Help 2 Become 5

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TTT

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Hi we bought two gorgeous piggies from a local pet shop in January. We were told they were both female and about 12 weeks old. They settled quickly and all was well until we realised one was pregnant. We quickly then discovered that we had one male and one female. Fast forward on several weeks, we now have a neutered male living contentedly with a 5 week old baby male and mum is with her 2 female babies. They are thankfully all very healthy. We have found a good home for the 2 baby girls and they leave next week. Our dilemma is now what we do with the other3. We really do not have space for 2 large indoor cages. My son really wants to keep all 3 but this would mean neutering the baby boy and know we are several months away from having them all together. Also not sure if they will all get on. Any thoughts appreciated. We live in the north east of England. Thanks
 
Hello, welcome to the forum :)

Right. Sorry about the unexpected pregnancy, unfortunately it does happen, really pleased all went smooth and Mom and babies are okay - well done you :)

So you have found a home for the two baby piggies 2 girls and are keeping 2 boars and Mom - yes? This unfortunately will not work and would be a disaster - two boys and a girl will not live together in harmony - The boys will fight over mom even if both are neutered. It is always one boar with a group of sows never two boars and sows....

You are going to end up with two groups unfortunately and would have to find mom a friend to live with as it stands.

I am tagging in @Wiebke for any advice she may have.
 
TTT said:
Hi we bought two gorgeous piggies from a local pet shop in January. We were told they were both female and about 12 weeks old. They settled quickly and all was well until we realised one was pregnant. We quickly then discovered that we had one male and one female. Fast forward on several weeks, we now have a neutered male living contentedly with a 5 week old baby male and mum is with her 2 female babies. They are thankfully all very healthy. We have found a good home for the 2 baby girls and they leave next week. Our dilemma is now what we do with the other3. We really do not have space for 2 large indoor cages. My son really wants to keep all 3 but this would mean neutering the baby boy and know we are several months away from having them all together. Also not sure if they will all get on. Any thoughts appreciated. We live in the north east of England. Thanks
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Hi and welcome!

I am very sorry for your saga and your dilemma!

You can either have ONE neutered boar living with any number of sows or have two boars living as a pair, but you cannot have two boars living with a sow; the latter is a recipe for disaster and bound to end up in fights when it comes to mating time, especially once your baby boy's teenage hormones are kicking in!
As soon as you have got two boys and a number of sows, any solution that involves three guinea pigs or more unfortunately means two groups. :(

I appreciate from my own experience with unplanned babies that it is never easy to decide which piggy/piggies to let go and you will always feel a twinge and a measure of regret of having had to choose between them...

You could consider having two cages on top of each other (I have got C&C cages on a cheap Ikea tables that fit nicely into a ground floor pen so the ground floor pen is getting plenty of light and is fairly easy to access), but you would need to find a companion for either the son or mum if you were two keep both boars and mum.

Your best bet for a safe solution whichever way round would be to contact one of these two good rescues in the Northeast and to speak to them in order to figure out the best solution for you and your guinea pigs. They are on our list of recommended rescues and we can guarantee that you are in safe and experienced hands with either (and so will any piggies you surrender):
North East Guinea Pig Rescue in South Shields: NEGPR Home Page or NEGPR - North East Guinea Pig Rescue Adoption Page
Tees Valley Guinea Pig Rescue: Tees Valley Guinea Pig Rescue
 
Welcome to the forum

Sorry that you have been sold a mis-sexed pair and have ended up having to neuter dad and finding yourself with 3 babies. As an aside have the pet shop paid your vets fees or a contribution towards them as that is the least they can do for you.

:agr: with the posts above that sadly you cannot keep dad, mum and the son as a trio- it cannot work with 2 boars and one sow even if both boars are neutered. The suggestions above are the best ones in the interests of your piggies.
 
Many thanks for the advice.

Spoke to Tees Valley Rescue yesterday and they were wonderful. Our baby boy is top of the waiting list and I was reassured that he will be in the best of hands. We will be very sad to see him go as he is the most gregarious of the babies and is having lots of fun with his dad, but I know it is for the best.
 
TTT said:
Many thanks for the advice.

Spoke to Tees Valley Rescue yesterday and they were wonderful. Our baby boy is top of the waiting list and I was reassured that he will be in the best of hands. We will be very sad to see him go as he is the most gregarious of the babies and is having lots of fun with his dad, but I know it is for the best.
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@Stewybus is amazing at Tees Valley rescue your little one will be in best of hands. Hard decisions but you have done the best for your piggies
 
This baby boy is coming to live at Tees Valley Guinea Pig Rescue tomorrow & coincidently we have a similar aged solo boy coming here tomorrow or Thursday so neither will need to be alone if they both get on well with each other :) xx
 
Tak is now at the rescue & with the other baby boy who arrived about 45 minutes later, the other boy didn't have a name so we called him Zak. Normally we would quarantine them but as the both came from really good homes and were born because of pet shop ignorance we've put them straight together & they're just like a pair of brothers. Tak is just 9 days older than Zak. They will now be kept at least a fortnight before being offered for adoption. @TTT Tak & Zak 2016-03-23a.webp Tak & Zak 2016-03-23b.webp
 
Many thanks. They look very happy and i hope you find a new home for them soon.

It seems very quiet here this evening without 3 squeaking babies. The 2 parents seem to be getting on very well, which is a relief!
 
Mam & Dad should get back to been a bonded pair fairly quickly. The boys have settled in really well Tak is about 80g heavier than Zak but no one seems to be boss. They've been popcorning all round the cage x
 
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Here's an update on Tak & his new best friend Zak. They've both gained weight since Wednesday & getting along like a pair of brothers. Lots of popcorning & they both like climbing on top of the cardboard box that Tak is peping his head out of x @TTT

Tak & Zak 2016-03-26.webp
 
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