Guinea pigs fighting. Help!

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applemath10

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Hi all, first I thank everyone on this forum, it’s been a great reference for me as a first time guinea pig owner.

Here is my story and I’d appreciate all of your advices. I got two male guinea pigs from a pet store here in Houston, TX in January. According to the pet store they were about 3-5 months old.

They’ve been living fine and after about 2-3 months they started fighting a bit. Took them to the vet, she said all is fine it’s just puberty and it should settle down.

Now it’s two months later and two days ago they broke into a full fight, one of them has two small scabs that I believe are from biting. I put a divider in the cage for two days. When I removed it, the one that was injured kept hiding and they had one scuffle so I put it back again.

My feeling is that they are both dominant and it’s not working out. I really love them and my relationship with them developed quite a bit these past 6 months and I don’t want to let one go unless it is absolutely necessary.

Now I am leaving it for the folks here to advise me on this situation. I don’t know why they start fighting all of a sudden or if they can continue living together or with the divider. The cage is midwest cage (about 7.5 sq ft), I have two hay racks and two houses. Good diet with veggies and pellets.
 
Welcome to the forum.

As they have had a full on fight, I'm afraid they must be permanently separated. They are not character compatible so cannot form a relationship.

They are now hormonal teenagers and as long as it had remained dominance, they may have got through but once a full on fight has occurred, its clear they do not like each other and cannot remain together any longer.
This can happen with pet shop piggies, they are sold as youngsters who do get on when they are young because babies are desperate to belong, but once they get older, they both get their own ideas and if they do both want to be dominant then that relationship won't work.

They will need to live in separate but side by side cages so they have have companionship through the bars for the rest of their lives. This will stop them from being lonely. A midwest cage isnt big enough for a boar pair but it is fine for a single piggy to live next to a neighbour so if you can get another midwest and put it next to your current one, then each of your piggies can live in a cage happily. as neighbours. They will interact through the bars so as to not become lonely.
You cannot divide a midwest long term as each half is too small. A single piggy living next to a neighbour, each piggy must have a minimum of 8 square feet. A neutered boar and sow must have a minimum of 8 square feet also.
If you choose to give one up, and try to find a new compatible boar friend for the remaining piggy, you will need to get a bigger cage as a midwest cage isnt big enough for a boar pair. Boars are territorial and need a lot more room. A minimum of 10 square feet but 12 square feet is recommended.

However, you are also now in a difficult situation where bonding teenage boars is harder due to the hormones. A lot of rescues in the UK won't bond teen boars due to the issues they face with hormones so finding a new friend can be harder. Getting another piggy on spec from a pet shop means you will likely face the same issues of incompatibility again.
If you must give one of them up and find a new friend fr the remaining piggy, then neutering the one you keep and bonding him with a sow would be the best thing to do. What you cant do is keep one alone for life.

Boars: Teenage, Bullying, Fighting, Fall-outs And What Next?
A Comprehensive Guide to Guinea Pig Boars
Cage Size Guide
 
Hi. Thank you very much for the detailed and informative reply! I have two questions:

1- So if I get a larger cage, there is still no way they live together again?
2- I was thinking of the solution you mentioned at the end i.e. keeping one and getting a female guinea pig to live with him. Are there any age or other requirements for the female guinea pig that I will get?

Unfortunately I do not have enough space to get another midwest, I can get a larger one that's 8-10 sq ft though.

I really appreciate the quick and helpful reply!
 
applemath10 said:
Hi. Thank you very much for the detailed and informative reply! I have two questions:

1- So if I get a larger cage, there is still no way they live together again?
2- I was thinking of the solution you mentioned at the end i.e. keeping one and getting a female guinea pig to live with him. Are there any age or other requirements for the female guinea pig that I will get?

Unfortunately I do not have enough space to get another midwest, I can get a larger one that's 8-10 sq ft though.

I really appreciate the quick and helpful reply!
Click to expand...

Now they have had a fight, then no I’m afraid there is nothing you can do. They will need to be separated. A bigger cage won’t fix a broken bond.

No age requirements but character compatibility is essential. Even a sow/boar pairing need to be compatible and want to be together for it to work out - sow/boar bonds can still fail although it happens less.
The best way to do it is to have him neutered, then have the essential six week post op wait for him to become infertile, then go dating at a rescue centre if at all possible. This way you only bring him a sow with whom he is compatible. Not everybody has access to dating at a rescue centre though and if you don’t, then it may be you do have to choose a sow from another source - pet shop for example

If you can’t get a larger cage, then I would definitely recommend you go with (neutering and then) getting a sow for him rather than trying another boar. A sow/neutered boar pairing will be ok in a 8-10 square foot cage. 8 square foot being the minimum size for a sow/neutered boar.
 
Piggies&buns said:
Now they have had a fight, then no I’m afraid there is nothing you can do. They will need to be separated. A bigger cage won’t fix a broken bond.

No age requirements but character compatibility is essential. Even a sow/boar pairing need to be compatible and want to be together for it to work out - sow/boar bonds can still fail although it happens less.
The best way to do it is to have him neutered, then have the essential six week post op wait for him to become infertile, then go dating at a rescue centre if at all possible. This way you only bring him a sow with whom he is compatible. Not everybody has access to dating at a rescue centre though and if you don’t, then it may be you do have to choose a sow from another source - pet shop for example

If you can’t get a larger cage, then I would definitely recommend you go with (neutering and then) getting a sow for him rather than trying another boar. A sow/neutered boar pairing will be ok in a 8-10 square foot cage. 8 square foot being the minimum size for a sow/neutered boar.
Click to expand...
Thank you so much again! There is a shelter here but they don't have many guinea pigs, I will try to take him after neutering.

Please forgive my repeated question: what if I neuter both of them, will that calm them down and help live together again or not?

I forgot to ask, for the option of two cages with shared bars, is this sufficient that they remain happy and not lonely?
 
applemath10 said:
Thank you so much again! There is a shelter here but they don't have many guinea pigs, I will try to take him after neutering.

Please forgive my repeated question: what if I neuter both of them, will that calm them down and help live together again or not?

I forgot to ask, for the option of two cages with shared bars, is this sufficient that they remain happy and not lonely?
Click to expand...

Please don’t worry about asking questions - we are here to help.

No I’m afraid neutering won’t calm them down and enable them to stay together. It doesn’t change guinea pig behaviour the same as it does for other animals. All neutering will do in guinea pigs is stop pregnancy.

Yes, living in two separate cages side by side (minimum of 8 square feet per cage) with interaction through the bars only is a perfectly normal course of action to take for two boars who can no longer stay together. We have members who have had to do the same thing and have their boars live this way.
 
Understood, thank you again!

Now who would be easier to keep/bond with a sow?

Bugy (the one who got bitten) was always the one showing dominance behavior since the very beginning (shaking butt, rumbling, teeth chattering and occasionally chattering teeth at Shak (the other boar) who would normally back away).

Shak has never done a butt shake or rumbling (at least I don't remember him ever doing that) and almost always walked away from confrontations. It seems he decided to rebel. He is bigger in size and that seems to allow him to win each fight though.

I am leaning towards keeping Shak since for the most part we liked him more because he seemed kinder (although does not like being held like Bugy) and less picky in food. What are your thoughts?

Thanks again!
 
You need to decide which one to keep based on your own feelings towards them.
Each pairing comes down to character compatibility so either one of them is going to be able to be bonded with a sow, but it comes down to the piggies and finding the right friend for them.
Mixed pairs are different to boar/boar pairs in their dynamics. The sow has to be the one willing to accept the boar.

This guide below has a section on mixed gender bondings. Ill also add other bonding guides below so you can have a bit more background on bondings and the social dynamics

A Closer Look At Pairs (Boars - Sows - Mixed)
Bonding and Interaction: Illustrated social behaviours and bonding dynamics
Sows: Behaviour and female health problems (including ovarian cysts)
Neutered / De-sexed Boars And Neutering Operations: Myths, Facts and Post-op Care
 
Thank you so much again!

My last question is: is the boar ok to be alone after the operation until we find a sow for him?
 
applemath10 said:
Thank you so much again!

My last question is: is the boar ok to be alone after the operation until we find a sow for him?
Click to expand...

Yes he will be ok but it will be a long wait. He needs to have six weeks wait after hes neutered to become infertile so he cannot be with a sow during that time. If you are surrendering the other boar to a rescue and then want to date the boar you keep to find a suitable sow, then maybe you can keep the boar for the next six weeks (or so) until your neutered boar is safe and can have a sow, so that neither boar is alone. There will likely be waiting lists for finding a sow so it may not be practical for the long term, but if you aren't in any hurry to rehome the other boar, then perhaps timing the surrendering of the boar and bringing home of a new sow (perhaps not exactly - your remaining boar will be ok for a few weeks) is an option
 
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