Guinea Pig Pairings?

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crazyfurcavies

crazyfurcavies

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Hello! I'm new to this forum and need a bit of piggy advice!
Does anybody know which pairing of guinea pigs is most likely to get along? I have a 3 year old sow who's lived alone since she was young and I want to get her a companion. (Please no hate, I know I should have gotten two guinea pigs, but when I got her I hadn't done too much research on cavy socialness, only basic care, and I do realize now that getting only one was a mistake). I already have a 2 by 4 grid c&c cage, which I've heard is large enough for two cavies, and I've done plenty of research on introducing cavies.
My question is, as I said above: what pairing of guinea pigs is most likely to get along, age, gender and personality wise? My piggy is definitely more on the dominant side, and she's not young anymore (though she's not a senior either). Would she be most likely to get along with a (obviously neutered) boar, or another sow? Would she be more likely to get along with a younger piggy or one of the same age? Also, what would she do best with, for example a dominant or submissive cavy?
Thanks for reading my question and I'd really appreciate an answer! :)
 
I think a younger piggie would be better for your sow, if the piggie is at the same age, it may cause a few scuffles in order to find out who's boss.
I'm no expert, so wait for a better reply!
 
Personally, i think you should take your piggy to a local rescue and let her choose her own friend, weather this be a female or male of any age, rescues will bond them for you and ensure a stable relationship. Good luck x
 
Chief Guinea Pig said:
I think a younger piggie would be better for your sow, if the piggie is at the same age, it may cause a few scuffles in order to find out who's boss.
I'm no expert, so wait for a better reply!
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That makes sense, because it would be hard for a young piggy to fight for dominance with an older one. Thanks for your advice. :)
 
Toffeewoffee said:
Personally, i think you should take your piggy to a local rescue and let her choose her own friend, weather this be a female or male of any age, rescues will bond them for you and ensure a stable relationship. Good luck x
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I was planning to get my new guinea pig from a rescue anyway, so I will definitely check if they allow people to bring their guinea pigs in when adopting a new one!
Thanks
 
With your girl, you can try either sows or neutered males, preferably younger and non-dominant ones in your case. Age is less important than character compatibility. Dating at a rescue is very important, so you don't come home with a piggy that doesn't gel.

Your girl may be afraid of other piggies at first, so she may initially react fear-aggressive/over the top and it can take a while and several dates to get her used to company of her own kind, but with patience and persistence it can be done - and the result is so much more enjoyable! ;)

I have worked my way through the odd problem like that with sows ranged between 3-5 years. Seeing the girls living happily for the following years once they have found the right mate or setting makes very much up for a rocky start!
 
I have two dominant sows, one in each group of four and neither will accept adults but will accept babies.When I lost one of a pair my rescue tried her with two different sows and wouldn't accept either but accepted a 8 week old baby and then two 4 week old babies.The other dominant one accepted two babies as well.A good rescue will find the right comb ination for you as they did with me.Good luck finding your new friend
 
Thanks for all your help everyone! I've just recently gotten my new piggy, and she's a younger sow. There were no rescues in my area with a dating service, so I wasn't able to let my guinea pig choose her new friend. But the new piggy isn't aggressive at all, so I'm hoping there'll be no fights over dominance. Right now I'm quarantining her, and I'm hoping when I finally introduce them they'll get along!
Thanks again!
 
Wishing you best of luck! Please make use of our bonding and behaviour information at the top of the behaviour section.

It is great that you have at least checked for rescues in your area.
 
i rub the babies with hay from the litter trayof the ones already in the cage so it had same smell. Good luck
 
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