Neutering just one of our piggies - will it affect bonding?

[sbenbow]

Our guinea pigs are both well endowed males. One is 5 years, the other about 3.5 years (a rescue).

They got off to a rocky start but are now well bonded after 15 months. Our rescue piggies is (mostly) the dominant one.

Our rescue piggy may have to undergo surgery for a cyst behind his nipple and we were wondering about getting him neutered at the same time (as he will be under anaesthetic anyway).

The primary reason is that he is skittish and nervous and not easy to bond, so when (hopefully a long time) our older guinea pig passes away we want to be able to try rebonding him with either a boar or sow to increase his chances.

But we don't know if just one boar being neutered will affect the current bond between the two piggies.

Does anyone have any experience? I'd love to hear your feedback.

 

[Piggies&buns]

Neutering will not change anything in their current relationship. It doesn’t change their behaviour or their ability to bond at all. All neutering does is prevent pregnancy.

 

[Swissgreys]

The main thing to bear in mind is that if the boys are separated during the operation, then it would be best to fully rebound them on neutral territory when they are reintroduced.
Often a piggy who has undergone a medical procedure will also smell a bit different, so it is always good to be careful when reintroducing, particularly as you say they got off to a bit of a rocky start.