Bonding fail...whete to go next...

MunchMummy

MunchMummy

Junior Guinea Pig
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Hi all,

I posted at the weekend about losing our oldest boy Leonard and needing to find a new cagemate for 4 year old Howie.

Well...we picked up Piggo from the RSPCA. We were told he was about a year old and very reserved. We gave him some time to settle into the new smells and new surroundings before trying to bond.

This morning we started bonding in a neutral space with just hay as advised. It was immediately obvious that Piggo wasn't going to want to be the submissive pig! Both pigs did the usual rumbling and chattering. Piggo was in full on humping mode and Howie seemed to be saying "OK...get it over with and then leave me be". Howie showed no aggression over the usual rumbles and chatters and seemed happy to just eat hay.

When Piggo joined him for hay, Howie was quite happy to let him eat with him. But still Piggo seemed to need to provoke Howie.

We watched closely and stood ready with oven gloves. However, whilst Howie seemed to just want a quiet life and just walk away from Piggo when he got all show boaty, Piggo seemed to just keep going back for more.

Eventually Howie had enough and warned Piggo off, Piggo took exception and properly went for Howie with teeth. I wasn't quite quick enough with the gloves (despite best efforts) and getting in there and Piggo got a nip in on Howie. 😪

So immediately we stopped the bonding and they are now separated.

Now I'm in a quandary. Piggos notes from RSPCA say "some pigs struggling with confinement - monitor closely for fighting." And then the next day "2 kennels of guineas fighting. Separated all...Piggo has wound".

I was going to wait till the 6 weeks after his neutering were up (he was neutered at RSPCA on 17th June) and try and bond him with one of my girl groups. Now I'm worried that he may have had a tough time and learned the need to fight in his past life. I worry about disrupting happy girl groups and putting everyone at risk of distress or worse.

However, I don't want to give up on poor Piggo who has obviously had a rough start. Would it be better for me to return him to give him chance to find another mate...or is his best chance living with us with a separator and interaction that way? Or, if we can make the space, do we try and find both him and Howie new friends? I'm not sure my nerves could take 2 lots of boar dating right now! 🤣 Is his past going to make it hard for him to have a cagemate?

Unfortunately we don't have anywhere here that offers dating on site, especially with Covid. I know ultimately it's our decision but I would like to get the opinions of you amazingly experienced piggy owners. I just want to do the right thing but am grieving the loss of Leonard (and a close family member all at once) and worried for my existing pigs and feel a weight of responsibility towards poor Piggo too! It's a distressing time and I just want to get this right for all the piggies.
 
If I was you I wouldn't put him with your girls and mess up a bonded group. I would probably put him next door to the other guinea pig and that way he can be next to the other guinea pig with out any more fights and no more bondings that could go wrong again.
 
At a year old, he is still a teenager so the fact previous boar bondings haven't worked isnt entirely surprising as it can be difficult to bond teen boars. The recommended course of action would be to neuter (as has happened) and try bonding with sows. Boars are only part of the group hierarchy, but not part of the sow hierarchy so he would have to be accepted by all the sows and fit in the group where the sows allow him. Living with sows is a big step up for a boar and you may find that he fits in much better than he ever would with a boar. However, once a boar has lived with sows, he is much less likely to accept a boar friend in the future as going back to being a bachelor is a demotion.
Of course, with any bonding what looks good on paper doesnt always translate in reality but he may not feel such a need to defend himself when tried with sows.

Adding More Guinea Pigs Or Merging Pairs – What Works And What Not?
 
Thank you so much for replying. We managed to get more info from the RSPCA. Apparently, before the RSPCA took him in, poor Piggo was kept in very small housing with other pigs and with very little food, so had to fight for every scrap. How can people be so cruel?

He is such a sweet boy on his own. So we are going to give him lots of love and care and when his 6 weeks post-neuter is up, will see if he will live happily with one of our beautiful sow groups ❤

And for Howie...who is 4.5...would finding a baby to bond him with better? Or a fellow old-timer do you think?

Value the advice here so much!
 
I hope the bonding goes well.

As for Howie, Its really down to compatibility rather than age. The theory is that a youngster might be easier because he cannot challenge for dominance but that can change when the youngster hits his teens. He could equally reject an incompatible youngster immediately just as easily as an older piggy. As you don’t have the option of dating, there is always going to be a risk that things won’t work out.
 
Thank you. I think the RSPCA still have a couple of the boys that came in with Piggo but I worry there is a risk that they will also be the same. But will keep eyes and ears out for a potential new buddy for Howie. He is an absolute sweetheart. He is generally very laid back and happy for Piggo to share his hay. I think he was much more willing to accept Piggo than Piggo was to accept him!

He was never the dominant pig when he was with Leonard. He sometimes liked to annoy Leonard with friendship and playtime and you could almost see Leonard rolling his eyes at him! 🤣 But they would then curl up next to eachother. ❤

Thank you for the advice. X
 
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