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Can I house three baby boys from same litter with their dad?

Crazyguineapiglady

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I recently adopted two guinea pigs which I was told were a bonded female and neutered male… I came to find out very quickly that the male was not neutered and the female was pregnant. As soon as the pups were born I separated dad from the mom and babies immediately feeling terrible that I did not know about the pregnancy sooner(how could I not notice!?) I’ve recently had the babies sexed by a local vet to find out that they are all males! What are the chances? My hope was that I would have one boy that I could eventually house with that once they hit three weeks and keep the girls with mom however it looks like now there will be no pups able to stay with mom as we do not have a local that they will neuter or spay. Sorry for the incredibly long description… I just want to be clear on what my situation is. There are a lot of rumours and myths flying around the Internet about being unable to house two or more meals together happily… But I’m wondering if three male littermates would possibly be compatible to live with their dad now that they are reaching sexual maturity (3 wks old) and will have to be separated from mom to prevent future pregnancy. I should also note that I have two other female pairs that are housed in the same room but of course different cages and I’m thinking that I would be able to bond the mother of this litter with my pair of more submissive female piggies. I just want so badly for them to be all happy and not to have to separate them into different household‘s at least if they can be in cages in the same room …. I know that for males will require a lot of space and I have four very large CNC cages and I’m willing and ready to expand if and when need be. Any insights are extremely appreciated!
 
Welcome to the forum

The baby boys will be able to stay with their dad at separation from mum but only until they are closer towards 12-16 weeks of age. Long term, you cannot keep three boars together (90% of boar trios fail) but they will be ok to live with him until they reach that age. You would then need to separate them out Into a functioning pair and a single.
Boar trios usually fail as they find it very hard to form a functioning hierarchy properly, they are unlikely to make it together much after the babies hit their teens (16 weeks of age).

Living with dad until towards 16 weeks of age, gives you the benefit of time to work out which two piggies get on best and keep them as a pair. Character is what matters most and determines whether a bond will function, and there is no guarantee that two brothers would get on. It might be that dad and one baby boy make the pair, with the other baby having to be removed. He would then need to live in a separate cage but alongside either the boar pair or the sows groups for interaction through the bars only (if he is alongside the sows, then the cage would need to be very secure so he cannot escape and get in with them)
The one who ends up single can be neutered, have the six week post op wait to become infertile and can then be bonded in with one of your sow pairs. (Baby boars can be neutered from around 4 months of age onwards). That way, hopefully nobody would be single long term!

You do need to be careful keeping bonded boars in the same room as sows. Boars who grow up around sows tend to be less affected by the pheromones, but it can still be a risk. Smelling sows can cause a boar pair to fight which would mean permanent separation.

The guides below explain further

Adding More Guinea Pigs Or Merging Pairs – What Works And What Not?
A Comprehensive Guide to Guinea Pig Boars
Boars: Teenage, Bullying, Fighting, Fall-outs And What Next?
Neutered / De-sexed Boars And Neutering Operations: Myths, Facts and Post-op Care
 
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Ive just realised I misread - I had read this as three boars (two babies and dad), but its actually three babies to live with their dad, so four boars in total. This means you will be able to create two separate boar pairs for long term, rather than having one left alone and neutering bonding with sows etc. The chances of a boar quartet working out are even less than a trio.
This will work better given you can look to create those two separate pairs provided compatibility is achieved - the rest still stands though, picking the piggies who get on best to form the pairs (so it'll be two babies together and then one baby with dad, for the long term), and the risks associated with keeping boar pairs in the same room as sows.
If you can only make one pair out of the boars due to incompatibilities, and then the other two dont get on and cannot live together, then you then have the option of neutering (six week wait) and bonding those single boars with a sow herd each (you can only keep one neutered boar with sows)

this guide details how to keep boars and sows in the same room while working towards protecting a boar bond
A Comprehensive Guide to Guinea Pig Boars
 
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I agree with @Piggies&buns. The boar pups need to be removed at either 21 days of age or 250g in weight, whichever comes soonest. Although at 3 weeks of age they can initially go in with their dad, I’m afraid it’s correct that they won’t be able to stay together long term. Dividing them into 2 pairs is the best option.

Now, I do also have to clarify something else with you. Sows come into season within hours of giving birth. If your sow gave birth to pups and the boar was still with her at the time of birth, there is a risk he may already have impregnated her. Did you remove Dad before the pups were born, or afterwards?
 
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