Change in dominance?

[Rachel J]

My two boars have managed to stay together through hormone spikes and definitely have a bond, despite the fact that they aren't snuggly and cheery with each other. They like to be relatively close wherever they are in their large indoor spaces (they are spoilt!). After the recent bout of rumble strutting and teeth chattering, the dominant piggie has become very withdrawn and appears to be a little down. I have watched closely, he is eating fresh food and hay, but is not running around. He can move around, but is preferring not to. The other one (Pickle) keeps visiting him (Badger). At this time, Badger squeaks quietly, but this isn't a happy sound. Can dominance swap? Can this impact the once dominant one. We've added a third water bottle where he is camped, but he doesn't seem to be drinking. If he is still eating hay, does this mean that he isn't hiding illness? I am going to ring the vet today, but wondered if anyone else has had this situation. I am dreading taking him to the vet as (although he has always been the tougher and more dominant one up until now), he is extremely nervous and jumpy and has never progressed with this. Worried that the vet experience will make him far worse. Am I over panicking? Frightened that they won't know enough specifically about guineapigs to be able to help.
Sorry for very long chat...I can take most things in my stride, except my guineapigs! :o)

 

[Piggies&buns]

To be sure he really is eating enough hay, switch from the routine weekly weight checks and instead weigh him daily. This gives you real time information on his hay intake, as you cannot judge he is actually eating enough hay by eye - even a poorly piggy will still eat some hay, but it may not be anywhere near enough, so seeing him eat hay can be incredibly deceptive. Any reduction in hay intake will show on the scales, potentially before you see any definitive symptoms of illness.

A vet check would be a good idea for any change in behaviour.

If there has been a change in leadership (which can happen), then he may be upset about that, but you will want to be sure that there isn’t an illness brewing - sometimes a change in leadership can occur because the dominant is poorly.

Weight - Monitoring and Management

How old are they?
How big is their cage?
Do all hides have two exits?
Have you got multiple hay areas?

If a vet can rule out illness, then it may be a change in hierarchy. It’s then up to the piggies if they can make that work - if Badger is willing to relinquish his position and become the submissive (often they aren’t but you can not really predict). You will need to be sure that Pickle is not bullying Badger. Bullying is different to dominance behaviours - bullying is a sustained behaviour which can result in a piggy becoming depressed and withdrawn
A high pitched squeaking may be submission, which is absolutely fine.

Bonds In Trouble
A Comprehensive Guide to Guinea Pig Boars
Boars: Teenage, Bullying, Fighting, Fall-outs And What Next?

EDIT - I’ve just looked back and seen that they are likely to be around 9 months of age now - is that correct? At 9-10 months of age there is another hormone spike. Mostly if boar pairs have made it this far, then this hormone spike won’t break a bond but wil result in a bit of tension for a while. Occasionally you can get pairs who do suddenly run into bond-breaking trouble at this age and up towards the end of their teens (15 months of age)

 

[Rachel J]

Thanks so much for this. It was really helpful what you said about the hay. He is eating it, so that was a good point that I hadn't thought about. Mentioning about Badger maybe not well enough to stand his ground was something I also hadn't considered.

I took him to the vets. She was excellent. Turns out she owns eight guineapigs, so felt that this was an act of God. She certainly checked him thoroughly. There is nothing obvious (no bloating, front teeth issues, stones, etc.), but he is clearly dehydrated. She's given me medicine and I'm to go back on Monday if he isn't better. Today, I saw him do a poo which was the closest to normal than I've seen in the cage for a few days. The vet said to feed more lettuce to help as he isn't drinking. He still isn't using the water bottle - is this because I've been giving him more watery veg than I usually would? If he isn't improved on Monday, the vet will check his molars and x-ray.

Taking them both to the vets seemed to help as the vet stroked Pickle too and when they got home they both settled quickly. That's something another member on here mentioned regarding males and new scents, so thanks for that tip.

I have started weighing daily. As he detests being handled, I don't do this enough. I hate distressing him doing this. The fact that I am managing to get him out more easily (in a snuggle sack), shows he is not himself. I will really try to get a grip on this and weigh Badger and Pickle more often.

Thanks to the info on the forum, we obsessively try to address the needs of them as boars. They have at least two of everything. Nothing has just one exit. They have a 5x2 C&C cage with a further space upstairs. They then have a ramp down under the table to a 4x2 space. Funnily enough, they always want to eat from the same hay, so historically Badger has prevented Pickle from eating and Pickle hasn't gone to the other hay.

Any tips about using critical care? I have tried all sorts of consistencies, but it is an absolute no! Medicine has been fine. I've seen other gps gulping it down!

Will I do any hard by giving more than the usual 10% fresh veg to Badger? Will this deter him from hay? It does run the risk of making the food thief - Pickle - fat!

Yes, they are 9/10 months. They have had spikes for about six months (Badger seemed to physically develop very quickly). Hope that this does settle for them. We separated them during a particularly long-lasting pester from Badger to Pickle. Pickle squealed until we put them back together again!

Again, a HUGE thank you for your help. It's amazing how many people are shocked by me owning a guineapig and being upset to see one ill! The usual question is how long do they live, which implies that it is par for the course! Lovely to be in a forum where gps have status as a family member.

Rachelx

 

[Piggies&buns]

In terms of the critical care, some piggies just don’t like it. There are other types such as Emeraid which can be more readily accepted, but you can also try just mushing their normal pellets with warm water. As this has a familiar taste, they usually like it. If you do use pellets, you will need to cut the tapered end off a syringe to get it to go through.

His water intake - personally I would hand feed a couple of extra slices of cucumber to him to increase his water intake. You can also make sure the veg is wet when you give it to them. You can hand feed something to Pickle as well so he doesn’t feel left out.
You can’t make them drink though - if they get plenty of fresh veg, then their water intake from a bottle can be less. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing as they will usually only drink what they need.

In terms of their relationship, it’s really a case of monitoring and seeing how things go, keeping a close eye that Badger isn’t unhappy. If you do need to do a trial separation then it is the submissive piggy‘s reaction you gauge - if the submissive perks up when away from the dominant, then it is a sign things are not ok between them.

 

[Rachel J]

Thank you. Great advice. Reassuring to hear about the drinking. Badger seems to be retaining his weight, so that is good. He likes the pellets normally, so think that would be the best bet. Will also look into Emeraid to have in just in case needed at another point.
Thanks again.