Baby and teen pig, will they get along?

M

Macaroon&Pete

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Hi there!
I’m new to this forum.
Our family just got Guinea pigs for the first time. We adopted them from a shelter. Our first two we got were both about 7 months old, and had lived well together at the rescue. Then about a week after they came home they started fighting. I tried everything I could find to help their relationship but it didn’t work out and after a bite on the back one went back. We got a New Guinea pig, a baby about 4 weeks old who needed to be adopted and after doing some piggy dating with Macaroon (the piggy that we kept) we decided that we would take him home. They are living ok together and we haven’t seen any signs of aggression but Macaroon (the older one) always rumblestruts when near Pete (the little one). Is this normal and ok behavior? Do they have a chance to live together happily as they get older? Also, we have a 4 by 2 C&C cage. I read two boars should usually have 5 by 2 after we got it. For now is 4 by 2 enough space? Should we add an extension? We also have only one tunnel and 2 one way hideys. Is that ok? Should we get two or more way hideys? If so, do you have any suggestions for types? Thanks!
 
Welcome to the forum

Any bond comes down to character compatibility. Without it, fights happen.

They have accepted each other for now and with any luck their bond will continue for life. There is always a bit of a risk that when the baby becomes a teenager that things may change but you can’t worry about that - there may never be an issue between them.

Rumblestrutting is a perfectly normal dominance behaviour and nothing to worry about.

A 5x2 is better for two boars. You don’t want there to be an issue with space. A 4x2 isn’t terrible but can be tight for some boars particularly teens. You also need a good sized cage from the beginning so it’s both ok and not ok for now in that sense!
Changing cage size will be seen as a new territory so when you extend the cage you need to ensure that you use soiled bedding when you extend it so they still recognise it as their space. We also recommend that you only change half the bedding at a time for the same reason - fully changing bedding in the whole cage at once removes all scent and can cause them to get a bit dominant.

In the cage they need two of everything. You don’t want them to ever have to share resources if they don’t want to.
The hides with one door are not ok. Please remove them and ensure you only use tunnels or hides with two doors. A one exit hide can mean a piggy can get cornered by the other inside it which can cause a fight.
Don’t food bowls or hay racks as they can cause issues in teen pairs. Instead throw hay loose onto the cage floor and then throw their veg and pellet portions into the hay so they can forage for them. This stops the risk of the dominant piggy hogging everything but it is also excellent enrichment and encourages them to use their natural forging skills.
You can use shallow litter trays to fill with hay but ensure you have two of them at opposite ends of the cage.

Reacting to group or territorial changes: Dominance and group establishment/re-establishment
A Comprehensive Guide to Guinea Pig Boars
Dominance Behaviours In Guinea Pigs
 
Hello and welcome to the forum. I’m sorry your original pair decided they no longer wanted to be together.

Feel free to post pictures of the gorgeous boys.
 
What types of two way hideys have you found useful? I will definitely try to find some better options than the ones we have.
 
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