2 brothers 2 girls in one cage

[DougyMac79]

Hi there. New to this site.

We have 4 boys 4 girls across 3 cages.

We had 2 boys from pets at home last May and around September time we felt sorry for them and wanted to get them some girlfriends. We got 3 girls and then got our boys neutered.

Like idiots and guinea pig noobs we didn't realise the boys would fight over the girls and after a few days it became clear the boys bond was broken and we'd need another cage. So we separated them and all was fine. Then it turned out one of the girls was pregnant and we then ended up with 3 more in November last year. 2 boys and a girl. We hadn't waited long enough after neutering. Another schoolboy error.

After a month we separated the boys from mum and sister so now we are up to 3 cages.

2 newborn boys on their own upstairs
1 boy 2 girls in one cage downstairs
1 boy 2 girls in another cage downstairs

They all free roam, we rotate the boys downstairs hourly so they get plenty of time to run around and mix with all 4 girls.

We also have a giant pen in the garden divided in 3 so they can all have a secure environment to play outside in.

So naturally we feel bad for the 2 boys upstairs as they often hear the girls squeaking at feeding time. So we've bought the 2 boys down a few times and let them run around down here with the 4 girls whilst our other 2 boys are shut in. They all get on fine. Before we did this we also introduced the 2 upstairs boys to them in the garden through the bars and the boys behaved well.

So we've taken it up a level now. We've taken 2 girls upstairs into their cage and left them up there for around 6 to 8 hours a day for 3 days now. To our surprise, we've seen absolutely no aggression at all from either boy. We haven't risked leaving the girls overnight as we want to be able to fully monitor their time together as the first hint of aggression and we will put an end to this. We have CCTV in their cage so we have it on our coffee table ipad whilst we arent upstairs. Just to add that their cage is permanently open upstairs so they roam freely on the landing and 2 bedrooms so they have plenty of space.

We have noticed a massive difference in the behaviour of the 2 brothers upstairs compared to our 2 boys we got from pets at home. The 2 brothers seem very chilled out. The other 2 were constantly trying to mount and chasing each other around as soon as they met the girls.

Would it make any difference that the 2 brothers were neutered at 4 months and the 2 from pets at home were neutered at around 10 months? And that they're probably not brothers?

Should we have seen signs by now that the 2 brothers will fight? There hasn't been any hint at all. Does it take weeks sometimes? Sometimes can 2 boys and 2 girls living together work if they have plenty of space?

 

[DougyMac79]

Their outside pen

 

[DougyMac79]

Here they are playing with 2 girls in a neutral area.

 

[Bill & Ted]

please keep the newborn boys on their own. If you start introducing them to the girls there bond will break, it’s a no no and will cause fighting and the two boys to break up. If they aren’t neutered then they have the potential to impregnate all the females too. You have to wait 6 weeks post neuter before they are safe.
You also need to stop mixing all the piggies up. It causes no end of stress for them and you are risking them all falling out. It is extremely rare for two boys to share a cage with sows. keep them separate as you have them in three cages. It’s ok for them to meet up as neighbours through dividers, like you have in your garden
Your newborn boys are babies so need each others company but once they reach 4 - 14 months (the teenage stage) it’s a dangerous time for any bonded relationship. Hormones are at their highest which leads to many fallouts without the added stress of competing for females.

 

[DougyMac79]

Hi Bill & Ted

Thanks for your reply.

The boys are neutered over 6 weeks and are nearly 6 months old now.

I don't want their bond to break. They are great together. That is the priority. Keeping them together.

Does it take a while to see aggression? They seem so chilled with the girls. Almost like they're both asexual.

 

[Piggies&buns]

Welcome to the forum

We would discourage anybody from mixing non-bonded groups with each other , never to introduce and separate multiple times and don’t put piggies directly into the cages and territories belonging to another group.
All of these things simply go against piggies society and hierarchy function and run a real risk of causing issues at any point.
Introducing and separating causes stress as it causes them to see each meeting as a full on bonding session which never gets seen through to conclusion (bonding takes two weeks) .
Removing the girls from their respective boars and putting them with other boars also means you run the risk of breaking all those sow/boar bonds.
Putting piggies directly into the territory of other piggies is a huge no no.

Age of neutering in your case makes no difference to any type of behaviour. All neutering does is prevent pregnancy.
It’s only in German speaking countries which practise early neutering that changes in behaviour can be seen. These piggies are neutered before sexual maturity at 3 weeks of age - their hormones never get the chance to start.

No it doesn’t take a while for aggression to start in that sense. Their bond (and in fact the bonds between all your bonded groups) could break with absolutely no notice.
At 6 months old they are now coming to the highest hormone output and biggest test of their bond. They aren’t asexual.

Our advice will be to keep all three groups totally separate and to not reintroduce them to each other at any point.

Adding More Guinea Pigs Or Merging Pairs – What Works And What Not?

 

[fluffysal]

I have no advice just wanted to say what gorgeous piggies

 

[Bill & Ted]

Your piggies are gorgeous! I love your outdoor set up but you are playing “Russian roulette” with their bonds.

 

[Merab's Slave]

Welcome to the forum.
Your piggies are so cute.
Hope you find the forum helpful and supportive.