my two males (3 months, twins) started fighting out of the blue.

P

paz50

New Born Pup
Joined
Jan 23, 2021
Messages
16
Reaction score
3
Points
45
Location
Israel
hi, i posted about three months ago that my beautiful female guinea pig gave birth to three healthy pups. they are 3 months old today, and the two boys (who are living in a cage with another male) got in a fight today. i took them out sepretly and now they're silent. what does this mean? is there anything i can do to prevent future fights?
 
A successful bond comes down to character compatibility so if piggies have had a full on fight, rolling around causing injuries then it means they no longer like each other and they must be separated permanently.

However, as they are reaching their teens, keeping three boars together will cause problems. Boars must be kept in pairs only once they become teenagers.
You will need to work out which two get on best and keep them together as a pair. The one who is then single, will need to be kept in a separate cage but be alongside them others for company through the bars only

Adding More Guinea Pigs Or Merging Pairs – What Works And What Not?
 
I have five piggies. I cannot afford a third cage. Isn't there anything else I can do?
 
:agr: @Piggies&buns has given you the best advice. They absolutely cannot stay together and you must work out the pairs. I have several boars and can agree that boar trios never work.

I have two boar pairs and a single boar (but he is older). Your boys are getting into their hormonal teenage months which is why you’re seeing this now.

You will need to make space for all of the boys to live in pairs. But be prepared, fall outs can still happen as they go through their hormonal stage till around 15 months old. There’s no guarantee that bonds can last.
 
I’m afraid there is nothing you can do. The piggies make their decision that they don’t like each other which results in them having fights.
If you let them continue to live together, then the fights are likely to escalate - boar trios have a very high failure rate. The space you need to keep three boars together is also very large - a cage covering at least three square metres but even having a large enough space will not make them like each other.
 
You can’t leave them together. They’ve decided they don’t like each other and nothing you can do will change that unfortunately.

How are your cages arranged? Could the singleton live next to the sows and you can perhaps (if possible) get him neutered (once testicles have descended) and bond him with the sows after six weeks?

Or is there an option to surrender one pair?
 
:agr: Neutering, having the post op wait and then trying to bond the single boar back in with the sows is a good option if at all possible. It is only the longer term option though - right now, they need to be permanently separated, you would need to wait until the single piggy was old enough to be neutered and then even post neuter, he would need to wait for six weeks before he could be attempted to be bonded with the sows, as he would still be fertile for those first six weeks post op.
You will need to ensure the cage is big enough for a neutered boar and two sows (180x60cm). Depending on what type of cages or space you have got, then you can maybe stack the cages - either using c&c cages, or by putting a cage on the table (it would be best to keep the sows at the bottom their pheromones do not cause problems for the two boars who do remain together - however boar pairs who are used to sow pheromones may be less affected, by it is not a guarantee. You would therefore need to be careful to not transfer sow smells onto your boar pair)

A Comprehensive Guide to Guinea Pig Boars
Boars: Teenage, Bullying, Fighting, Fall-outs And What Next?
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top