Spayed female or young neutered male for single boar?

[ORS]

Hello,

I am having a dilemma with my guinea pigs at the moment and would love some advice -

I have 2 male guinea pigs that I have had to separate. I rescued my older one who is at least 3y but he is developing cataracts and I think my younger one (1y) saw this as an opportunity to try and become the dominant one. I knew that this was always going to be a risk and made sure I had enough space for 2 cages (both in 2x4 C&C cages with 2x1 top level). I had my younger one castrated last week and I am looking to get him a female in at least 6 weeks but I don't know what to do with my older pig.

I am worried about castrating him as he's a bit older and I would rather not put him through the stress but I also don't want to leave him on his own. The advice I had from a vet was to either get him a spayed female or young castrated male. I understand that spayed females are very rare but if anyone knows of any that would be great! I am also reluctant to get him another male as I'm worried the same will happen and I've heard mixed things about whether castrating actually changes their behaviour.

Does anyone have any advice?

 

[Piggies&buns]

In guinea pigs, neutering does not change behaviour. Therefore, getting your older boy a new castrated young male friend is not going to make any difference to the outcome of their relationship. It all comes down to character compatibility as to whether a bond works.
You are also right, in that finding a spayed female wouldn’t be easy, they don’t come up in rescues often. Worth asking around at rescues though as that would obviously solve all issues.

There are factors to consider:
- If he has a boar friend, upper levels don’t count towards the cage space and a 2x4 can be a little too small for two boars. A 2x5 is recommended.
- The other thing is that if your older boy has a male friend, but your younger boy has a sow, then there is a bit of a risk that the boar pair could fall out by smelling the younger piggy’s sow. Boars who are not used to sow pheromones can react strongly and it’s not recommended to introduce sows into the room where a boar pair are. Boars who have grown up around sows are less affected by it, but I’m assuming at 3 years of age, he isn’t used to sow smells?

So, to help mitigate that
- either keeping the boar/sow pair in a different room to the boar pair
- keeping them in stacked cages with the boar/sow pair in the bottom cage. Due to stacking and the boar pair ideally needing a 2x5, it would obviously mean increasing both cage sizes to two 2x5s.
- keeping them at opposite sides of the room.
Never handle the sow before handling the boar pair.
Basically, the aim is to keep sow smells away from the boar pair as much as possible.

People do manage to keep boar pairs and sows in the same room but it’s going to come down to how the boars react, how far apart you can keep them/stack cages etc.

The alternatives are to have a discussion with your vet about neutering him so he can also have a sow.
Or, keeping him single but living alongside the boar/sow pair. You would need to make sure the cages are very secure so he couldn’t escape and get in with the younger boar/sow pair (which would obviously cause a territorial related fight and/or a pregnancy).

If you are able to mitigate the risks of a boar pair smelling a sow, then the best way to find him a new boar friend is with the help of a rescue centre so they can help find a compatible piggy for him, and so you can receive the support of a rescue in the event of any issues.
(Of course, the best way to find a sow friend for your neutered boar is also via dating at a rescue centre).

 

[Wiebke]

Hi

I would recommend that you try and contact The Excellent Adventure Sanctuary in Nortampton. They may be able to help you.
The Excellent Adventure Sanctuary

PS: How old is your older boy? I know of 4-6 years old boars being successfully neutered and you have got one of the best piggy operating vets locally.

 

[ORS]

In guinea pigs, neutering does not change behaviour. Therefore, getting your older boy a new castrated young male friend is not going to make any difference to the outcome of their relationship. It all comes down to character compatibility as to whether a bond works.
You are also right, in that finding a spayed female wouldn’t be easy, they don’t come up in rescues often. Worth asking around at rescues though as that would obviously solve all issues.

There are factors to consider:
- If he has a boar friend, upper levels don’t count towards the cage space and a 2x4 can be a little too small for two boars. A 2x5 is recommended.
- The other thing is that if your older boy has a male friend, but your younger boy has a sow, then there is a bit of a risk that the boar pair could fall out by smelling the younger piggy’s sow. Boars who are not used to sow pheromones can react strongly and it’s not recommended to introduce sows into the room where a boar pair are. Boars who have grown up around sows are less affected by it, but I’m assuming at 3 years of age, he isn’t used to sow smells?

So, to help mitigate that
- either keeping the boar/sow pair in a different room to the boar pair
- keeping them in stacked cages with the boar/sow pair in the bottom cage. Due to stacking and the boar pair ideally needing a 2x5, it would obviously mean increasing both cage sizes to two 2x5s.
- keeping them at opposite sides of the room.
Never handle the sow before handling the boar pair.
Basically, the aim is to keep sow smells away from the boar pair as much as possible.

People do manage to keep boar pairs and sows in the same room but it’s going to come down to how the boars react, how far apart you can keep them/stack cages etc.

The alternatives are to have a discussion with your vet about neutering him so he can also have a sow.
Or, keeping him single but living alongside the boar/sow pair. You would need to make sure the cages are very secure so he couldn’t escape and get in with the younger boar/sow pair (which would obviously cause a territorial related fight and/or a pregnancy).

If you are able to mitigate the risks of a boar pair smelling a sow, then the best way to find him a new boar friend is with the help of a rescue centre so they can help find a compatible piggy for him, and so you can receive the support of a rescue in the event of any issues.
(Of course, the best way to find a sow friend for your neutered boar is also via dating at a rescue centre).

Thank you for your advice.

I did have a feeling keeping 2 males in a room with a female would be a bad idea. They are currently in stacked cages but I’m planning on making them both 2x5 anyway.

I think I might risk castrating him and get him a female too.

 

[Piggies&buns]

Thank you for your advice.

I did have a feeling keeping 2 males in a room with a female would be a bad idea. They are currently in stacked cages but I’m planning on making them both 2x5 anyway.

I think I might risk castrating him and get him a female too.

Do note that while they are single, their cages need to be both on the floor and side by side so they can fully interact between the bars at all times. Stacked cages remove all ability to interact so can can only be used when each piggy has their own live-in friend.

Keep us posted on what you decide.

 

[Wiebke]

Thank you for your advice.

I did have a feeling keeping 2 males in a room with a female would be a bad idea. They are currently in stacked cages but I’m planning on making them both 2x5 anyway.

I think I might risk castrating him and get him a female too.

For neutering, I would recommend having your older boy assessed by the Cat&Rabbit Care Clinic.

Another adult/older boar, provided you can rescue date, is also an option. As boars age the testosterone output gradually fizzles out and they become more like sows as they mellow around 4-5 years of age. Character compatibility and mutual liking are however crucial for any boar bond. However, most rescues have plenty of older single boars looking for a new home.