Bullying The Newborns

Nathan & Codi

Nathan & Codi

Junior Guinea Pig
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Hi i have just introduced my newborn's and their mother to my three other female pigs but they seem to be bullying the baby pigs chasing them and I noticed one chewing fur. The mother and another of the females are not getting on and are chasing each other around the cage. Any idea on what I can do?
 
Chasing is dominance behaviour and nibbling fur is a way of piggies inviting the newer additions to join their group. I will tag @Wiebke but I think it should be fine. How old are the babies?
 
About a month old I think. I haven't separated the male babies yet to. I have three boars in another double cage so I will try and introduce the baby boys to them soon. Not looking forward to that
 
Nathan & Codi said:
Hi i have just introduced my newborn's and their mother to my three other female pigs but they seem to be bullying the baby pigs chasing them and I noticed one chewing fur. The mother and another of the females are not getting on and are chasing each other around the cage. Any idea on what I can do?
Click to expand...

Are you introducing on neutral ground? How old are your babies and what genders are they? Please be aware that boars start making making babies from 3 weeks onwards and that will not only mate with their sisters but also with their mum and any aunties. Sows close enough in their cycle can come into season spontaneously in the presence of a male.

PLEASE DO NOT PUT ANY BOARS OVER 3 WEEKS OF AGE WITH SOWS!
It means that you now have to put all your female guinea pigs on a 10 week pregnancy and keep hoping that they have not caught... :(
https://www.theguineapigforum.co.uk/threads/pregnancy-guide.109375/
https://www.theguineapigforum.co.uk/threads/pregnancy-and-nursing-diet.109377/

Please be aware that there is always a dominance phase during introductions. Babies are always emphatically pushed to the bottom of the hierarchy. It looks pretty rough, but it is not quite as brutal as it looks and it usually settles down within a few days. Chasing and dominance barbering are pretty normal behaviours.

Nursing mums and pups enjoy a specially protected status in a group, which can temporarily transfor the existing hierarchy. Once the babies are weaned, the old order is reestablished. Reintroducing a new mum to her group is one of the trickier bondings because of the status changes. Many new mums have gained in status through their babies and are not quite happy to return from top sow of their own little family to a low ranked sow in the big group.

Please take the time to read these very detailed guides. You may find them very helpful in understanding what is going on and judging whether the behaviour is in an acceptable band width.
Please also be aware that small boar groups are the most unstable, so I would recommend to think three times about putting 3 babies with a bonded pair of boars.

May I ask how you have come by your pregnant mum?

Illustrated Bonding / Dominance Behaviours And Dynamics
Barbering ( Eating Hair)

https://www.theguineapigforum.co.uk/threads/after-birth-and-baby-care.109389/
https://www.theguineapigforum.co.uk/threads/sexing-separating-baby-boars-and-rehoming-babies.109391/
 
Someone left both cages open in my shed. Luckily only one of my sows caught. I don't know what I would do if more then one got pregnant. So I'm guessing I just keep the brothers together as I have three other boars in my other cage
 
I would recommend having all of the boars neutered, especially if you're not able to 100% ensure that they're kept separate.

I wouldn't recommend a herd of boars. Anything more than a pair is difficult to maintain and adding in more makes the likelihood of fights increase.
 
At a month, the baby board definitely need to not be in an enclosure with other sows... they are old enough to reproduce and you may already have new babies on the way at this point.
 
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