Bonding And Housing Situation With Two Sows And Two Boars.

[SandraZ]

About 2 years ago i bought 2 male guinea pigs from a pet shop and a few month later realized that there was a bit of a mix up with the sexing of those piggies. One ended up being a girl and i now have four guinea pigs. I went to the vet and after getting everyone checked out and the babies sexed ( two girls) I ended up getting my boar neutered so he could live together with the sows. After a month i noticed that one of my baby girls was actually a boy. This is where all my issues come to play. Since i didn't want anymore pregnancies i separated my boars and my sows ( after the baby was 3 months and alright to be on his own). Everything was alright for a while but then my boars started fighting. I thought it was a territorial or dominance thing in the beginning, but after one of them got a gash on his nose i ended up separating them because i didn't think they would get along and the fighting would get worse. Now i have one male boar in one cage and three ( two girls and one boy) in another cage. Everyone gets along just fine but I'm worried about the boar that's on his own. I don't have enough room for four guinea pig so the cages touch and they can all smell and see each other. I notice my boar that's on his own rumbling and wanted to be with the other pigs but i can't put him in with them. I've thought about neutering him and pairing him up with his sister because they do get along but it would cost around $260 and i don't have that much money to spend right now. I've tried giving the babies away when they were old enough but no one wanted them because guinea pigs aren't that popular in the US. I also tried finding a shelter that would help out but it ended up being a bust and there was no way i was sending them off to a kill shelter. After a year of having the babies with me i've grown so attached to all four i don't want to give any of them away. So i guess what I'm asking is how bad is it if i leave my pigs the way they are with one of them on his own.
Should i get him neutered and paired up with one of my sows?
Would neutering change a lot of issues with behavior so i can have all four living together?
Is it possible to have my boars living together without neutering the baby, or will the cage situation of them being close and being able to smell and see the sows cause problems?
I'm not sure what to do here. I feel cruel having him on his own and i can see there is a bit of sexual tension which is normal in this situatoin. I just don't know what to do.Maybe i'm over thinking it? I can't have him in his cage in another place because there's not room to put cage anywhere besides where it is. Hopefully someone can give me a suggestion or some advice. I'll leave a picture of the cage in the post. Thank You .

 

[Wiebke]

Hi and welcome! I am sorry for your problems!

Your boy's ehaviour is perfectly normal for a boar. Boars go through a very hormonal phase between 4-14 months old until they settled down as adults again. That is the time when most fights and fall-outs happen if the two boars turn out to be too dominant.

At the moment, they are fine as they are, but if you could save up for having your boy neutered eventually to live with his sister, that would make him very happy in the long term. We recommend a wait of 6 weeks after neutering for a boar to be 100% safe (I have a baby from a supposedly safe over 5 weeks post op boar, just to prove that point).

What you cannot do is having two boars with three sows in one group. There will be fights.

 

[SandraZ]

That's great to hear. I honestly felt like i was torturing him just leaving him on his own. Even though i do take him out a lot to run around. I do plan on eventually pairing him up when I'm more financially stable because i want him to have a buddy. He's 13 month right now do you think it'll be smart to try pairing him up with my other boar once his hormonal period is up?

Thank you so much for replying it really put my mind at ease. Here's a picture of my babies when they were just tiny little things.

 

[Stewybus]

Yes, I agree with Wiebke about getting the second boar neutered to live with his sister. That way you'll have 2 cages with a happy pair in each. A shame it's so expensive for this op in New York. It's the equivalent of $100 to $120 over here at a good vets. Only thing I'd advise to find a vet who is good at this op & has done lots in the past.

 

[SandraZ]

Yes, I agree with Wiebke about getting the second boar neutered to live with his sister. That way you'll have 2 cages with a happy pair in each. A shame it's so expensive for this op in New York. It's the equivalent of $100 to $120 over here at a good vets. Only thing I'd advise to find a vet who is good at this op & has done lots in the past.

yeah, that's what i plan on doing. I would love have two happy pairs instead of three happy piggies and a grump. It's really unfortunate that's its so expensive otherwise i would have had it taken care of a while ago. I'll be going to the vet that neutered my boar a year ago. She was really nice and caring. And everything went well with the operation that time!

 

[Stewybus]

That's good, it's essential you have a vet you can trust. Good Luck when the time comes.

 

[Wiebke]

Some boars will go back together as adults provided that they didn't have a bloody fight, but it is a very small minority. Your daddy pig will not relish being relegated to being a bachelor boar again after he has made to the pinnacle of a boar career as a group boar.

Your surprise family is very beautiful!