guinea pig introductions ADVICE NEEDED

[scarysarah]

hi

I'm a vet nurse with lots of piggies, but need some advice for a client

the have two 4 mth old sows, (from a pet shop)

one was unfortlanly pregnant!. the two sows got on fine but when they realised one was pregnant the sows had a fight. the pregnant sow got bitten on her nose, but nothing to bad.

the sows were seperated and the pregnant sow has had her babies (2 sows one boar)

the clients want to keep one baby sow and reintroduce both sows (i have found nice homes for the other babies!)

i have personal experience introducing babies to my herd, but after some advice on wheter the sows can be reintroduced and wheter the baby would be ok?

thanks sarah x

 

[scarysarah]

anybody?

 

[BossHogg]

I'm sorry, I can't help you, my two sows were already bonded when I got them, unknown to me, one of them was pregnant and when he was born, the 2 sows still remained friendly. He moved in with an elderly boar when he was 3 weeks old and remained there until he was old enough to be neutered. The old fella died and youngun moved back in with the girls once he was safe with no issues whatsoever.

 

[Wiebke]

It very much depends on the character combination. During late pregnancy and the nursing period, sows enjoy a protected status which upsets the established hierarchy, especially if the pregnant sow was the undersow. She won't be happy to go back.

All your client can do is give things a try on neutral ground and see whether the girls will go back together or not. The baby will go straight to the bottom and will be pushed around by both older sows as she is integrated into the adult hierarchy. it would be good if all sows had time next to each other with interaction through bars/mesh/grids beforehand; your client can also judge how things are likely to get on.
Here are tips on how best to conduct introductions: http://www.theguineapigforum.co.uk/...FAQ-Introducing-and-reintroducing-guinea-pigs
Mild to aggressive dominance behaviours (valid for sows as well as for boars): http://www.theguineapigforum.co.uk/showthread.php?28949-Boars!-Simple-Dominance-Displays-or-Fighting