Two young males biting

[Hannahtoo]

So I got 2 male guinea pigs in November, I’ve had males before but a few years ago and we had to separate them due to bad biting. As they’ve matured they’ve been mounting each other, one more than the other. The one called Freddie is always moody, he will snap at Cody for even getting close to him and moan at him for just being there. As it was only mounting and a few arguments I didn’t worry about it but the other day they got into a bad fight, Cody had a bad tooth mark that was really deep and Freddie had 2 bite marks that weren’t as deep, as soon as this happened I separated them to make sure Cody’s wound healed properly. It’s been 4 days, I usually let them free roam in the living room as it’s safe too and they love it they’ll popcorn like crazy and it’s a big space, today I tried to let them remeet again but Freddie opened his mouth wide and went to jump at Cody and Cody was mounting him, lots of rumbling and teeth chattering so I took them away quick. I don’t want to have to keep them separate as they are always calling for each other and they did get along. What should I do. I could get a two floor cage to see if that’ll help but if they’re fighting outside their cage with loads of space I just don’t know what to do! I don’t know if it’s because Cody won’t back down as Freddie is definitely the more dominant one but Cody can also scare Freddie off.

 

[Siikibam]

Unfortunately once biting of that sort occurs and they get into a tussle then the bond is broken. I wouldn’t try to put them together again. A two floor cage also won’t work. Piggies are ground roaming and under normal circumstances their floor space should be met on one floor. Additional floors are a bonus but not included. For a bond to work there can only be one dominant pig. It sounds like they both want to be top pig.

Even though you’ve separated them they need to live next to each other so they can still have the interaction. It’s about more than sight (which isn’t the best anyway). They’ll each need to be in the minimum sized cage - 120x60cm.

Now you’ve separated them you can’t put them together at all - not for floor time and not for lap time either.

We’d love to see photos of your boys.

 

[piggieminder]

Bonds In Trouble
Boars: Teenage, Bullying, Fighting, Fall-outs And What Next?
I'm sorry you are going through this. I've just had two older boars who had lived together for 2.5 years fall out with no warning. They inflicted some very nasty injuries on each other, please don't risk letting your boars get together without a divider between them. If they are biting each other the bond is obviously broken and the consequences can be horrendous if they get into a bad fight like mine did. I have put a link to some useful threads for you.

 

[Hannahtoo]

Thank you for the information, I’ve read through it and I feel like they’re going through a hormonal stage 6 months ish and possibly a personality clash as by the looks of things Cody doesn’t want to back down. I’m going to put the two separate cages next to each other so they can communicate but I didn’t want to have to have two guinea pigs alone crazy how yours was at 2.5 years! I won’t let them out together for a while. Thank you again.

 

[Hannahtoo]

Do you know where is best to get that size cage? As I think mine are around 100cm. Cody is the ginger one and Freddie is the mainly brown one. I’m annoyed at them for not getting along

 

[Siikibam]

You can’t let them out together again at all. And you can’t make them get on. Just like humans, some don’t like each other but others do.

 

[Hannahtoo]

Are females less likely to fall out. Not saying I’ll get some but as this happened with my last boys too just wondered

 

[Bradshaw Piggies]

Are females less likely to fall out. Not saying I’ll get some but as this happened with my last boys too just wondered

Not always. Females have to be matched on personality also.

 

[Siikibam]

Not necessarily. I feel boys get a bad rep. As said above they have to be matched by character and nothing else. If they’re from a breeder or pet shop then it’s not as likely that this has been done. Teenage months are a true test of a relationship. For it to work in any case, there has to be one top pig and the other has to be willing to be underpig.

So if you have a pair of sows that don’t like each other then the chances of falling out is equal to that for boars. Sows can even become set in their ways as they get older.

 

[Hannahtoo]

So complicated isn’t it, I used to have 4 males, 1 of them could go with any of the 3 he was so lovely but the others clashed. They used to run around in our garden, as long as 1 one that got along with them all was out the others would leave each other alone but not in the cage so we had 3 cages

 

[Hannahtoo]

Such a shame they have to be split up but I know it’s best

 

[Siikibam]

It’s difficult to have a working trio or quartet of boars. Balancing the personalities is the issue, especially when more than one wants to be top pig. I think they usually work in larger groups but need LOADS of space.

It is a pity they fell out but living next to each other will still meet their need for companionship.

 

[Hannahtoo]

I appreciate the help you’ve given, at the moment they’re making me laugh, they were talking to each other through the bars and now they’ve fallen asleep next to each other through the bars. I know they still can’t be together but shows they still want company

 

[Siikibam]

Beware the laying by the divider. It can be a way of marking territory - ‘this is my spot’ so to speak! They’re little but their drama is better than tv

 

[Hannahtoo]

I didn’t think of that ahhh that makes sense so dramatic