Bonding gone wrong!

I

ImmyH

Junior Guinea Pig
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Hi folks,

Hoping for some different view points from other piggie parents.

I got a new piggie from a rescue about 10 days ago and tried bonding her with my 2 existing sows, Posey and Petal.
They have been living in separate c&c cages, but sharing the bars so they can see and smell each other.

Unfortunately when I introduced them face to face today (in a neutral space), new pig and Petal started fighting and petal got bitten (blood drawn). I took Petal straight to the vet and she will be fine. Fairly shallow puncture wound to the cheek. Some medication, cuddles and snacks and the vet says she will be fine.

But now I don’t know what to do. I think I have 4 options:

1) try bonding again after some more time living side by side
2) return new piggie to rescue
3) have new piggie living as a solo pig in sight/ smell of the others
4) find new a piggie a friend (with the help of a bonding service) and have 2 separate herds living next to each other.

I understand all have pros and cons but would be grateful for some input from other piggie people.

Thank you
 
Someone with more experience will be along with the knowledge to link the guides soon, however once blood has been drawn that is final and trying to bond again will not be possible.
 
fluffysal said:
Someone with more experience will be along with the knowledge to link the guides soon, however once blood has been drawn that is final and trying to bond again will not be possible.
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Thank you. That is what I thought. And to be fair, posey and petal are happy just the two of them so I’m fine leaving them as a pair. Just deciding what to do with new piggie now!
 
Sadly a fight does mean the bonding has failed m.
Adding a single piggy to a bonded pair is usually the bonding most likely to fail.
It is not worth trying again.

So you can do either of your options 2, 3 or 4. It really comes down to what is going to work best for you and whether you can manage two cages.

I’m sorry it hasn’t worked out
 
Thank you, I really thought it would be ok, but I guess piggies are very unpredictable. Fortunately, Petal seems back to her normal self. I, however, am a nervous wreck!
 
Just going to quickly plug rescuing a neutered boar for one or both groups - rescues are full to bursting and boars often get overlooked when adopting. The boars I've had have been my sloppiest pigs, and a mixed group can be lovely ☺️
 
poggle said:
Just going to quickly plug rescuing a neutered boar for one or both groups - rescues are full to bursting and boars often get overlooked when adopting. The boars I've had have been my sloppiest pigs, and a mixed group can be lovely ☺️
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Oooops, I meant soppiest! Autocorrect doing my boars a disservice :))
 
Hi,

I have given our situation a lot of thought over the last day and I have decided that I want to keep the new piggie. At the moment, she is living in one half of the cage with a divider between her and my bonded pair.
She is very keen in talking to them through the bars! There has been a little teeth chattering through the bars from Petal (who she bit yesterday) but I am assuming we just have to ride this out.

So now I am on a mission to find new piggie a friend! The rescue I got her from sadly don’t do a bonding service but did suggest that I could adopt a pig who she has lived with before. I am very tempted by this but I really don’t want another failed bond. How long are piggies’ memories? Would she remember an old cage mate and get along ok?

My other option is that another local rescue does do a bonding service. It doesn’t look like they have any suitable pigs at the moment. How long will she be ok living alone but with neighbours?

Sorry for all the questions. It has been a horrible 6 weeks losing my first pig and then the disappointment and stress of this failed bond. Feeling like I have massively let all my pigs down.
 
I’m glad you are going to keep her.

She will be ok living with neighbours for her entire life. She isn’t alone as she is fully able to interact with them at all times.
I have two single 15 month old boys (I also have a 6 year old bonded pair of boys) who live happily side by side following a huge fight which broke their bond. They have been living like this for a year now but as I cant see myself getting any more piggies when my oldest two pass (the youngest two are only 15 months old so hopefully have long lives ahead of them) they will live their lives as neighbours.

Please don’t think you’ve let your piggies down - you really haven’t
 
Piggies&buns said:
I’m glad you are going to keep her.

She will be ok living with neighbours for her entire life. She isn’t alone as she is fully able to interact with them at all times.
I have two single 15 month old boys (I also have a 6 year old bonded pair of boys) who live happily side by side following a huge fight which broke their bond. They have been living like this for a year now but as I cant see myself getting any more piggies when my oldest two pass (the youngest two are only 15 months old so hopefully have long lives ahead of them) they will live their lives as neighbours.

Please don’t think you’ve let your piggies down - you really haven’t
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thank you so much for all your kind words and reassurance. We are going to take new piggie to our local rescue in the new year and speed date her. Fingers crossed we will find a match!
At the moment she is in her own space but communicating through the bars with the other two. Is there a chance she will “forget” how to share her space with another pig if she has lived this for a month or so?
Probably a silly question but I want to set her up for as much success as possible. Thank you
 
ImmyH said:
thank you so much for all your kind words and reassurance. We are going to take new piggie to our local rescue in the new year and speed date her. Fingers crossed we will find a match!
At the moment she is in her own space but communicating through the bars with the other two. Is there a chance she will “forget” how to share her space with another pig if she has lived this for a month or so?
Probably a silly question but I want to set her up for as much success as possible. Thank you
Click to expand...

No such thing as a silly question.
No she won’t forget - piggies are social animals and character compatibility is what counts.
 
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