New guinea pig pair advice (male/female)

StardustEcho

StardustEcho

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Hi! Today I bought a pair of what I thought to be female guinea pigs. They were off an ad on gumtree. There were around 13 guinea pig pups (6-8 weeks old), 1 boar and 3 sows when I got there. They were all housed in a very small two tier outdoor hutch and my heart just broke for them. My aim had been to get two girls from what I was told was an accidental pregnancy from owners who cared very much for their guinea pigs, but that did not seem to be the case at all (I'd also been told the sexes had been separated - not the case). I know the sensible thing would have been to leave and report them but I just had too overwhelming a desire to save some of these babies. Most were being sold to a pet store later that day, but there were two females without a home. Fully aware they were likely pregnant and might need some extra TLC, I got them anyway.

Upon arriving home I set them up in a separate room from our other piggies (a neutered male/female pair) to quarantine them for three weeks and booked an appointment with the vet for the earliest they could be seen - Wednesday. Then I decided to double check the sex. I should have done it when I got them, I know and I feel so stupid about it. One is a female, but from comparing to guides and our other pigs I'm sure the other is male. I'm pretty sure the poor girl is likely pregnant anyway but I separated them into two cages. They each currently have a 4x2 C&C cage and are communicating through the bars. They can't squeeze through to each other.

I'm looking for advice on how to proceed. My aim with the two females would have been to try and introduce them to my other two as a herd, and if it didn't work out, keep them as a pair. Now I'm not sure what to do. They're around 7 weeks old so neutering the male would be a long way off. I could see if the wee girl gets along with my two and try and find the boy a buddy but I'm just not sure what the best course of action is. Both my partner and I are already head over heels in love with both of them and I just want to do right by them. Thanks to anyone who's taken the time to read this and any advice is much appreciated. They've been wheeking at each other all night and my heart is breaking.
 
They've obviously come to a very caring home 💕 If the little guy is a little guy could he be neutered he'd be able to live with his sow? Long term I'm sure that's what he'd like best but as my boars have mainly come ready neutered I don't know about when you can consider this. Until then you'd have to keep bars between but as long as they can see, small and make contact with each other that's something. They'll be unsettled anyway in a new environment but as we all know, food helps!

If you're unsure of the sexes you could put up some pics of the bits we can have a look and give you some opinions. And there's a great sexing guide linked in above on the green bar.
 
:wel: And well done for taking them in.

Yes there is a chance the sow is pregnant. They will obviously need to remain separated from each other at least for the short term.
The upset of separation will calm down but you’ll need to stay strong through it and be sure that he cannot escape - make sure hides are away from the edge of the cage etc as boars will be very determined to get into a sow.

He can be neutered once his testicles descend at 4 months or so of age, but he will then need his six week wait before he could go back in the sow.
If she is pregnant then the timing would mean any pups would come along before he is safe to be able to bonded back in with her in any event so if you were to want to keep any pups, then you would need to see how many pups and the sexes of then before you can make any longer term living plans.
 
Thanks for the advice. I'm going to talk to my vet to see about the possibility of neutering when he's old enough. In the meantime we're hoping an ultrasound can be done to confirm if she is pregnant. He's been very determined to get to her but we've doubled up on cage grids and he can't get through. Fingers crossed they settle down soon and eventually can be reunited.
 
Pregnancy can’t be detected till quite a bit later on. Good luck. I’m sure you have a good setup. Ask more questions (here) if you need help ☺️🤞🏾
 
It looks like my options are to keep them separated till he's neutered or find them other buddies then. Not sure which is fairest for them, though they're both happily wheeking, popcorning and munching on hay just now. I think I'll chat to my vet on Wednesday and in the meantime they do seem fairly happy. They've both been named now, Berry is the wee girl and Kino is our boy. Thanks for all your help!
 
It’s difficult to make decision unless you know what sexes the pups are assuming you would keep the pups. Boars can only be kept in pairs and only one neutered boar kept with sows so getting them new friends now could mean you end up with multiple cages if you cant make suitable pairs and groups going forward
 
It is a tough decision. On one hand, they’re happy with company through a divider. On the other, they’d do well with a piggy to share space with. But then if she is pregnant, you’d want to see what you end up with! I don’t envy you.
 
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