Boys and Girls together

[Awkward]

So I have a general question that I need help with.
My wife and I have five bonded girls that have lived together for about a year. We just recently lost one of our girls, and we ended up getting a couple boys at the pet store. This was a mistake that the pet store sold us three boys that all lived in the same cage. They are all babies but we realized that we are going to have to bring at least one back to the store. Three boys together we have learned will cause fights, and that is something we don’t want.
The main question I have, is can two boys live together in a separate cage from the girls but next to them?
The girls have a very large cage its 8X8 and the boys will have a little less than the girls, about 4X8.
We really don’t want to have the boys fight, but with two of everything for the boys and such a large cage will they still fight because of the girls?
We have the opportunity to bring one or two of them back to the store, we just don’t want to take back two, leaving one to be alone if two of them will get along.

 

[Winniepeg]

My understanding is that boys and girls shouldn’t be kept close together. Potentially the boys may fight because of the female scent in the room. If you’re unable to keep them in separate rooms an alternative may be to keep one boar have him neutered and integrate him with the girls. I have three pairs of boars and no experience with females so other forum members may be able to offer better advice. I hope it all works out for you

 

[Awkward]

My understanding is that boys and girls shouldn’t be kept close together. Potentially the boys may fight because of the female scent in the room. If you’re unable to keep them in separate rooms an alternative may be to keep one boar have him neutered and integrate him with the girls. I have three pairs of boars and no experience with females so other forum members may be able to offer better advice. I hope it all works out for you

Thank you! This may be ultimately what ends up happening.

 

[Piggies&buns]

I agree with @Winniepeg
Boar pairs who aren’t used to sow scent and definitely those who are young and will soon be hormonal teenagers, need to be kept as far away from sow scent as possible. Smelling them girls can cause the boys to fight.

Not only that, you do also need to consider security. Unneutered boars in the same room as sows can mean there is a risk the boys try to escape the cage to get in with the sows. This will obviously cause pregnancies as well as issues for the boys‘ bond.

So - best is to keep them in separate rooms. If that isnt possible then in a stacked cage with the girls at the bottom. If that isn’t possible then at totally opposite ends of the room and with dividers which are higher and wider than the cages so to help prevent smells from drifting.
Always ensuring you handle the boys first so you don’t accidentally transfer girly smells onto them.

There are people who do keep boars and sows in the same room but there are times when this works and times when this just won’t. With teenage boars being around sows can sometimes be too much for their bond.

A Comprehensive Guide to Guinea Pig Boars

If you do choose to keep two, then ensure you pick the two who spend most time together as this can help ensure you are keeping a pair who want to be together. A pet shop pair does come with risks that they wont actually be compatible for the long term as they are usually just put together for sale rather than properly being bonded due to being compatible. We always advise anybody who brings home a pet shop boar pair to have a plan b in mind in case their bond fails when they become teenagers. It really doesnt always happen, more boar pairs make it together than not, but that plan b is always best to keep in the back of your head. Its hope for the best but plan for the worst.

The alternative is to keep just one boar. Have him live alongside the girls until he is old enough to be neutered. This way he will still have companionship through the bars. Once he is neutered and had his six week post op wait to become infertile, he can then be bonded with the girls.
If you choose to do this, ensure the cage he is kept in is very secure, ideally lidded and escape proof to stop him from getting in and getting the girls pregnant.

 

[Awkward]

I agree with @Winniepeg
Boar pairs who aren’t used to sow scent and definitely those who are young and will soon be hormonal teenagers, need to be kept as far away from sow scent as possible. Smelling them girls can cause the boys to fight.

Not only that, you do also need to consider security. Unneutered boars in the same room as sows can mean there is a risk the boys try to escape the cage to get in with the sows. This will obviously cause pregnancies as well as issues for the boys‘ bond.

So - best is to keep them in separate rooms. If that isnt possible then in a stacked cage with the girls at the bottom. If that isn’t possible then at totally opposite ends of the room and with dividers which are higher and wider than the cages so to help prevent smells from drifting.
Always ensuring you handle the boys first so you don’t accidentally transfer girly smells onto them.

There are people who do keep boars and sows in the same room but there are times when this works and times when this just won’t. With teenage boars being around sows can sometimes be too much for their bond.

A Comprehensive Guide to Guinea Pig Boars

If you do choose to keep two, then ensure you pick the two who spend most time together as this can help ensure you are keeping a pair who want to be together. A pet shop pair does come with risks that they wont actually be compatible for the long term as they are usually just put together for sale rather than properly being bonded due to being compatible. We always advise anybody who brings home a pet shop boar pair to have a plan b in mind in case their bond fails when they become teenagers. It really doesnt always happen, more boar pairs make it together than not, but that plan b is always best to keep in the back of your head. Its hope for the best but plan for the worst.

The alternative is to keep just one boar. Have him live alongside the girls until he is old enough to be neutered. This way he will still have companionship through the bars. Once he is neutered and had his six week post op wait to become infertile, he can then be bonded with the girls.
If you choose to do this, ensure the cage he is kept in is very secure, ideally lidded and escape proof to stop him from getting in and getting the girls pregnant.

I appreciate the input.
The boys we got are all very young, and we can tell that out of the three two get along much better than the third. The third little guy seems to kind of be a loner. Right now they are all in a cage together and love snuggling inside their hides. We are quarantining the boys since they came home recently In our bedroom but this isn’t a viable solution for long term, because there isn’t enough room in there for a good size home. This is why we were wondering if they will be ok to be in the same room as the ladies.
We really have to big of hearts and want to keep all the boys and girls, so we are tying to come up with a solution to not have to take any of them back.
Our Plan B so far was going to be to get each boy their own Midwest cage and let them all sit right next to each other for companionship.

 

[Siikibam]

Splitting them all into a trio isn’t something I would consider. I would keep a pair together. Then the third can live next to the sows until he’s neutered (once testicles descend) and past his 6 week wait.

If you’ve had time to study them and have figured out which two get on best, then I wouldn’t wait to split them up. Hopefully you’ll come to a solution that works for you all.

As an aside, the minimum cage size for boars is 150x60cm but we recommend 180x60cm.