Bonding another male with my existing male siblings.

Roger & Roland the Pigs

Roger & Roland the Pigs

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Hello, I have recently had the opportunity to take another male guinea pig into my care, however I am worried he may break the bond of my existing two males (siblings, nearly 3yrs) and was wondering if anybody has had experiences or advice on a situation like this please. I have had the opportunity to adopt Nugget (who was rescued by somebody I know but they can no longer take care of him.) His age is unknown and he is a male. Apparently he tried to bond with other piggies but did not go down well. However I don't know whether this was because the bonding was done incorrectly. Since this he has been living on his own. My existing herd is two males that are siblings and nearly 3 yrs old. They have a great bond but one of them (Roger) hasn't been very well for the past few months, he seems to be enjoying life and still has his sassy attitude. My worry is that because Nugget has been isolated for a while in his adult years he may not bond and trying to bond the three would break Roger and Roland's existing bond and potentially upset Roger and cause his illness (unknown, but he is loving life) to get worse. I would really love to take care of Nugget as I know I would give him the best care out of all the options he has but I am worried about my existing herd. I have thought about Nugget becoming a bar buddy but I just don't know what's best for them all so any experiances or advice would be amazing, thank you!
 
It’s so kind of you to take Nugget on. I’m sure he’ll have a fabulous time with you.

I would suggest you don’t try and bond him to your current pair. As you said, you risk breaking their bond. Worst case scenario would be all three living separately.

Housing him next to the boys would cover his interaction needs. Of course we always want them living with another piggy but living as neighbours also works. The other alternative would be to take him to a rescue where he can be bonded with another boar. Perhaps have a look at the list of rescues and get in touch with them. Remember they don’t show singletons on their sites.

I’m sure you will find a solution that’s works best for Nugget.
 
:agr:
Living alongside is a better solution.
Adding a boar to a bonded pair doesn’t usually work and could break the existing bond as well.
Best to leave a happily bonded pair as they are.
 
You literally just set up his cage next to theirs.

Him being there won’t upset them as such but you may see interest, a bit of dominance between the pair and some behaviours at the dividing bar. Things like rumbling along the divider and laying next to it. These are not signs they want to be together but are power lie ins and territory marking behaviours.
It will settle though as they get used to each other.

If there is any issue between the bars then you can cover the bars with something (cardboard etc) for a few days/ a week so they can hear but not see each other. Then as they settle you can slowly start to remove whatever you have used so they can gain more sight of each other and hopefully adjust to side by side living.
 
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