Male Trio? Neutering? Male herds?

[SydneySharkk]

So I’ve been talking to my friend who’s old classmate is trying to rehome their two male guinea pigs, for a few months now. They asked me several months ago (right after I got my two girls) and I was thinking about getting them but they never responded. Until like a week ago, and she told me they were both male. I ALSO found another ad for someone trying to rehome another male guinea pig in my area, and that ad has been up for several weeks. I’m tempted, but I want to know what you guys think about male trios, neutering one and putting them with the girls, or maybe adopting all three, and keeping 5 males together? Is that even possible? I have talked to my mom about this, we just think that they might fight if I put them together, and I don’t want that.

the two boys I have right now get along ok, they are father and son, Piggy is around 3 years old, and Chi Chi is almost 6 months. I wouldn’t say that they are bonded, I don’t know if that’s just because Chi Chi is going through a teenager thing, but do you think adding another male would help? They never sleep together, they show some signs of aggression when they get close to each other, and have gotten into a few scuffles (when they’re in a travel cage). I don’t know, everything seems fine right now, but I have the opportunity, the time, and the space to get more guinea pigs, and there are three in my area that need new homes so... thoughts?

 

[Piggies&buns]

Trios (or more) of males do not work. They have a 90% failure rate and result in fights and single pigs. Please do not do anything to disrupt the relationship between your current boar father and son pair. Do not keep any more than two males together.
If you wish to adopt more piggies then any more males need to be kept in pairs and kept separate at all times from all other Males. You can neuter one Male and put in with females after he has had his six week post neuter op wait. If you were to get another pair of males, then they would need to be kept in a separate room to your female pair. Males who are not used to the presence of females cannot be kept in the same room as females, as a pair of boys will fight over the girls (just from the smell of them) which would ruin the boys’ bond.

Adding More Guinea Pigs Or Merging Pairs – What Works And What Not?

As for your father and son pair. How big is their cage? A boar pair require a large cage of at least 150cm x 60cm. Lack of space leads to fall outs. I would imagine the issue is because your little one is a teenager and is trying out his dominance. It’s quite normal for piggies to not sleep together - my own boar pair don’t sleep together. As I say above though, do not add another Male to this pair, it absolutely will not help and will actually cause big problems.
You need to keep an eye on their behaviour. If any fights occur, then they will need to be permanently separated.

I’ll put some links in below which may help you

A Comprehensive Guide to Guinea Pig Boars
Boars: Teenage, Bullying, Fighting, Fall-outs And What Next?
Dominance Behaviours In Guinea Pigs

 

[SydneySharkk]

Trios (or more) of males do not work. They have a 90% failure rate and result in fights and single pigs. Please do not do anything to disrupt the relationship between your current boar father and son pair. Do not keep any more than two males together.
If you wish to adopt more piggies then any more males need to be kept in pairs and kept separate at all times from all other Males. You can neuter one Male and put in with females after he has had his six week post neuter op wait. If you were to get another pair of males, then they would need to be kept in a separate room to your female pair. Males who are not used to the presence of females cannot be kept in the same room as females, as a pair of boys will fight over the girls (just from the smell of them) which would ruin the boys’ bond.

Adding More Guinea Pigs Or Merging Pairs – What Works And What Not?

As for your father and son pair. How big is their cage? A boar pair require a large cage of at least 150cm x 60cm. Lack of space leads to fall outs. I would imagine the issue is because your little one is a teenager and is trying out his dominance. It’s quite normal for piggies to not sleep together - my own boar pair don’t sleep together. As I say above though, do not add another Male to this pair, it absolutely will not help and will actually cause big problems.
You need to keep an eye on their behaviour. If any fights occur, then they will need to be permanently separated.

I’ll put some links in below which may help you

A Comprehensive Guide to Guinea Pig Boars
Boars: Teenage, Bullying, Fighting, Fall-outs And What Next?
Dominance Behaviours In Guinea Pigs

Thanks for the response. The cage is a 4x2 cnc cage, they were in a Midwest before, but I switched them with the girls since I figured they’d like more space. Thanks

 

[Piggies&buns]

Thanks for the response. The cage is a 4x2 cnc cage, they were in a Midwest before, but I switched them with the girls since I figured they’d like more space. Thanks

Your boys should, in theory, be ok in a 2x4 c&c. They typically measure 150cm x 70cm. Sometimes though, boars need more room than that - it’s just going to be piggy dependent.
We recommend a 2x5 c&c for boar pairs on this site. I originally had my boar pair in a 2x4 but it was just not enough room for them, but both my boys were teenagers at the same time which made tensions worse.

 

[SydneySharkk]

Your boys should, in theory, be ok in a 2x4 c&c. They typically measure 150cm x 70cm. Sometimes though, boars need more room than that - it’s just going to be piggy dependent.
We recommend a 2x5 c&c for boar pairs on this site. I originally had my boar pair in a 2x4 but it was just not enough room for them, but both my boys were teenagers at the same time which made tensions worse.

Ok, I actually do have room to add on another foot, so I’ll try to do that sometime soon, thanks.