Bonding An Older Boar With A Younger Boar

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Pets Palace TV

Pets Palace TV

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On Monday, one of my guinea pigs called Teddy had to be put to sleep :( this means that Badger (Teddy's brother) is now living alone. As well as Badger I have 2 older boars which live next to him in a split C & C cage - this is because the 2 oldest males used to fight all the time so had to be separated but they still live right next to each other so they can interact very well. Here is a picture of the split C & C cage:
P1050553.webp Badger lives on the left side, Pudsey lives in the front right and Bramely lives in the back right. Since Teddy has gone Badger and Pudsey have been sat next to each other all the time. Badger isn't too keen on Bramley because Bramley always grumbles at him and chews the grids when he comes over :). I was considering introducing Pudsey and Badger and if that is successful then I will put them in the same cage. Is that a good plan? Or is it a bad idea? I just don't want Badger to be on his own, even though he can interact with the other boys, I think it would be better if he could live with one of them. When Pudsey and Bramley lived together they were very aggressive and both dominant but Badger isn't at all aggressive so I think they would be quite a good pair. Does anyone have any tips for introducing younger boars to older boars? Also (sorry for all the questions!) how long should I wait until introducing them to each other? Badger is about one and a half years old and Pudsey is about 4 years old :) x
 
today I tried to reintroduce them again and Nelson who is nearly 4 and the two 3 month olds Brody and Jojo, Nelson and Brody get on well but Jojo and Nelson just fight and we have to split them up but my local vet said to get Brody and Jojo neutered but I am not sure what to do - any suggestions ?
 
Unlike with rabbits, neutering guinea pig males won't cover up any personality clashes! Neutering makes only sense if you are planning to get Jojo neutered so he can live with a sow once is old enough for the snip and after a further 6 weeks' post op wait. For neutering it is vital that you have got a vet who is experienced with piggy neutering or a small furries specialist. We have got a piggy savvy UK vet locator on the top bar.

I am very sorry for you as admitting defeat with bonding is always a very gutting experience, but it looks like you have got two dominant characters in the mix there, so your trio is never going to work out. :(

I would strongly recommend that you contact @Little Pips Rehoming in Sidmouth or Norman Gorman just across the border in Cornwall, so you can either date Jojo or Nelson at the rescue under expert supervision with a character compatible boarmate for himself, but you will only come home with a boar that he gets on with and you will always have the rescue to fall back on. Both rescues offer boar dating. Little Pips iRehoming is one of the few rescues who does residential dating, which means that she is prepared to bond boars of any age and not just babies.
If you are in North Devon, you can find piggy savvy rescues in the Bristol area.
 
brianna said:
today I tried to reintroduce them again and Nelson who is nearly 4 and the two 3 month olds Brody and Jojo, Nelson and Brody get on well but Jojo and Nelson just fight and we have to split them up but my local vet said to get Brody and Jojo neutered but I am not sure what to do - any suggestions ?
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neutering doesn't change a guinea pigs behaviour at all, unlike dogs etc, so that won't make any difference. I have tried to keep 3 males together at different ages, and haven't had any luck. You could wait till the 3 months old piggies are a bit older as they are sort of in t heir teenage times and should calm down in time.
 
PS: With boars, you have to commit to the bonding once you have started it; you can't do it in bits as all boars have to start straight back right at the beginning each time you separate. That is very frustrating as they never get to really work through any dominance/hierarchy issues.
 
luciee said:
neutering doesn't change a guinea pigs behaviour at all, unlike dogs etc, so that won't make any difference. I have tried to keep 3 males together at different ages, and haven't had any luck. You could wait till the 3 months old piggies are a bit older as they are sort of in t heir teenage times and should calm down in time.
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thank you I might wait a couple of weeks or months !
Did it work with your guinea pigs ?
 
@brianna: Boar puberty usually lasts from 4-14 months of age; it only stops when they reach hormonally more settled adulthood. Your little ones are just coming up to it; Nelson and Jojo are simply not hitting it off and never will. Guinea pigs have very strong likes and dislikes when it comes to other piggies. It takes on average two boars to find the right companion.
 
brianna said:
thank you I might wait a couple of weeks or months !
Did it work with your guinea pigs ?
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I have 2 pairs of boars that I have successfully bonded, one is father and son, that have just been paired together, that went well from the start as they are both docile, little Harry is really calm:)But I gave them supervfised playtime every day for over a week to make sure all ok ,and am still keeping an eye on them, so far so good:) My eldest, Buddy is with Snoop who is just over a year old, they have been together a while now and Buddy is happy to be with any piggie, he is a delight! Taz is very dominant piggie and I tried him with a few boars, but he was too agressive, so after a while on his own, I saw his personality retreat and he seemd sad, so I researched and got him neutered, he is now a very happy pig, living with 4 females, and he gets playtime with all 8 females every day, his personality is great again and like a different pig! Alvin is on his own at the moment as he is one of 3 brothers that he didn't get on well with, he is too dominant as well. However, unlike Taz , Alvin is a very happy guinea pig in his own space, popcorning loads, he loves his hay box overfilled to dive into wheeking with delight and is very content, so I will leave him as he is for now, he can see the others and gets lots of floor and lap time too:)
Sorry this is long, I tend to waffle lol !
 
that's fine, it sounds like you have a lot of Guinea pigs ?
 
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