Fighting Between Brothers And Sisters

[Rubester]

Until a couple of months ago I owned two sisters who died at the good old age of 7. Especially when they were younger though they used to fight lots, trying to nip each other now and again. If you are having this problem then I can tell you that there shouldn't be anything for you to worry about and if you think about, how many brothers and sisters do you know that don't fight once in a while? As they got older it began to stop and they were practically inseperable most of the time, and when the first one died, the second died of a broken heart at the loss of her dearest sister. So if your brother or sister guinea pigs are fighting just try to keep them apart to calm down for a bit and they'll get over it, they love each other really.

 

[Wiebke]

Nipping is normal dominance behaviour, especially with sows; often you see a renewal when they come into season as youngsters, less as hormonally settled adults. That said, I have 5 year old sisters who have been squabbling all the time! The key is how character compatible they are.

The issue is a bit different with boars once they hit the teeneage hormones. Being related doesn't help when they develop their adult boar identities. Critical is whether they gel as a pair and whether their personalities complement each other. If not, they will fight and fall-out the same as a couple of unrelated boars.

Good for you that your two girls lived such happy long lives!