Boars vs. Sows

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I've been doing lots of research on owning guinea pigs and have come across some conflicting information. I hope that some of you will be able to help me answer a couple of questions I have :)

- Are there any known temperament differences between boars and sows? A breeder told me that boars are friendlier while sows are easier to maintain.
- Do boars tend to smell more than sows, regardless of the fact that only boars are kept together (and no sows are within smelling range)?
- Is there a gender considered to be better for a first-time cavy owner?

Thanks in advance!
 
Well done for carrying out your research before you get your piggies. I am sure we all have our own opinions about whether it is best to have boars or sows, but this is my experience.

• My boars (who live in bonded pairs) generally seem to be more amiable than the girls. Having said that, both boys and girls come to greet me every day!
• Boars can get a bit stroppy when they hit "teenage hood" and sometimes you find you have to split them. This seems to rarely happen with girls.
• I would say that boys do tend to smell more than girls at certain times, even when girlies are not around. I notice this mostly when I put them back in a nice clean cage and they decided that they have to scent mark it - nothing quite like boar scent!
• I wouldn't say that either gender is better for a first time cavy owner, but breed can be i.e. short haired are probably better for first time owners.
• Finally, piggies are addictive, you’ve been warned! If you go for girls and provide large accommodation you can always add another couple!

Good luck, be interesting to hear others views and see your new fur babies when you get them.
 
pretty much second what caviesgalore says but it's important to mention that if you want more than one or two piggies i find sows get on better and it's easier to get them to live in a big group.
think it all comes down to personal choice in the end at the minute i have 3 boars
 
I have to say my own girls are megga friendly but they have been handled from babies but out of the adult rescues i find the males get friendlier quicker than the females have.
But as already said if you get females and decide you want more later i find introducing sows much easier than introducing a boar into a group of boars
 
Hi, welcome to the forum! :)

My two males are very curious and outgoing; they are also very loveable! I've never had any females before, so I'm not sure how they are.

Male guinea pigs can be prone to certain health problems; one health problem that is the most common is impaction, this is when older intact males are unable to expel fecal pellets correctly. Males that are not neutered may be prone to fighting and biting one another and may also spray strong-smelling urine in their cages. Neutering tends to solve these problems.

Female guinea pigs also have their own set of health concerns. Intact females may be prone to painful ovarian cysts or urine infections as they age. Spaying also helps reduce the moodiness some female guinea pigs are prone to as a result of constantly surging hormones.

I would only spay or neutur my guinea pigs as a last resort.
 
over the years i think from my experience boys are friendlier smell more and are a pain mixing with other boys ( not always though) but their charcaters make up for any downsides beleive me when you are greeted every morning with a hugh cuddly sexy rexy face and a black self with his ebony fur with such love and real enjoyment at seeing mummys here you will understand, how they make your heart melt, girls I have 14 in one hugh run they are my herd and all get along wonderfully never had any real argumetns with any of my girls they acceopt a new girl with the love of a mum checking her out cleaning her etc and making her feel welcome they dont smell , but dont seem as friendly as boys all of my favourites haev been boys I love them all but find boys so friendly, but for a first timer I would recomend 2 sows
 
I have never kept sows and have 4 boars at the moment, 2 in a bonded pair and 2 living separately but next door to eachother as they had a fight. If you get 2 boars from babies, they are likely to get along but if you want to increase your brood, you will have difficulty introducing another boar and cannot introduce a female as, even if you get the boars neutered, they will fight over her. I agree with Michelle that 2 sows are best for a first timer and you can always get more sows later or a neutered boar from a rescue. You can never (or very rarely) successfully have more than one boar living with sows.
 
I have had sows for the past 4 years, our first two (Poppy and Bella) both friendly, tame pigs. Both enjoyed coming out for a cuddle and Poppy loved to stretch out on my lap and lick my hands! Poppy has passed away now, but we still have Bella, she is a real cheeky piggy, every morning when I get up she's the one who's leading the call for vegetables! We recently got another sow, Holly, to keep her company and Bella has accepted her as a cagemate without any problems. Holly's quite shy at the moment but seems to like the cuddles.

In the last 3 weeks we got our first boars! We have Max and Toby, both around a year old. We got them from the same rescue, although they are not a pair, two seperate adult males. We have had a go at trying to introduce them, but after it all seeming positive at first, they did try to go for each other (we were watching them the whole time so were able to seperate before anyone was hurt). They now live side by side with a divider between them so they can still see/smell each other.

You've already had a lot of good advice from other members, but i'll just give my opinion:
- From my own experience, so far I don't see any big personality differences between boars/sows yet, but admittedly haven't had the boars very long and I think Bella is an exceptionally friendly/noisy pig anyway. From my experience of trying to pair up our sows and boars, there are more problems pairing boars up and they can be more agressive if they don't like each other. Like spaz has said, if you have boars there is the chance they could end up with impaction problems so make sure you will be prepared to deal with that (you would have to remove the poos that they cannot get rid of yourself, but it's something you would quickly get used to).
- Re smell, I find that Toby does seem to smell a bit more than the others. Think he believes in spraying scent around his new cage whenever he's cleaned out, like Caviesgalore mentioned. However Max doesn't do this and I would say he doesn't smell a lot different from my girls. So in general I would say boars smell a bit more, but perhaps it depends on the actual boar?!
- Like a lot of the others have said, perhaps two sows would be better for a first time owner. Mainly because you are less likely to encounter any personality problems that might develop with two boars living together. If you wanted one of each, perhaps you could consider a sow and (already) neutered boar? Although look for an already bonded pair from a rescue, I wouldn't advice trying to pair pigs up at the moment, until you are more experienced and used to piggy body language.

Good luck with whatever you decide! :)
 
Thanks SO much for all your replies! I really appreciate it.

After reading all your responses, talking to some people, and then reading some more, I've decided on a couple of short-haired sows. I will definitely post pictures whenever I get them but in the meantime, if anyone else has something to share about things in general since I'm going to be a first-time cavy owner, do feel free to! ;)
 
Good luck with your new piggies when you get them - looking forward to seeing some photos!
 
Good idea to get a shorthaired breed also until you are more experienced. Long haired breeds need grooming regularly, trims and more baths! I have had problems grooming one of my boars as he is very skittish and prone to biting me, so it can be tricky.
Best of luck with your new additions O0
 
Congrats on your decision. You will love your new guineas! Can't wait for you to get them and show us pics.

You should be able to get lots of info on here re food/housing options. Only thing I would say is don't worry if they are quite nervous at first, it will take a bit of time for them to get to know and trust you.
 
Cool! good luck and can't wait to see the pics! :smitten: :smitten: :smitten:
 
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