Boar Bonding Question

[Fox_Trot24]

Hello! I am a new Guinea Pig owner and adopted two boars, Zack (1-2 yrs old) and Cody (6 yrs). Cody never loved with another Guinea pig before, but when I adopted him I figured to try getting him a friend, so now we have Zack

For the bonding process, I had them in a bathroom for a couple of hours where they ate hay, and chased each other, trying to hump.one another. Cody very loudly expresses himself vocally when Zack tries to hump him, or sniff him, and Zack moves away when Cody tries to hump him. After a few hours of this, I did move them to the new cage, and all night I could hear them chasing one another, doing the same thing and Cody being vocal about it. They do seem to take some small rests here and there to eat hay, drink, etc and then go back at it. They are in a 2x6 at the moment.

I'm sure hormones are high with this new living arrangement, and I don't believe any blood has been drawn or anything, but I guess I am trying to seek advice on how long this could go on for before they settle down, how do I know Cody isn't extremely stressed by the situation since he always lived on his own, and if there is any point where if the squealing and hump chasing doesn't stop (it seems like they try it every 10-15 minutes), what to do - if anything. Hopefully this all makes sense.

 

[Piggies&buns]

Welcome to the forum

This sounds like normal bonding at present
- they will be trying to establish who is dominant.

Squealing - that can be submission which is normal and actually what you want to see

How long have they been together now?
It is better to leave them in neutral territory for an entire day before moving them to the cage. When you move them, it is new territory and if they are not far enough into the bonding process before being moved then it causes new rounds of dominance - that is what you were seeing once you moved them to the cage.

It will take them two weeks to fully establish their bond, but provided they sort out dominance then it will settle down as times goes on. However it will not fully stop - humping and chasing is normal throughout life to enable them to maintain their bond.

If one appears to become isolated, weight loss occurs (weight checks should be done weekly as routine but more often if you have concerns). If the chasing and humping becomes so relentless that they aren’t being able to rest or eat then that is when you get concerned.
And of course if a full on fight breaks out then that is immediate and permanent separation

Make sure you only use hides which have two exits - you don’t want any dead ends where one piggy can trap the other

I have added some guides below which explains more about what you do and don’t want to see

Bonding and Interaction: Illustrated Bonding Dynamics and Behaviours
Reacting to group or territorial changes: Dominance and group establishment/re-establishment
Bonds In Trouble

 

[Wiebke]

Hello! I am a new Guinea Pig owner and adopted two boars, Zack (1-2 yrs old) and Cody (6 yrs). Cody never loved with another Guinea pig before, but when I adopted him I figured to try getting him a friend, so now we have Zack

For the bonding process, I had them in a bathroom for a couple of hours where they ate hay, and chased each other, trying to hump.one another. Cody very loudly expresses himself vocally when Zack tries to hump him, or sniff him, and Zack moves away when Cody tries to hump him. After a few hours of this, I did move them to the new cage, and all night I could hear them chasing one another, doing the same thing and Cody being vocal about it. They do seem to take some small rests here and there to eat hay, drink, etc and then go back at it. They are in a 2x6 at the moment.

I'm sure hormones are high with this new living arrangement, and I don't believe any blood has been drawn or anything, but I guess I am trying to seek advice on how long this could go on for before they settle down, how do I know Cody isn't extremely stressed by the situation since he always lived on his own, and if there is any point where if the squealing and hump chasing doesn't stop (it seems like they try it every 10-15 minutes), what to do - if anything. Hopefully this all makes sense.

Hi and welcome

It sounds like it is on the lively side but not on the aggressive one and the the humping is not truly excessive. It should settle down gradually within 2-3 days considering that Cody with his submission squeaking is not putting up any challenge to Zack.

It's just that Zack is currently having a hormone rush because of finding himself with another boar and in control and you need to wait until that runs out. If it clearly gets too much for old Cody, then put in a temporary divider for 2-3 hours or overnight to allow Cody some rest, otherwise you are better off to just letting them get on with it as possible and work it out of the system. But they have obviously bonded.

Bonding and Interaction: Illustrated Bonding Dynamics and Behaviours
A - Z of Guinea Pig Behaviours (see entry dominance behaviours)

 

[Fox_Trot24]

Welcome to the forum

This sounds like normal bonding at present
- they will be trying to establish who is dominant.

Squealing - that can be submission which is normal and actually what you want to see

How long have they been together now?
It is better to leave them in neutral territory for an entire day before moving them to the cage. When you move them, it is new territory and if they are not far enough into the bonding process before being moved then it causes new rounds of dominance - that is what you were seeing once you moved them to the cage.

It will take them two weeks to fully establish their bond, but provided they sort out dominance then it will settle down as times goes on. However it will not fully stop - humping and chasing is normal throughout life to enable them to maintain their bond.

If one appears to become isolated, weight loss occurs (weight checks should be done weekly as routine but more often if you have concerns). If the chasing and humping becomes so relentless that they aren’t being able to rest or eat then that is when you get concerned.
And of course if a full on fight breaks out then that is immediate and permanent separation

Make sure you only use hides which have two exits - you don’t want any dead ends where one piggy can trap the other

I have added some guides below which explains more about what you do and don’t want to see

Bonding and Interaction: Illustrated Bonding Dynamics and Behaviours
Reacting to group or territorial changes: Dominance and group establishment/re-establishment
Bonds In Trouble

They were in the neutral territory for about 6 hours total. I was hoping to do an all day event, but it's a bit hard in my household. If I were to move them back out of the cage, that would also start a new round right? But with it being in a neutral territory

Welcome to the forum

This sounds like normal bonding at present
- they will be trying to establish who is dominant.

Squealing - that can be submission which is normal and actually what you want to see

How long have they been together now?
It is better to leave them in neutral territory for an entire day before moving them to the cage. When you move them, it is new territory and if they are not far enough into the bonding process before being moved then it causes new rounds of dominance - that is what you were seeing once you moved them to the cage.

It will take them two weeks to fully establish their bond, but provided they sort out dominance then it will settle down as times goes on. However it will not fully stop - humping and chasing is normal throughout life to enable them to maintain their bond.

If one appears to become isolated, weight loss occurs (weight checks should be done weekly as routine but more often if you have concerns). If the chasing and humping becomes so relentless that they aren’t being able to rest or eat then that is when you get concerned.
And of course if a full on fight breaks out then that is immediate and permanent separation

Make sure you only use hides which have two exits - you don’t want any dead ends where one piggy can trap the other

I have added some guides below which explains more about what you do and don’t want to see

Bonding and Interaction: Illustrated Bonding Dynamics and Behaviours
Reacting to group or territorial changes: Dominance and group establishment/re-establishment
Bonds In Trouble

Yes, I only have 2 hides and they both have exits thankfully.

They've been in the same cage for about 12 hours now. They were in the neutral territory for about 6 hours.

So far, they are still able to give each other times to rest and eat thankfully. I wasnt sure with how long they were doing their dominance dance in the neutral area if it was going to stop even with a full day of being in there, I guess was my concern, as they both seem headstrong, but also if Cody was making submissive noises I wasn't sure if that is the case bc he would try to hump after? Unless thats him saying he doesnt like it? Guinea pig behavior is something....

Thank you for the resources as well!

 

[Fox_Trot24]

Hi and welcome

It sounds like it is on the lively side but not on the aggressive one and the the humping is not truly excessive. It should settle down gradually within 2-3 days considering that Cody with his submission squeaking is not putting up any challenge to Zack.

It's just that Zack is currently having a hormone rush because of finding himself with another boar and in control and you need to wait until that runs out. If it clearly gets too much for old Cody, then put in a temporary divider for 2-3 hours or overnight to allow Cody some rest, otherwise you are better off to just letting them get on with it as possible and work it out of the system. But they have obviously bonded.

Bonding and Interaction: Illustrated Bonding Dynamics and Behaviours
A - Z of Guinea Pig Behaviours (see entry dominance behaviours)

Thankfully no aggression which I am very happy for, but listening to them trying to sort out the dominance is a lot more than I expected. Cody will squeak and move away/buck Zack off him.

I'm hoping to not have to put a barrier but but I will keep that in mind. Right now they just tried to do it again and now they're quiet and resting.

I was wondering how I'd know if they bonded, so that makes me happier to hear that it seems that way to you then. I am very much hoping Zack calms down with the hormone rush, but I'm sure that'll make time....

 

[Fox_Trot24]

I did also forget to mention that Cody does a lot of rumbling as well when he is near Zack. I'll make sure to weight them to keep track of any stress signs, as that is always a concern for me.

 

[Wiebke]

Thankfully no aggression which I am very happy for, but listening to them trying to sort out the dominance is a lot more than I expected. Cody will squeak and move away/buck Zack off him.

I'm hoping to not have to put a barrier but but I will keep that in mind. Right now they just tried to do it again and now they're quiet and resting.

I was wondering how I'd know if they bonded, so that makes me happier to hear that it seems that way to you then. I am very much hoping Zack calms down with the hormone rush, but I'm sure that'll make time....

Hi

They have already bonded and have long since moved into the dominance/group establishment phase - just as they should.

Everything you mention is within the bounds of a good bonding. The mounting will gradually peter off although for some boars a casual mount is habitual as a kind of quick human hug in a 'hey bro, I am here' way.
Young adult boars can still have the odd hormone spike which will make for a couple more intense days.

Please take a deep, calming breath or two.

 

[Fox_Trot24]

Hi

They have already bonded and have long since moved into the dominance/group establishment phase - just as they should.

Everything you mention is within the bounds of a good bonding. The mounting will gradually peter off although for some boars a casual mount is habitual as a kind of quick human hug in a 'hey bro, I am here' way.
Young adult boars can still have the odd hormone spike which will make for a couple more intense days.

Please take a deep, calming breath or two.

Thank you that makes me feel a lot better. I really appreciate your reassurance on this. I'll keep monitoring them, but I will definitely take a calming breath knowing they're bonded and doing good

 

[Roselina]

It’s nerve wracking isn’t it !
Cody and Zack are great pals
Great reassuring advice from @Piggies&buns and @Wiebke