Change in male dominance

Squigglepigs

Squigglepigs

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Hi all, I have 6 gorgeous piggies, 2 males and 4 females, all about 8-10 months old. I have a large double hutch and a separate run. From the outset, Buzz was the dominant male, and Woody seemed quite okay with his lower status. However, this week I noticed that Buzz had a cut nose and is now often on his own whilst Woody holds court with the females. Nothing has changed in the living arrangements, and no illness or separation. As I am new to guinea pig ownership, I am unsure whether this is usual behaviour. Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Thank you in advance.
 
:wel:

If you are keeping two boars in the same cage with sows, then I am afraid this is going to end in trouble. You can only keep one neutered boar to any number of sows. The boys will fight with each other over the girls (and it sounds like this is already starting to happen) so you will need to split the group up for long term happiness. If they stay together, then things are most likely going to get worse with further fights and injuries.

Keep only one neutered boar to any number of sows so splitting them and having one neutered boar with two sows each in two separate hutches is the best thing going forward.

Please do confirm that the boys are neutered.
How long have you had them?

How big is your hutch?

Each trio will need a hutch measuring 6ft x 2ft on a single level (upper levels do not count towards the cage size and are considered as bonus spaces only - the bottom level of a cage needs to meet size requirements for the number of piggies it houses, so being a double hutch does not double the floor space)

Adding More Guinea Pigs Or Merging Pairs – What Works And What Not?
A Comprehensive Guide to Guinea Pig Boars
Cage Size Guide
 
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Thank you for your response.
I can confirm that the hutch is 6ft double, I take on board about the upper level. I did do much research before engaging in guinea pig ownership, so I knew that one boar was best, however, unfortunately the pet centres would not sell a single male, hence four girls. I had both boars neutered before introducing as a herd. They have all lived happily together since January/February, the change in dominance has happened this week.
 
As advised above, please separate into two groups. You can work out which ones like each other and do it that way. All the best and hopefully they’ll settle into their new groups well.
 
Thank you, just to confirm, although there must have been an initial scrap, they are not fighting to my knowledge, it is the change of dominance that I thought unusual.
 
Don’t wait for them to fight or have a more serious scrap. I would separate them soon as - perhaps tomorrow once you’ve had a chance to clean the levels out thoroughly and block access between the two.

The other thing to bear in mind is that they’re in their teens. The boys may have/are going to experience a hormone spike. Even in pairs it can be a fraught time. So having two boars in with sows will not make things easier.
 
Squigglepigs said:
Thank you for your response.
I can confirm that the hutch is 6ft double, I take on board about the upper level. I did do much research before engaging in guinea pig ownership, so I knew that one boar was best, however, unfortunately the pet centres would not sell a single male, hence four girls. I had both boars neutered before introducing as a herd. They have all lived happily together since January/February, the change in dominance has happened this week.
Click to expand...

You're rather lucky they have come this far with two boys amongst the girls! It will not work out long term though so separating them will be best for them all.
Any altercation between a boar pair which results in any injury is cause for immediate separation - it means a bond isnt functioning.
A change in dominance between a boar pair (and I mean when there are not sows involved) is not entirely unusual but each boar would need to agree to a change in leadership. My own two boys had such a situation occur.

As it is a 6ft hutch, then it does mean each level is big enough to have a trio on each level.

(although a 6ft hutch isnt big enough for six piggies together in any event - for six sows or five sows and one neutered boar the hutch would need to be 9ft x 2ft on a single level which doesnt exist commercially)
 
Thank you both for your responses. I will certainly take on board your advice and look to changing my set up, although I physically will not be able to do tomorrow. After hearing what you have both said, I have serious concerns as to the advice pet centres are giving out. As I said, I did a lot of research, and approached three respectable pet centres, I explained my exact set up and all three said that this was okay, even the vet was on board when I had the boys neutered. Guinea pigs are sold as ‘cheap’ and ‘excellent pets’ for children. I agree on a level, and I adore them. However, I have found that there is a lot of hard work involved, and I certainly spend a lot of money in buying all their food and additional items. No wonder there is so many back in pet centre adoption!
 
Unfortunately there is a lot of misinformation out there and sadly we find many a member coming up against issues which they had been originally lead to believe would not be issues. The most common being that three (or more) boars can live together when in fact most usually they cannot.

Piggies are not cheap and easy starter/childrens pets - they are expensive, vet bills can run into hundreds of pounds, their care is extensive, they need a huge amount of space and piggy social politics are complicated!

Do get them separated out as soon as you can. Keep a close eye on which piggies are spending most time together as this can guide you in making a split which will work.
In a mixed group, the sows have their own hierarchy. There will be a dominant sow and every sow under her will fall into their own position. The boar does not fit into sow hierarchy but they instead only fit into group hierarchy. This means a boar can be the bottom of the pile and it also means that the dominant sow in a group is the one who determines whether a boar will be let in to the group
 
Thank you for your reply. Yes, there is a hierarchy within my girls, it seems to have naturally fallen and I have not noticed any fighting, this has been the first incident.
I really appreciate your advice, thank you.
 
It would be lovely if you could find time to do what most pet centres do not - sit and observe your herd to see who gets on with whom and who hangs out together or sleeps together etc so that when the time comes to split them you can keep best friends together 💕

Oh and one other thing - which is probably not relevant in your situation but I'll say anyway as a point for the future. Sometimes dominance changes because of illness - if the dominant piggy is weakened another herd member can challenge for the position, which seems cruel but it's their instinct. It's just something to be aware of for the future as they are getting old. I happens with the girls too x
 
Thank you for your reply.
I do often watch my squiggles, I find them fascinating and they are very talkative each with their own personality.
I had read about dominance change after illness, or separation, but this is not the case with mine.
Thank you all for such great feedback and advice.
 
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