Hello - New And Need A Guinea Pig Translator!

[Katiedid]

I had some wonderful help on the new board and I'm pleased to say things are getting better.

By way of background I have 2 one year old boars (neutered - I know this doesn't change behaviour I'm mentioning it FYI in case we do separate them as they can go in with girlies).

Dozy - weighing in at 1180g Jet weighing in at 830g (he has put on 50g since we got him - I'm saying this as I think this is where the problems stem from - I think Jet was starving). They are rescues from a heard of 6 boars kept together.

Dozy's ears are ragged. Dozy shows 'I've had enough, I need a wee, don't stroke me' with a nip.

When they arrived they they were terrified and fought. Jet got a few nips from Dozy which resulted in a few scabs. We have had them 2 weeks and no new scabs have appeared in 12 days. That said Dozy has twice removed fur from Jet.

They rumble and teeth chatter if one goes near another's food or igloo but otherwise potter around each other.

Now the translation that I need. As Dozy nips Jet (Dozy nips everyone - gently) I had presumed he was dominant. Dozy also follows Jet about - which Jet does not appreciate. But watching them Jet chatters and Dozy lowers his head and does the quiet wheek which I have read is the 'ok you are boss' sign. Last night they were having lap time and Jet was on hubby's knee. Dozy went across and snuggled in with Jet. Dozy wasn't as relaxed as Jet - Jet was sprawled out - but clearly they loved the comfort of each other. They were quietly gently making noises and looked really happy. Then Dozy needed to poop so 'nipped' at Jet (no teeth just a head jerk around) I picked Dozy up and took him home where he promptly pooped and looked much happier.

Why does Dozy show the submissive behaviour but still nip? He is the more nervous of the two and I think he may have been treated badly by his last owners and bullied within the group of boars. If this is the case as he gains confidence in us as his owners and feels safer will he nip less? Will something like a dog diffuser (which I have read can sometimes help piggies) help Dozy to feel less stressed?

I still haven ruled out separating them but they do look for each other Dozy in particular, when the other is not there. It seems a shame to separate if the behaviour is out of fear - but any more bites or an escalation of the aggression and I will.

Kate

 

[VickiA]

I'm not very experienced with boar behaviour, as have always had sows until I adopted a NB last year. There are very experienced boar keepers on here who may be able to answer your questions. To me they sound like they are getting on ok, and even in my pairs there is occasional nipping, rumbling and posturing. I think as long as they have enough space to get away from each other and there is no full on fighting then it may be ok. But as I say I'm not v experienced with boars.

 

[lauraboara]

I think that you are right to be thinking about what the boys have been through in terms of their behaviour now and you need to give them a little more time to settle down. It may well be that Dozy is the more submissive one but it sounds as though they are still establishing their hierarchy and also still getting to used to their new home, you, different smells etc - lots of new information to cope with. Just because Dozy gives a warning nip, does not mean that he is dominant - different boars use different strategies to get their point across! I have a 'submissive' boar Thorn who will generally back down over most things but he always gets his favourite bed to sleep on and will even use spraying wee (often a sow technique!) to ensure that happens! It is not always clear cut.

You sound as though you are observing them closely which is great. Keep checking them both for wounds - including under the chin which can be place for bites. Very loud teeth clattering and lunging is a big warning so remain alert as they get used to one another. You mention igloos - I would ditch those for now - i think Wiebke suggested hideys with entrance and exit in another thread for you? Or a hidey can be a pegged towel or piece of fabric so that there are no really 'walls' to get blocked by.
Let us know how they get on.

 

[Katiedid]

Thanks. The igloos are gone - sorry lazy term. The behaviour is the same for any hiding place - wooden stick arch, Capri sun box open at both ends, open topped snuggle bed.

They have played quite happily today so far (I'm about to do floor time as I'm in for a few hours). I forgot to mention that although I had some enrichment in the cage I've upped that so they have tubes of hay bags of veg and tubes lined with spinach that they need to work at.

I have got a pet diffuser to see if that helps too.

 

[piggyfan]

I think a pet diffuser may not be good for guinea pigs.

 

[Maddykins]

Dozy sounds a lot like Martin, one of my boars. I have two and Martin's behaviour is a lot like Dozy's and Martin is definitely not the dominant one. He bites (very hard!) when he gets scared or wants to be put down/left alone or whatever, he's much more shy and skittish than our other boy. He also follows my other boy around when feeling a bit scared for example when I sit in the cage at first he will follow Nelson around closely behind him, and when they first go out for floor time he follows Nelson around then too or if there's a sudden loud noise he'll run towards Nelson to hide behind him/follow him around. Nelson is generally ok with this but sometimes gets annoyed at Martin for getting in his way and will rumble at him a bit. They've never had a proper fight but Nelson is the only one who rumbles, Martin won't rumble back he just makes 'i'm not happy' squeaks and then they both go back to whatever they were doing before. When one of them is on my lap and the other in the cage if my partner's not in they always seem a bit lost, they eat together fine from one bowl, and usually sleep near each other, they also groom each other a little bit from time to time so I know they love each other really. Mine were rescues too but just from a family whose children had got bored with them - they were kept in alright conditions, but I imagine had been handled badly by the kids hence why neither of them like being held and both bite if you try to pick them up and you miss. I'm hoping this will change the longer they are with us but basically just saying although our two boars definitely 'bicker' sometimes like yours, they still exhibit signs that they like being together. My advice is just keep a close eye on them when you can and hopefully things will work out fine and they'll settle down as they settle in to their new home.

 

[Katiedid]

Things are still quite calm. They seem to be sorting out hierarchy. I think lauraboara you are right they have different dominance for different things. Jet seems to be bed and Dozy food. However Dozy is the most skittish so looks to Jet for reassurance.

Last night I heard the most amazing thing. During their floor time I cleaned their cage and put in veg bags etc. About two hours after I had put them back I was in the kitchen (they are in the dining room with an open arch between that and the kitchen) and I heard wheek, wheek, wheek. I though something was wrong and went over. Nope they were fine and delighted to find that one of the bags still had veggies in!

I also snuck downstairs last night and found Dozy sprawled out asleep in the cage - nowhere near a hide box!

I hadn't realised when we got them but they had spent at least a month at the rescue - in a room where there was no through traffic so although in a quieter room being in a home must be a big difference to them.

 

[Jackrorabbit]

Thanks. The igloos are gone - sorry lazy term. The behaviour is the same for any hiding place - wooden stick arch, Capri sun box open at both ends, open topped snuggle bed.

They have played quite happily today so far (I'm about to do floor time as I'm in for a few hours). I forgot to mention that although I had some enrichment in the cage I've upped that so they have tubes of hay bags of veg and tubes lined with spinach that they need to work at.

I have got a pet diffuser to see if that helps too.

I found that Capri sun boxes are a big hit with my pair, both ends open of course. It's a race course pits stop often.