Humping

[Lauziiedauziie]

I have four male guinea pigs, split into two pairs. Their cage is also a two tiered cage so the pairs rarely interact with each other (as two have a strong disliking for each other) They all live very peacefully however tonight has been a little weird.
I did their weekly deep clean, fed them and now BOTH pairs are acting exactly the same way at the exact same time by constantly chasing and humping each other, whilst high pitched wheeking.

I know a lot of this is normal male behaviour but has I have never seen this happen to all my pigs at once. Has anyone else?

They don't seem to be acting aggressively, no biting or teeth chattering. Just very... OTT

 

[Lauziiedauziie]

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[Wiebke]

Hi

How old are your boys? It is likely that the Spring hormones have hit with the current warm weather.

Our domesticated guinea pigs may have been bred out from their wild ancestor species (the montane guinea pigs which are still around) for 3000-6000 years and they can now breed at any time but the old instincts have not completely disappeared. The several South American guinea pig species have a distinct breeding season from Spring to Autumn while the fresh grass supply is plentiful. Boars can become distinctly frisky at this time of year but it thankfully doesn't lead to a fall-out in most cases.

Dominance Behaviours In Guinea Pigs

 

[Lauziiedauziie]

Hi

How old are your boys? It is likely that the Spring hormones have hit with the current warm weather.

Our domesticated guinea pigs may have been bred out from their wild ancestor species (the montane guinea pigs which are still around) for 3000-6000 years and they can now breed at any time but the old instincts have not completely disappeared. The several South American guinea pig species have a distinct breeding season from Spring to Autumn while the fresh grass supply is plentiful. Boars can become distinctly frisky at this time of year but it thankfully doesn't lead to a fall-out in most cases.

Dominance Behaviours In Guinea Pig

My boys are 3 years old, 2x 1 year olds & a 6 month old
Oh wow, that's really interesting, I never knew that about guinea pigs. Maybe that is the reason. Come to think of it, They have been generally a little more peppy than usual. Thank you for your comment

 

[weepweeps]

Spring fever is definitely “a thing”. Lots of forum members notice it.