Adding A Third Male Safely

[GPFriend]

Hey Guys!

I came across a teeny tiny skinny pig back in 2013. He is definitely not your typical GP. He really bonded with me as he was the only GP at the time. I taught him scent detection, and did mini agility with him, he really enjoyed it. His personality is very laid back, go with the flow, not an aggressive bone with him. His name is Sheldon.

Fast forward to February 2016, our local zoo was adopting out GP's and in came Jellybean. Jellybean is more of your typical GP, you must take your time picking him up, he does startle if you move too quickly, and he definitely prefers Sheldon's company. I'm handling him daily and exposing him to grooming so that he can learn to trust and be comfortable around me, Sheldon really helped with this.

Then on August 1st, 2016 my final GP, a silver/white baby that was up for adoption.

My question: How should I slowly introduce everyone? I have absolutely no problems with Sheldon, he is very welcoming. I'm more worried about Jellybean, whether he may not like the baby, or if he would turn on Sheldon and hurt him.

I have a cage that totals 10 square feet, 12 if I add two more hay lofts. This cage is also able to separate and house GP's individually comfortably. So slow introductions are very possible here. I also have a GP room, a neutral playground that I use daily for exercise.

I'm also prepared to neuter Jellybean if there is evidence that neutering does on occasion settle a GP.

So, any thoughts on how to safely introduce a new GP?

Ages: Sheldon 3.8 years
Jellybean 6 months
No Name 7 weeks

 

[Keiko The Pig]

Neutering a Guinea pig will not change anything if he decides he does not want to accept this new piggy. If you have a happily bonded boar pair I strongly suggest leaving them be. A trio of males is the most unstable of all bonds. You may even end up with 3 single piggies if the bonding goes wrong. I strongly suggest leaving your two as is and either not adopting the third piggy or adopt him with a friend of his choosing if possible. While a baby Guinea might not upset the hierarchy right away he may cause issues when he hits his "teenager" phase and tries to push his way higher up in the rankings. You already have suspicions of one of your guineas not accepting a new mate, that along with the fact that 3 males are very hard to house happily together makes me think that you're best off leaving your boys be. If you can't say no to this piggy then date him if possible so he has his own partner

 

[scott1]

I would just be sure to not do anything that changes sheldon's out look on life. Often owners mess with things which backtrack on how far you got pigs to behave. You don't want to put Sheldon into a situation where he suddenly stops being himself because of stress.

 

[Wiebke]

Three boars rarely work out, and neutering doesn't change that - it doesn't influence any personality clash. If you have a happy boar pair, don't rock the boat; you can end up with three single boys that won't go back together. We have seen this happen to forum members.

If you want to get a third boar, rather consider keeping him as a next door neighbour or pair him up with a suitable new boar, preferably one you can date or - if you have got access to a good neutering vet, as that is crucial - have the new boar neutered and live with a sow away from your boys after a full 6 weeks post-op wait (I have the daughter of an over 5 weeks post-op boar, just to make that point that can really happen!)