PLEASE help

[Fam L]

We just rehomed our guinea pig because my husband who was the only one to spend time with him now works outside the home now and can’t spend time with him. But he’a been alone his whole life. We just heard from the people and apparently he really hurt (big bite) another one of their pigs and the new owner when she tried to separate them.
I don’t know what to do because if he comes back here he will just be alone in my basement. Is he a lost cause for trying to rehome him?
He’s been spoiled with food and a good sized cage but not socialized. Even with us we don’t spend enough time with him.

 

[Scooter Pie]

Hugs! This is hard. There's a lot that could be going on...do you know anything about how they went about bonding him with the others? Right there I'm going hmmm...they have multiple boars and added him? A lot could go wrong (I'm no expert, I have girls but spend a lot of time reading about bonding and 3 boys are known to be very tough).

So no, I don't think he's a lost cause! So many factors could be at play. Hang in there! But if you bring him back, he'll be safe at least till you figure out the next step.

 

[Siikibam]

I’m sorry to hear it didn’t go well. How old is he? Bonding can be tough, even for girls. As well as that, it’s suggested that one never puts their hand in to separate warring piggies. If a piggy hasn’t been with others they may not know how to behave and so sometimes it may take a few goes to find the right friend.

Are they able to keep him in a separate cage alongside their other guinea pigs? If not, and he is brought back to you, I would suggest you surrender him to a rescue if that’s possible. I know they’re few and far between in US. Or you could speak to your vet and see if they could help you with rehoming.

Another alternative is you keep him and get him a friend he can either live alongside or share a cage with. If there is a rescue, perhaps you could take him there to be bonded with another boar.

I hope you find something that works for everyone.

Moody Guinea Pigs: Depression, Bullying, Aggression, Stress, Fear and Antisocial Behaviour

Guinea Lynx :: US Guinea Pig Rescue and Shelter Organizations

 

[Piggies&buns]

I’m sorry to hear this.

I can only agree with the others.

If he has not been with other piggies before, then he will never have learnt how to be a piggy socially so being put into a cage with another would have probably resulted in a lot of fear aggression. He possibly and simply didn’t know what to do and panicked.
Obviously this is only a guess from the information we have.
It doesn’t mean he can never have a friend but it does mean it may not be easy.
In these kinds of situations the answer is often living in a cage alone but side by side with another piggy. That way they can both interact but with bars separating them at all times, and so he doesnt have to attempt to form a hierarchy or share a territory.

Also If he was tried to be put with several other boars then a fight is pretty much inevitable even without a piggy being fear aggressive. More than two boars together is usually a recipe for disaster with more than one other boar than that would.

Moody Guinea Pigs: Depression, Bullying, Aggression, Stress, Fear and Antisocial Behaviour
Single Guinea Pigs - Challenges and Responsibilities