Dominance behaviours- should I be worried?

[machuandpicchumummy]

The last couple of days my GPs have been having a few little signs of dominance behaviour. They are 8 week old males brought up together their whole life. They're chasing each other round the run and jumping around. The dominant one is purring a lot and marking his scent and mounting the other from the front. Is this all just natural boar behaviour and it will play out or is there something to be worried about here? The non dominant is still eating normally and seems happy enough truffling round the hutch.

 

[My Piggies]

This is normal dominance behaviour and nothing to be worried about. However, if they bite each other and draw blood, then they need to separated immediately. Hope this helps! People with more experience will likely come along soon to provide more information

These threads may be helpful:
Bonds In Trouble
Boars: Teenage, Bullying, Fighting, Fall-outs And What Next?
Dominance Behaviours In Guinea Pigs

 

[weepweeps]

It does sound like normal dominance at the moment. As long as one is giving in to the other it’s ok. Keep a close eye on them though. Boars are such characters.
Separate them if they do have a fight.

 

[machuandpicchumummy]

Thanks for the advice. They're getting a 3m by 2m run today so plenty of room to run around and tire themselves out!

 

[My Piggies]

That sounds great! Good luck with your boys. Would love to see some photos

 

[machuandpicchumummy]

This is them enjoying a treat Machu is the roan one and the other is Picchu

 

[weepweeps]

They are beauties.

 

[My Piggies]

They're gorgeous

 

[Piggies&buns]

It’s entirely normal, and you can expect to see a lot more of it as they reach their teens (4-14 months of age)

 

[Siikibam]

All normal boarish behaviour. You will experience more dominance behaviour during their teen years (4-14 months of age). It’s good they’re getting a bigger run. However, make sure that their cage is big enough for a pair of boars. Minimum 150x60cm although we recommend 180x60cm. Boars are more territorial and need more space to get away from each other.

 

[Wiebke]

Hi!

This is normal dominance behaviour and well within parameters.

Please take the time to read the information links in this thread. They will help you to understand behaviours better, especially in view of the upcoming teenage months; so you can tackle them with more confidence and less anxiety.

 

[machuandpicchumummy]

Thanks for the tip! It's been about 15 years since my last piggies so it all feels new again!

 

[Wiebke]

Thanks for the tip! It's been about 15 years since my last piggies so it all feels new again!

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