have a hearing range of up to 54 kHz.
It seems that the hearing of guinea pigs is highly sensitive, thus owners shouldn’t yell or scream at their pets if they act in a harmful manner.
But, if your guinea pigs act inappropriately, you should speak to them in a harsher or more authoritative manner.
Constantly make an effort to say these orders in the exact same manner and tone each time in order to ensure that they are stored in your guinea pig’s memory in the correct way.
It is not appropriate to give the same directive twice, the first time in a gentle tone and the second time in a firm tone. If you do not keep a consistent tone throughout these directives, they will be exceedingly difficult to understand and will lead you astray, much like the other utterances of people.
In addition to using your voice to give these orders, you may also utilize gestures.
For instance, you may indicate to the guinea pigs that it is acceptable for them to sit on the bed next to you by patting the pillow and exclaiming “up!”
In order to avoid your guinea pigs being perplexed, it is essential that you remain consistent in the motions that you employ.
Can Gguinea Pigs respond to names?
According to research, guinea pigs will occasionally ignore their owners and walk away even when they hear their name being called out. Despite this, it does not mean that they are unable to recognize their names.
This occurs occasionally as a result of the guinea pigs’ disobedience and refusal to follow your commands. For instance, if you call their name and they abruptly turn their back on you while remaining completely still and without moving a muscle in their body.
There is a common misconception that guinea pigs are not as mischievous or wicked as they actually are. Although guinea pigs will defy you, it is not because they intend to make you angry; rather, it is possible that they just have an increased want to explore and relax at that particular time.
It has been asserted that guinea pigs do react when they hear their own names being called out to them. It is an entirely other question as to whether or not guinea pigs desire to listen to their owners.
If you intend to teach your guinea pigs their names, you should only use one name when referring to each individual animal.
Some owners may refer to their guinea pig by a variety of names, such as snowball, snowy, or snow, which can lead to confusion for new guinea pigs.
It is a far superior choice to give guinea pigs a specific name to respond to, given that they are already aware of and can make sense of the fact that it is their name.
How long does it take for a Guinea Pig to learn its name?
According to the Guinness Book of World Records, educating guinea pigs to know their names and come to you when their names are called may be a chore that is both time-consuming and challenging to complete.
The expression of patience, rather than anger or aggressive behavior, is preferred by guinea pigs since these emotions are unpleasant for the animals.
Convincing your new guinea pigs that their safety is not in jeopardy due to your presence is the first step in caring for them properly. Due to the fact that guinea pigs maintain a high level of awareness at all times, it will take some time for them to grow accustomed to the new surroundings.
The process of exposing young guinea pigs to new experiences and stimuli is known as socializing, and it is an activity that should never be skipped at any point in a guinea pig’s life.
Guinea pigs are sociable creatures who are curious about who they will be living with for the rest of their lives and how well they will get along with those people. This is true despite the fact that guinea pigs have a peaceful and quiet demeanor.
Your guinea pig will soon learn to feel comfortable among other human people, even if they are not known to them, if they are socialized with their human companion from a young age.
During the times of the day when your guinea pigs have more energy, it may be great for them to participate in physical exercise outside and have some fun playing.
According to the conclusions of the research, guinea pigs are crepuscular creatures, which means that they have a higher level of activity in the wee hours of the morning and the late stretches of the evening.
Guinea pigs that are allowed to play when they are at their most active may be more inclined to explore the home and become familiar with their human carers if they are allowed to play when they are at their most active.
Training your Guinea Pigs
Yet, it is necessary to bear in mind that the process of human socialization is not something that can be finished in a single day or even in a period of time that spans two days. This is something that must be kept in mind at all times. Using classical conditioning training, which consists of the workouts that are detailed in the following paragraphs, is one method that has the potential to make this procedure a lot less complicated for the user.
You should put some space between yourself and your guinea pig by taking a few steps back, then lying down on the floor on your stomach so that you are at the same level as your pet. This will create some gap between you.
Hold this position as still as you can, making no noise and avoiding any movement until the guinea pigs are confident enough to approach you again.
Give them a kind pat on the back of the head and a delectable snack like fruit as a way to show your appreciation for the interest they have shown in what you have to say.
While you have your guinea pigs in your custody, if you hold them forcibly or make fast movements while you have them in your possession, your guinea pigs will become terrified and attempt to run away.
It is necessary to repeat this procedure many times each day until the guinea pigs come racing up to you without fear, unless of course they do so already. In the event that this does not occur, you will need to proceed with the therapy as planned.
Before you try to teach something to your guinea pigs by forcing them to do it, you need to make sure that they are comfortable with you and do not resent being in your presence.
Following that, you will be able to instruct your guinea pigs to come when they hear their owner’s voice and teach them their names.
How do you teach your Guinea Pig its name?
When you have gone through the tiresome process of convincing your guinea pigs that you are who you say you are, they may find it simpler to learn new commands (and vice versa).
You may train your guinea pigs to know their own names in a manner that is analogous to the method in which you encourage them to approach you more closely.
Lay down on your stomach on the surface, keeping a small gap between you and your guinea pigs (ideally one foot), and then call each one by their name as they come to your attention. Ideally, this should be done while maintaining a distance of one foot.
If they are approaching you without the command, they may look bewildered by this new command; nonetheless, continue to offer it in a calm and loving manner. If they are approaching you without the order, they may approach you.
If your guinea pigs approach you more closely, you should reward them with a treat.
Go on in this manner until your guinea pigs are willing to come to you when you call their names and they have learned to recognize their own names.
When you see that your guinea pigs are able to go this distance with relative ease, you should try expanding the range a little bit and then carrying out the process once again.
It could be helpful to convince the guinea pigs to follow you by dangling a reward in front of them and calling their name.
If you observe that your guinea pigs do not approach you even after they have smelled the reward, go closer to them until you are at the same distance as you were previously, and then repeat the process.
You should keep trying new things until your guinea pigs learn to come to you when you call their name no matter how far away they are, although this could take some time.
As your guinea pigs have become accustomed to hearing their names, you may move on to teaching them more commands.
The length of time it will take for your guinea pigs to become skilled at this activity is determined by a number of factors, including the sort of encouragement (or rewards) they receive from you and the level of complexity of the orders.
While teaching guinea pigs, it is essential to keep a steady and unwavering demeanor throughout the whole process. This is by far the most crucial component of training.
Guinea pigs are highly clever creatures that may learn new behaviors when given the opportunity.
For instance, you may educate your guinea pigs to “twirl around” or roll a little ball in exchange for some rewards by training them to do so. You can also teach them to “twirl around” in compensation for “twirling about.” When it comes to rewarding positive behavior with food, stroking, or pampering, it is far preferable to keep things simple and consistent rather than making things more complicated than they need to be.
Do Guinea Pigs remember their names?
It can be difficult to ascertain whether or not the guinea pigs are aware of their own names due to the scared behavior of the guinea pigs. This is especially the case if they do not always respond to the summons when it is issued to them.
Your guinea pig’s ability to recognize their own name in the long run is directly related to the quantity of training they receive.
On the other hand, guinea pigs have an exceptional capacity for remembering things over time. The results of the study indicate that guinea pigs are able to remember individual replies from the beginning of their learning process for a considerable amount of time.
In addition, the researchers found that even if the guinea pigs are not taught specific responses between the ages of 6 and 9 months, they are still able to remember the desired response much more quickly during the process of relearning skills than when they were first taught how to act in response to the said response. This was discovered despite the fact that the guinea pigs were not given specific responses during this time period.
This illustrates not just the guinea pigs’ great memory capacity, but also their ability to recall experiences from the past in an unintended manner and without the need to focus too much on the memories themselves.
As a consequence of all of this, it is reasonable to anticipate that your guinea pigs will remember their names, orders, and tricks for a significant amount of time even after they have been taught them.
It does not preclude the chance that you and your guinea pigs will at some point in the future continue to work on developing these commands and talents together. If you continue to practice on a consistent basis, you will be able to keep the memory of the guinea pig intact.
In addition to this, the provision of suitable encouragement throughout the entirety of the training process and beyond is of the utmost importance.
If you want your guinea pigs to come to you when you call them, you need to teach them that they will be rewarded with some kind of fruit treat or a grooming session if they do so.
Keep in mind that it is completely appropriate to feed them little pieces of fruit or other rewards while you are teaching them various instructions and tricks while you are training them.
Sugary snacks, on the other hand, should be omitted from the diet since they help your guinea pigs better absorb orders and are therefore counterproductive to the training process.
An excessive amount of sugar can lead to obesity in addition to other negative health effects. Petting guinea pigs, verbally praising them, and giving them toys that are healthier for their long-term health are some of the other ways that guinea pigs can be rewarded.
