Confused.com

[Rachael V]

Hi all,

I have 3 guineas - 2 boys (Peppa and Jerry) and a girl (Lola). All of which have got along just fine until Wednesday when Lola had her first litter. Since then the boys have started to fight - which seems to be dominance related (teeth chatterting, yawns, mounting etc). We separated them when they started to draw blood. For some reason they are absolutely fine outside in the run together but as soon as they're back in the cage they start on one another. Yet they look so fed up when they are put in separate cages.
I'm so confused after reading so many different posts, saying;
- let them fight it out - do not separate or you'll disrupt the social structure
- Boys will never get along
- once bloods drawn they'll never get on

I just don't know what to do - I can't bare the thought of rehoming one of my boys but don't have the space to keep them all separate. I had 2 boys years ago, and friends have boys together with no trouble.

Also (to top it off) my new mummy appears to have mites (sores) since her litter were born. Is it too dangerous to treat her while her litter are so young?

Please help

Thanks all
Rachael

 

[Katie Krafter]

Hi all,

I have 3 guineas - 2 boys (Peppa and Jerry) and a girl (Lola). All of which have got along just fine until Wednesday when Lola had her first litter. Since then the boys have started to fight - which seems to be dominance related (teeth chatterting, yawns, mounting etc). We separated them when they started to draw blood. For some reason they are absolutely fine outside in the run together but as soon as they're back in the cage they start on one another. Yet they look so fed up when they are put in separate cages.
I'm so confused after reading so many different posts, saying;
- let them fight it out - do not separate or you'll disrupt the social structure
- Boys will never get along
- once bloods drawn they'll never get on

I just don't know what to do - I can't bare the thought of rehoming one of my boys but don't have the space to keep them all separate. I had 2 boys years ago, and friends have boys together with no trouble.

Also (to top it off) my new mummy appears to have mites (sores) since her litter were born. Is it too dangerous to treat her while her litter are so young?

Please help

Thanks all
Rachael

Hi and welcome to the forum. I'll do my best to answer in turn:

First - get your mummy pig to a vet if you think she has mites. A cavy savvy vet is a good idea to have on standby anyway, and this should be done asap.

Second - check out some of the threads on here about pregnancy to make sure you are giving mummy and babies enough of the right foods to ensure they are all properly looked after during this period while mummy is still feeding them.

Third - do not put the males back into the females cage - you might already have got her pregnant again, and this is probably why they were fighting. Females come into season immediately after they have given birth, so you need to keep a good eye on her for pregnancy watch, as back to back pregnancies are really bad news for the sow.

Four - you will be unlikely to be able to keep two males with one female (or as a trio with other males) as they will fight. You can however put one neutered male with a bunch of females so you could get one of them neutered and put him with mum and baby girls and put another baby boy with the other one. Pls be aware that it takes six weeks post op for the male to be unable to father more babies.

Five - please be aware that you need to separate baby boys from mum when they are three weeks old or 250 gm as they have the ability to get both her and any sisters in the litter pregnant from then on.

Six - if rehoming, please seek out a reputable rescue (check out the thread on the piggy bank which has a map of those recommended).

Seven - please note that this forum has rules about discussing purposeful breeding, so pls check those out.

Finally, hope all goes well; this is agreat forum and is really h elpful and friendly. Pls feel free to ask any more questions.

Think I covered everything - if not, shout!

 

[Suzygpr]

Hello Rachael and welcome to the forum.

I'm a bit confused also - are all of your pigs living in the same cage? If you could give a bit more info on the size of cage, who lives with who and whether either of the boys have mated with a female before - you do not say how your girl became pregnant.

Suzy

 

[Rachael V]

Hi,
Thanks for your replies.

We first got Lola and Peppa together (siblings) 6 months ago - on the understanding they were both girls. We then got Jerry (male) about 3 months ago. They have all lived in the same cage and got on absolutly perfectly. The day before Lola gave birth we moved her to a separate cage, where she now is with the babies. Peppa and Jerry were just fine the day the litter arrived and played fine outside all day - when we brought them in at night and put them in their cage, Peppa constantly tried to mount Jerry. At this point we realised that Peppa is in fact a male, and we suspect the father of the litter. They have fought in the cage ever since (but not in the garden)
Lola is the only female that they have been around since we got them (all were 6 weeks when we got them).

The cage is about 3ft x 1.5ft.

Some really interesting posts on here :-)

Thanks
Rachael

 

[Wiebke]

Hi and welcome!

Please keep any mummy and pups separate from any boars!

Mummies come into season within hours of giving birth, but back-to-back pregnancies are very hard on them and the risks that things can go wrong for them and any pups they are carrying are much higher. Boars can make babies from three weeks onwards and need to be separated at 3 weeks old/250g of weight. Baby girls can get pregnant from 4 weeks onwards.

If you are having problems with the gender of your piggies, please post pictures of their privates in our pregnancy section and our experienced members will sex them for you. We can also help you to sex your babies to avoid the next round of problems. The clearer the pictures, the better. Angle the privates towards the light and make use of the macro option (flower symbol) if possible for best results.

If you open a thread for your mummy in our pregnancy section, we can give you tips about how to best care for mummy and pups (diet, weights etc.).

Unfortunately, your two boars need to be kept away from any sows to avoid any further fighting. Depending on the gender of your babies, you can try and pair baby boys with each of them once they need to leave mummy.

Please be also aware that your lack of space has contributed to your problems. The minimum recommendation from the RSPCA for two guinea pigs is 2x4 ft, any more guinea pigs need even more space.

We have tips and help in our housing section if you wish to. We can also help you if you need to find new homes for some of your piggies if things get too much for you to cope.

Please keep mum and babies indoors; the nights are too cold for the little ones.

 

[Rachael V]

Thanks all for your posts. Please be assured that my new mummy is not in with the boars!

Touch wood my boys appear to have settled their differences now and are getting along.

Thanks
Rachael

 

[Abi_nurse]

It is likely that, because your sow will have gone into season hours after birth the boys have smelt her scent. And this has probably caused the tiff. To add, if the boys are in a 3ft cage (sorry if I'm getting confused in anyway) this is too small for two boars, they are more likely to fight so a 4ft (or bigger) cage is best for them.

x.