Advice on keeping a trio of males :)

Bungie bunnies

Bungie bunnies

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Hi sorry I’m new to this :)
I’ve recently adopted a group of 3 male guniea pigs I can’t pick them up until the lockdown has stopped but before bringing them home I’ve been doing a lot of research and I know keeping one neutered male and a few females would be the best option but because I’ve adopted a group of males I'm just looking on any advice or tips I could do to prepare and to prevent them from fighting before I pick them up one of them is a year and a half and the other two are brothers and nearly 8 weeks old the enclosure I have for them is 6ft 8inch x 3ft 4inch and a second level of approx. 4ft x 2ft - any advice would be much appreciated ! :) thank you
 
I am sorry to be the bearer of bad news but the chances of a trio of males making it into adulthood without falling out is practically zero.
I would advise you to seriously reconsider and maybe just take 2 of the 3.
The cage size you have is decent for a pair and this would be far more likely to succeed long term.
You don't say where you are getting these piggies from but you use the word 'adopted'.
Sadly any reputable rescue would be unlikely to offer to rehome a trio of males, particulary when two of the males have not yet hit their teenage years, when trouble will really start.
If it is a rescue it might be worth looking elsewhere for one with more responsible rehoming practices.

You may find the following information helpful:
A Comprehensive Guide to Guinea Pig Boars
Adding More Guinea Pigs Or Merging Pairs – What Works And What Not?
 
Swissgreys said:
I am sorry to be the bearer of bad news but the chances of a trio of males making it into adulthood without falling out is practically zero.
I would advise you to seriously reconsider and maybe just take 2 of the 3.
The cage size you have is decent for a pair and this would be far more likely to succeed long term.
You don't say where you are getting these piggies from but you use the word 'adopted'.
Sadly any reputable rescue would be unlikely to offer to rehome a trio of males, particulary when two of the males have not yet hit their teenage years, when trouble will really start.
If it is a rescue it might be worth looking elsewhere for one with more responsible rehoming practices.

You may find the following information helpful:
A Comprehensive Guide to Guinea Pig Boars
Adding More Guinea Pigs Or Merging Pairs – What Works And What Not?
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Thank you for the advice ! hopefully they won’t fight *fingers crossed * however the rescue did warn us but if necessary were willing to build another cage and separate them :)
 
The very best advice we can give you is not to collect this trio after the lockdown is over. No responsible rescue would let you adopt a trio of juvenile boars as the odds of success are so slim that it isn’t worth the risk. In your shoes I would only collect 2 of the 3. Please can you tell us which rescue it is who are planning to let you adopt a trio of boars?
 
They will almost certainly fight once they hit their teenage hormones. I've only ever seen one successful boar trio in my life and they were a 2 year old a pair of 1 and a half year olds. They were rehomed as a trio after being closely monitored at the rescue, most boar trios we split into a pair and pair up the singleton as there's usually a pair and an outsider being bullied (usually severely, with bites) . But this trio were so closely bonded we felt they shouldn't be split. However we've never seen anything like it before, their new owners are aware of boars and their dominance issues and are also keeping a close eye incase of any issues. These lucky boys now have half a room to call their own, so that they can have their own space if they wish.
 
Julie M said:
They will almost certainly fight once they hit their teenage hormones. I've only ever seen one successful boar trio in my life and they were a 2 year old a pair of 1 and a half year olds. They were rehomed as a trio after being closely monitored at the rescue, most boar trios we split into a pair and pair up the singleton as there's usually a pair and an outsider being bullied (usually severely, with bites) . But this trio were so closely bonded we felt they shouldn't be split. However we've never seen anything like it before, their new owners are aware of boars and their dominance issues and are also keeping a close eye incase of any issues. These lucky boys now have half a room to call their own, so that they can have their own space if they wish.
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Wow ! Thank you for the advice I’m just wondering the rescue also has a group of girls do you think I should adopt them instead and keep the older one of the boy trio and get him neutered? - thank you again for the great advice:)
 
VickiA said:
The very best advice we can give you is not to collect this trio after the lockdown is over. No responsible rescue would let you adopt a trio of juvenile boars as the odds of success are so slim that it isn’t worth the risk. In your shoes I would only collect 2 of the 3. Please can you tell us which rescue it is who are planning to let you adopt a trio of boars?
Click to expand...

Thank you for the great advice! The rescue were Rehoming the two young brothers on there own and the older one on his own but they had had them all together at the rescue because the brothers felt safer with an adult present but because of the cage size they asked us if we would Rehome all three now I’m wondering if it would be a good idea to adopt one of them and get him neutered as they also have a group of girls at the rescue ? - what do you think ? :)
 
Bungie bunnies said:
Wow ! Thank you for the advice I’m just wondering the rescue also has a group of girls do you think I should adopt them instead and keep the older one of the boy trio and get him neutered? - thank you again for the great advice:)
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The bonding would probably fare better with the older one and a younger one as then the 2 smaller piggies aren't hitting dominance at the same time. But you'd have to wait for the little One to be old enough to neuter and then another 6 weeks after neutering until he can go in with the girls.
 
You could do that. Just be aware you’d have to keep the boar separate until six weeks past neutering. You could then have them living next to each other until the time to bond comes.
 
Siikibam said:
You could do that. Just be aware you’d have to keep the boar separate until six weeks past neutering. You could then have them living next to each other until the time to bond comes.
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We were planning on doing something like that the rescue were getting him from is going to get him neutered so we’ll probably collect the girls and then once it’s been 6 weeks collect him and bond them :)
 
If he’s ok post neuter then I don’t see the harm in you taking him and putting him alongside them. 👍🏾
 
KathT said:
Just be aware that it isn’t a guarantee that your girls will accept the neutered boar after his 6 weeks is up. Make sure you follow the bonding guides to maximise your chance of success. And have a Plan B......!
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Yes of course! Thank you , have you got any good guides on bonding I’ve research it a lot but I just wanna get as much information as I can also have you bonded a neutered male with female if so what’s your experience? :)
 
Another option would be the rescue doing the bonding for you - you take the girls back once the male is six week post neuter and they can do it.
However given that they were also prepared to rehome 3 boars, maybe they aren't the most reliable.
Could you possibly let us know roughly where you are based, and also the name of the rescue you are dealing with?
It would help us to give more specific advice.
 
Bungie bunnies said:
Yes of course! Thank you , have you got any good guides on bonding I’ve research it a lot but I just wanna get as much information as I can also have you bonded a neutered male with female if so what’s your experience? :)
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There are bonding guides on this forum - look for the tab at the top of the page Guinea Pig Guides and there’s a bonding post with lots to read. And yes, I’ve had personal experience of bonding a neutered boar and sows. I got two sows who lived next door to Bruno, my neutered boar, for a couple of weeks and they seemed to get along fine. I then tried to bond them in a neutral pen and within 20 minutes it had failed. One of the sows hated Bruno and attacked him straight off (didn’t draw blood) so I thought I’d leave them a bit longer, but then the bond the two sows started to break, so I removed Bruno and left the two sows to settle - which thankfully they did. Otherwise I would have been left with three pigs needing separate accommodation! I did take Bruno to a rescue and he picked his own sows not long after that and they have settled nicely. So thats why you need a Plan B if you’re trying to bond them yourself. Doing it at a rescue is a much better option as you know they’re going to find friends they get on with - if you have a decent rescue that knows what they’re doing.
 
KathT said:
There are bonding guides on this forum - look for the tab at the top of the page Guinea Pig Guides and there’s a bonding post with lots to read. And yes, I’ve had personal experience of bonding a neutered boar and sows. I got two sows who lived next door to Bruno, my neutered boar, for a couple of weeks and they seemed to get along fine. I then tried to bond them in a neutral pen and within 20 minutes it had failed. One of the sows hated Bruno and attacked him straight off (didn’t draw blood) so I thought I’d leave them a bit longer, but then the bond the two sows started to break, so I removed Bruno and left the two sows to settle - which thankfully they did. Otherwise I would have been left with three pigs needing separate accommodation! I did take Bruno to a rescue and he picked his own sows not long after that and they have settled nicely. So thats why you need a Plan B if you’re trying to bond them yourself. Doing it at a rescue is a much better option as you know they’re going to find friends they get on with - if you have a decent rescue that knows what they’re doing.
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Okay :) thank you so much !
 
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