Dominance

P

Pebbles26

Junior Guinea Pig
Joined
Mar 20, 2018
Messages
34
Reaction score
17
Points
155
My Boar has been at it all week, he lives with his friend, he has been rumblestrutting, lurching, chinning, stopping other pig from eating, chattering teeth, nipping, pulling fur out, and chasing him around the whole cage, they are in a 6x2 c&c cage, they have garden time in a huge run nearly everyday, 2 or everything, separate feeding stations, other pig will constantly chase the other one away, same with the beds, he will just chase him and try to hump him, this has been going on for 2 weeks but getting slowly worse, last night i was home from 6.30 and went to bed at 11 and they were constant, didn't stop all night, I have separated them with a divider today and bully pig was biting the bars and going nuts, while the other pig was popcorning and happy, prior to this he has become very depressed and low, i have had them vet checked and both are in good health, should i seperate permanently? thanks for reading.
 
I’m no guinea pig expert but I would say you should leave the barrier in for a night or two just to allow them to calm down, then after that time you could take it away only when you are able to supervise, hopefully after a while they will be fine, how old are they?
 
If you take the barrier away the process will start again from scratch. I'm struck by how much difference you say you've seen in the bullied pig...
 
If the piggy who was bullied is obviously happier without the other, you have your answer. You could keep them side by side as singles, get them each another boy pal, or get them neutered and get them a wife each (6 weeks post op, or you may end up with many more than you bargained for). Some good rescues will do your bonding for you, as not all piggies get on with each other. Whatever you do, don't just remove the barrier if they've been split for a few days, as they both now have their own territory, and you are practically guaranteed a fight if you don't re-bond them properly (see the bonding threads in the forum tabs. There's also more info on bonds in trouble)
 
I agree with Reenie. If you’ve got one which is happier now they are separate, then the bond is not working anymore.
 
they are around 8 months old, yes they were very calm yesterday, they usually run away and put up a fight when picked up and yesterday i scooped them both up and they didn't even try to squirm, is that a good thing? or maybe they are both depressed now lol such sensitive souls <3
 
You could maybe try lap time with them together to see if they get on?
 
Sophie Blane said:
You could maybe try lap time with them together to see if they get on?
Click to expand...
They do lol and in the garden, they are fine! we had a cat around the other day and I ran outside to find bully pig terrified and burrowed under the other pig so he looks to him for support, its all very bizarre lol
 
It sounds like it would be worth having one last go at a proper bonding. Please please follow the guidance though. If you continually put them together for lap time and floor time etc. they will treat each outing as an hierarchy battle. It may seem calm now, but there will be trouble ahead if you continue.

If I was you, I'd do a proper bonding, and, if successful, return them to a cleaned out cage. If Mr Bully Piggy starts his nonsense again, then it's time to give up for the sake of your other boy.

Good luck. I do hope it works out.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top