Guinea Pigs Fighting

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Grant

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We went on holiday for a couple of weeks and as we had nowhere else to put my pair of piggies, we put them in a boarders. They seemed happy there and when we got them back they were in good condition.

However, on the journey home they were very stressed and the more dominant one kept standing on the other. I can only assume this is where he cut the other one's nose as the less dominant one now has a scratch on his nose. The scratch is not bleeding but is red and the less dominant one is now very angry and showing a lot of aggression towards the more dominant one. I don't want to seperate them as they got on really well and I'm hoping they will calm down.

Any advice?
 
Hi Grant,
:wel: to the forum.

As their noses are very keen to smells, I would perhaps give them a bath to remove any other smells that may have came from the boarders. Accidents do happen and it was perhaps just one of those things, but certainly doing your best to remove scents will help and then put them back into a neutral zone - almost like a rebonding session. That may ease the tension.
 
thanks so much. i'm so stressed i can't stop crying i really don't want to seperate them forever
 
Well it's not the end of the world so don't worry, if you follow the link I gave it should do the trick, making sure you put veggies in and ensure none of the houses are dead ends for them. Essentially you are rebonding them to sort out any scrapping that could well occur.

How old are they?
Are they boys or girls?
 
Don't forget, you can come back at any time if you are not sure how things are going. Do make sure their environment is fully cleaned to remove any smells too after this session. You can always video them and post here and help will always be given when asked - Oh I sound like Dumbledore!

Don't be afraid, and I know it can be upsetting seeing your piggies unhappy and clearly you want the best for them - after all you came to the best forum.
 
Thank you so much. I've seperated them and will probably try introducing them again tonight? Or is that too soon? They lunged at each other before I seperated them but there were no cuts this time. They're two males but have always gotten on very well until today.
 
Sorry to read that you've had trouble with your piggies. 2 of my sows recently fell out and it is heartbreaking. Good luck with reintroducing them. I hope all goes well.
 
my two piggies did that once. I bathed them together so they have the same scent, separated them for a night and put them both in their run the next day. It was like they'd met for the first time! Remove any scent that could result in a fight for dominance (clean their cage etc) and give 100% supervision when you put them back together again. If they just mount each other, try and let them do their thing - any pair of male guinea pigs does it - but if they start getting into a heated fight, put your hand in an oven glove and try and separate them. Make sure you protect your hand as they may bite as they try and get to the other piggie.
 
Thank you. I tried introducing them again tonight in the hopes that the less dominant one had calmed down but he just started chasing the more dominant one so I seperated them straight away. I hope to do a full neutral territory introduction tomorrow. I haven't had much experience with bathing guinea pigs, but I guess I could give that a try, I'm just a bit worried it would stress them out more because less-dominant-piggy gets angry when stressed.
Thanks for the sympathy. I've calmed down now and hopefully I'll find a way to get them back together
 
when bathing them, amke sure the water isn't running and is really shallow so they feel somewhat safe.
 
Thank you that was really helpful. How does bathing them together work? They keep chasing each other when put together so I'm not sure if they would be able to bathe together
 
Any change in location can cause a re balance of power.
My two were fighting both 7/8 month old b
Grant said:
Thank you that was really helpful. How does bathing them together work? They keep chasing each other when put together so I'm not sure if they would be able to bathe together
Click to expand...
I bathed mine together the other night as the less dominant one was doing what yours did. I think it's their age both around 7/8 months. Reintroduced them in a neutral area introduced new toys and sorted enclosure. And they have been getting on better they are still having their moments but the frequency has settled down. They are both having moments where they are popcorning again.
Hope your two settle
 
Thank you so much. I'll try to reintroduce them outside today after a bath. It's nice to hear that people have been successful in reintroducing them.
 
Do I need to use shampoo because I don't have any or can I just soak them in water?
 
How do I know when they are safe to be put back in the cage?
 
guinea pig friendly shampoo is preferably like gorgeous guineas stuff, however if you have Johnsons baby shampoo you could use a small amount of that ensuring you rinse off well.

Wash their cage and all house items thoroughly to remove any scent and put your piggies into a neutral zone after bathing. Wrap them in towels to dry them off as much as possible so they don't get a chill, even though it's warm here in the UK (well midlands anyway).

You will be able to tell from bringing them together how they are, it's natural you will get some bum sniffing and a little running around and chasing.
but they should settle down after that.
 
Mother Hubbard said:
guinea pig friendly shampoo is preferably like gorgeous guineas stuff, however if you have Johnsons baby shampoo you could use a small amount of that ensuring you rinse off well.

Wash their cage and all house items thoroughly to remove any scent and put your piggies into a neutral zone after bathing. Wrap them in towels to dry them off as much as possible so they don't get a chill, even though it's warm here in the UK (well midlands anyway).

You will be able to tell from bringing them together how they are, it's natural you will get some bum sniffing and a little running around and chasing.
but they should settle down after that.
Click to expand...

Yes, when I did it, it was almost like they had never met before. They reacted just the same as they did when we first bought them home.
 
I'm not sure if I can put them both in the cage yet. Any advice?
I washed them and put them both outside but they're still asserting a lot of dominance e.g. chasing, rumblestrutting, teeth chattering but haven't had a proper fight yet and apart from that are leaving each other alone.
They've been out there for 6 hours and I'm going to have to bring them in in a couple of hours. I don't know whether to seperate them again or not, if I seperate them they won't be able to be reintroduced again until Friday.
 
how big is their cage?
when you put them together, you need to supervise them as fresh surrounding sometimes call for fights for dominance.
 
Grant said:
I'm not sure if I can put them both in the cage yet. Any advice?
I washed them and put them both outside but they're still asserting a lot of dominance e.g. chasing, rumblestrutting, teeth chattering but haven't had a proper fight yet and apart from that are leaving each other alone.
They've been out there for 6 hours and I'm going to have to bring them in in a couple of hours. I don't know whether to seperate them again or not, if I seperate them they won't be able to be reintroduced again until Friday.
Click to expand...

I could be wrong but the fact they have been together in the same enclosure for 6 hours must be a good sign. I know with my 2 sows that have recently fallen out, they were having a proper fight within 5 mins of being introduced, each time.

I'd put them in the cleaned out cage and watch them for a bit but other people may have better advice.
 
I'd say after 6 hours without a fight, as long as the cage is neutralised and all houses have 2 exits I would put them in the cage and see what happens. It's horrid when your bonded pigs fall out. You've done a great job bringing them back together again.
 
sorry I was offline doing other stuff. I would put them together in their home and let them sort it out now. It sounds like they are going into their adolescence stage and asserting dominance to me.
 
You've had lots of really good advise. I would like to add that it's not a good idea to seperate boars again once the bonding process has started, they just go right back to the beginning again each time and it confuses them, it will make any chance of bonding them more difficult. Don't panic over rumblestrutting and grumbling it's normal boar behaviour especially in youngsters. Mine do it every evening, I've a pair squeeking, rumblestrutting and grumbling as I type this they are approx. 9 months.
 
I echo the fact that boars will rumblestrut at each other frequently - I have a pair at a year old, both very laid back with each other, and they still constantly rumblestrut at each other. Young boars can be a bit ridiculous like that, I'm not convinced they don't just like the sounds they make.

As long as they're not fighting/drawing blood, the bonding process should be allowed to continue, however harsh it may seem. The thing now is to stick to the dominance as it shows - move the dominant pig in and out of runs, cages, carriers etc first. Helping to reinforce the hierarchy can only help your boys out.
 
Thank you all. I didn't see the replies so I seperated them last night because they had a little fight while I was watching them and I didn't want it to escalate because I had to go to bed soon.
As soon as I can I'll do another rebonding session but not interfere unless they draw blood.
How long would you recommend I wait before I rebond them again?
Their cage is 3x2 c&c with a 2x2 loft but I think they had a little fight when they got back was because they're always on the same floor and it was too small so I'll try to extend the bottom floor and remove the top floor next time?
Thanks again. Genuinely don't know what I'd be doing without the great help given on this forum.
 
And yeah both my boars are about 1 year old and the less dominant one is really hormonal I guess because he's never been this aggressive before.
 
I put them together again and they have lunged at each other once but apart from that and exhibiting lots of normal dominant behaviour, they are okay. The less dominant one (who has starting all the fights) has a few tiny cuts on his nose. I haven't seperated them yet because I know I need to hold out until they draw blood but I'm just checking that this all okay.
 
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