KikoYukaHakuRisu
New Born Pup
I have three guinea pigs, two sows (3 and 4 years old) and one neutered boar (4 years old). The youngest 3 year old sow has suddenly become territorial, and is sleeping on and guarding all the hay. I use guineadad hay boxes, so tried to add a second box on the opposite end of their cage, but even still, if the youngest sees one of the other two eating there, she will chase them away. She will also sometimes chase the others out of their hideys.
The older two lost a lot of weight somewhere around last week, and are now stable at 800g and 950g, when they used to be 1,000g and 1,100g. The youngest is 1300g. We went to the vet and put the older two on antibiotics, which they’ve completed, but little has changed with their weight or behavior.
Basically, I’m wondering if it would be a good idea to separate the youngest to give the other two space, or if it would be better to leave them alone and keep monitoring their weight/supplementing with critical care if needed. I know guinea pig bonds can be fragile, and am unsure if what’s happening is some kind of social order restructuring that shouldn’t be interrupted, or if this could be dangerous enough to warrant separation.
The older two lost a lot of weight somewhere around last week, and are now stable at 800g and 950g, when they used to be 1,000g and 1,100g. The youngest is 1300g. We went to the vet and put the older two on antibiotics, which they’ve completed, but little has changed with their weight or behavior.
Basically, I’m wondering if it would be a good idea to separate the youngest to give the other two space, or if it would be better to leave them alone and keep monitoring their weight/supplementing with critical care if needed. I know guinea pig bonds can be fragile, and am unsure if what’s happening is some kind of social order restructuring that shouldn’t be interrupted, or if this could be dangerous enough to warrant separation.
