Housing Male and Female Guinea Pigs in the same room?
- Thread starter WWDrew
- Start date
Siikibam
Forum Donator 2022/23
It is possible. The things you have to bear in mind are that boars who haven’t grown up around sows can become excited by the presence of their scent. And it can also cause a breakdown in their bond, even if they can’t get to them. The second is that cages are secure. You’d be surprised how agile/cunning a boar can become in the presence of appealing sow pheromones 
The advice is to either house them at totally opposite ends of the cage or, if there isn’t enough room, to stack the cages with the girls downstairs. Their scent can’t travel up but it could travel downwards. And I would consider a lid and make sure the boys’ cage is secure.
I had my boys living upstairs from my girls when they were indoors. Still the same in their hutch actually.
The advice is to either house them at totally opposite ends of the cage or, if there isn’t enough room, to stack the cages with the girls downstairs. Their scent can’t travel up but it could travel downwards. And I would consider a lid and make sure the boys’ cage is secure.
I had my boys living upstairs from my girls when they were indoors. Still the same in their hutch actually.
Hi
The arrival of sows in a boars-only place will inevitably cause a big stir. Guinea pigs have a much finer nose and will perceive the sow pheromones.
If you can, keep any new sows in a different room; otherwise at a distance or on a different level (boars higher than sows because of the way pheromones travel) or with a big opaque divider higher and larger than the cage to prevent strong sow pheromones when they come into season from setting off your boys and potentially cause a fall-out if there are any underlying issues between them - it can happen even in adult pairs.
Chapter 3 in our Boar guide deals with all the dos and don'ts around boars; inclusing the introduction of sows into a room; the link also contains a chapter on neutered boars and what neutering does and does not (it mainly 'does not' in guinea pig boars): A Comprehensive Guide to Guinea Pig Boars
Boars growing up around sows or are introduced into a sow/mixed gender room while still sub-teenage produce a calming compound that makes a huge difference. A very strong season can still mean a short term divider in the boar cage and a re-intro on neutral ground once tempers have settled down, but it doesn't usually lead to big fights and fall-outs.
A single boar can live next to sows with interaction through the bars (he has nobody to fight and fall out with) as long as he cannot climb out, jump over or wiggle though any bars or grids. A traditional cage is better or you will otherwise need to cable-tie any grids we well as create a lid on the boar side otherwise in order to prevent any accidents with full boars or neutered boars that have not sat out their full 6 weeks post-neutering op wait. Keep in mind that it is usually the pheromones of a sow coming into her season that trigger the full athletic abilities and determination of a boar - and they are truly impressive!
Free Ranger
Forum Donator 2023/24
and a little PS - even if your males are neutered it won't make a difference to their behaviour. And even two neutered males can't be kept together in with sows... just before you start phoning the vet for a quote!
Good luck finding a solution x
Good luck finding a solution x
Bluebell
Junior Guinea Pig
I've got boars and sows in the same room, mostly next to each other, BUT they have come from balanced rearing and so are used to living normally,and I would credit the way they have been reared with their lack of behavioural problems, more than how I keep them, as them being all indoors is far from ideal. I doubt I would have the same succes with keeping them this way had they originated from the pet trade.
The more I hear of terrified, unhandled badly reared youngsters being sold far too young the more I am amazed that they manage to grow into normal adults!
So imho it's totally possible, but depending on how the individuals have been reared.
The more I hear of terrified, unhandled badly reared youngsters being sold far too young the more I am amazed that they manage to grow into normal adults!
So imho it's totally possible, but depending on how the individuals have been reared.
Tnoz
Forum Donator 2023/24
I have one set of boys above one set of girls, on one side of the room and same on opposite side, it works for me, good luck and hope you find the solution for you
Beliboskop
New Born Pup
Hi there. I am very interested to find out more about the way that female guinae pig pheromones travel, i.e. can't travel upwards. Do you have any idea where I can read up more about this please? Google isn't very helpful when I try to research this. Many thanks in advance
Beliboskop
New Born Pup
Hi there. I'm very interested in finding out more about the way female guinae pigs pheromones can't travel upwards. Google is very unhelpful on this topic! Please may I ask where you got this information from and where I might read up on it? Many thanks in advanceIt is possible. The things you have to bear in mind are that boars who haven’t grown up around sows can become excited by the presence of their scent. And it can also cause a breakdown in their bond, even if they can’t get to them. The second is that cages are secure. You’d be surprised how agile/cunning a boar can become in the presence of appealing sow pheromones
The advice is to either house them at totally opposite ends of the cage or, if there isn’t enough room, to stack the cages with the girls downstairs. Their scent can’t travel up but it could travel downwards. And I would consider a lid and make sure the boys’ cage is secure.
I had my boys living upstairs from my girls when they were indoors. Still the same in their hutch actually.
Hi there. I'm very interested in finding out more about the way female guinae pigs pheromones can't travel upwards. Google is very unhelpful on this topic! Please may I ask where you got this information from and where I might read up on it? Many thanks in advance
Since there is generally no wind/air movement indoors, there is simply less opportunity for a pheromone plume to be carried around more and especially upwards before it inevitably drifts to the ground.
I am sure that there is more new research but you will have to do that yourself.
Long term practical ownership experiences from our forum members have however practically borne out that keeping boars above sows works better in terms of the risk of them being riled up when coming into contact with seasonal female pheromones than the other way around.
Our tips in term of boars and sows and what works: A Comprehensive Guide to Guinea Pig Boars (see chapter 3)
Are you planning to add sows to a boar room or are you planning to introduce boars to a sow room? And what age are your boars and sows?
If you have concerns, then please try to keep boars-only pairings in another room to any sow or mixed pairings with either a neutered boar or a spayed sow. Or just stick with more of the same gender.
PS: Could you please in the future start your own new thread with your question instead of reviving an old thread, which can lead to confusion and misleading answers. We are no part of social media and have a 1 thread = 1 case rule to help us provide ongoing personalised support whenever needed. Thank you.