My Guinea Pigs Drew Blood

[XxCavyLover123xX]

My two boars have hit the age were they are always fighting. They are 4 months and I have been told it goes on for 4-12 months is this true? and can they ever live together again? One of them has a scab on his back which was bleeding he is also limping he has a cut on his leg so he is now inside on newspaper. My other has a cut on his head and back. They don't seem to be crying. also everytime I do put them together they 1 starts trying to mount the other so he turns back to nip him and they start fighting. will this ever stop?

 

[Belinda Shute]

hi. Normally once they have drawn blood you cannot put them back together as they will just carry on fighting and it will just get worse. I think you will have to split them permanently to be honest. It might be worth thinking of pairing each of them with a rescue piggie. Have a look on this forum for ones that are near you. They will also be able to give you any advice.

Hope that this helps you.

xx

 

[Guinea pig slave]

Oh dear - I feel for you but it does sound as though they need to be separated
Have a read of this, it may give you some good pointers if you wish to attempt to rebond:

http://cavyspirit.com/sociallife.htm

Not all piggies like each other - I had to split two girls for fighting before any blood was drawn and kick our plan B into place.
It is nerve racking and I hated myself for weeks after although the piggies are fine in their own little dynamic groups, it did involve us taking the newbie sow dating to choose her own friends |)

 

[XxCavyLover123xX]

I doubt we will put them back together again we have already been looking for a new hutch because we want them to be both exactly the same. we still get them out for lap time and they are ok although they always seem to smell does anyone know why? Also although I REALLY would take in rescue piggies I don't have the money or space for extra ones and I doubt any one would like the noise all 4 would make. Thank you for replies I take all of them into consideration!

 

[Wiebke]

Boys smell of testosterone...

I am sorry, but it is not looking very good for your boys making it together.

If you can't afford to double your number of piggies (which not everybody can), you can either keep them next to each other with interaction through the mesh or you could contact the Potteries Rescue in Stoke-on-Trent. They are your closest recommended rescue. They do boar dating - perhaps they can take one boy in exchange for rebonding the other with a more congenial companion of his own choice? That way, you will give the boy that will stay at the rescue the best chance of finding a good mate and a loving home himself. I am aware that no solution is an ideal one!

Unfortunately, neutering is only an option if you are planning to bond each boy with a girl, but they are at the moment still a bit young for it and they will face another 6 weeks post op wait before they are safe to put with a sow. You will also need to find a good and experienced vet in order to minimise the rather common risk of post op complications, which can get expensive.

 

[JohnnyH]

I had a similar thing with 2 boars, one biting the other.

We got a Fernplast 140 and put in a divider, and then gave them supervised "play time" on a rug in the hall. This started with 10 mins together, and gradually extended to an hour.
Finally I let them spend a couple of hours in the fernplast without the cage on - and this we did each day for a week.

Since Friday they have now been in the Fernplast 140 without a divider, and there has been nothing but a bit of pushing and chasing and general playing.

There are two of everything, pigloos, food dishes, water bottles etc... when they have had enough of each other they go to what was their own pigloo for peace.

They get their supervised playtime each day, but now I am getting more confident that they can share the hutch and run that await them out on the lawn.

It has taken alot of patience, but it all seems worthwhile.

PS - one is now approx 5 months and the other 4 months.

Good luck and hope you can get them happy.