Former friends fighting, please help

[CavyIris]

Hello there lovely cavy owners,
I am really strtled and have no idea what to do right now.
I have four guinea pigs, 2 of them bought from a pet store 3 years ago, my first piggies Milou and Tintin
Then i bought a retired show pig named Milda she turned 5 week before last
And lastly the youngest Marwin, she is rescued from an owner that didnt know her pig was pregnant.
These four have been living together for about 2 years a little bit more.
Now out of nowhere Milda has started becoming a bit aggresive and defensive, i think it's a quarell between Milda and Milou.
Milou sort of "adopted" Marwin when she was new and they always stick together cuddle and so on, but now when Marwin tries to get close she sort of bites a little bit.
As i said I'm fairly certain the fight is between Milda and Milou since they have been alpha pig both of them, but it really scares me because they are really going at each other.
I put Milda in a smaller cage but so she could still smell at look at the others, then after about an hour i put them together again and they all seemed fine, now the next morning same thing all over again.
I'm have no idea where this behaviour is comin from, please help.
My last resort is to separate them into two and two and keep them separate.
(Also, note that as of what i can see they are all healthy i can't see anything odd or off about them.)
(They are all female aswell)

Thank you all so so much
Iris

 

[CavyIris]

Hello there lovely cavy owners,
I am really strtled and have no idea what to do right now.
I have four guinea pigs, 2 of them bought from a pet store 3 years ago, my first piggies Milou and Tintin
Then i bought a retired show pig named Milda she turned 5 week before last
And lastly the youngest Marwin, she is rescued from an owner that didnt know her pig was pregnant.
These four have been living together for about 2 years a little bit more.
Now out of nowhere Milda has started becoming a bit aggresive and defensive, i think it's a quarell between Milda and Milou.
Milou sort of "adopted" Marwin when she was new and they always stick together cuddle and so on, but now when Marwin tries to get close she sort of bites a little bit.
As i said I'm fairly certain the fight is between Milda and Milou since they have been alpha pig both of them, but it really scares me because they are really going at each other.
I put Milda in a smaller cage but so she could still smell at look at the others, then after about an hour i put them together again and they all seemed fine, now the next morning same thing all over again.
I'm have no idea where this behaviour is comin from, please help.
My last resort is to separate them into two and two and keep them separate.
(Also, note that as of what i can see they are all healthy i can't see anything odd or off about them.)
(They are all female aswell)

Thank you all so so much
Iris

Milda is 5 years is what i meant

 

[Piggies&buns]

I think It would be worth having a thorough vet check. with sows, sudden changes in behaviour can be a sign of ovarian cysts or hormonal issues.

 

[Wiebke]

Hello there lovely cavy owners,
I am really strtled and have no idea what to do right now.
I have four guinea pigs, 2 of them bought from a pet store 3 years ago, my first piggies Milou and Tintin
Then i bought a retired show pig named Milda she turned 5 week before last
And lastly the youngest Marwin, she is rescued from an owner that didnt know her pig was pregnant.
These four have been living together for about 2 years a little bit more.
Now out of nowhere Milda has started becoming a bit aggresive and defensive, i think it's a quarell between Milda and Milou.
Milou sort of "adopted" Marwin when she was new and they always stick together cuddle and so on, but now when Marwin tries to get close she sort of bites a little bit.
As i said I'm fairly certain the fight is between Milda and Milou since they have been alpha pig both of them, but it really scares me because they are really going at each other.
I put Milda in a smaller cage but so she could still smell at look at the others, then after about an hour i put them together again and they all seemed fine, now the next morning same thing all over again.
I'm have no idea where this behaviour is comin from, please help.
My last resort is to separate them into two and two and keep them separate.
(Also, note that as of what i can see they are all healthy i can't see anything odd or off about them.)
(They are all female aswell)

Thank you all so so much
Iris

Hi!

Please have your sows checked for ovarian cyst issues.
Sows get more crotchety as they get older because hormone production never slows down for them (other than for boars whose testosterone fizzles out after 4-5 years and which tend to mellow quite a bit in old age).
Living alongside is often the best option; I've had a time when I four single older sows, none of which would go with any of the other for several months. Eventually two of them would move in with each other and a third would go an live her sister (and her sister's toy boy hubby) on the third attempt over several months.

Please take the time to read these guides here:
Bonds In Trouble
Sow Behaviour
Guinea Lynx :: Ovarian Tumors

 

[CavyIris]

Thank you, I'm making an apointment for her and just because I'm not familiar with it, can someone explain what it means exactly, I'm familiar with it in humans but what does it mean for a guinea pig, risks and so on.
Thank you immensely

 

[CavyIris]

Hi!

Please have your sows checked for ovarian cyst issues.
Sows get more crotchety as they get older because hormone production never slows down for them (other than for boars whose testosterone fizzles out after 4-5 years and which tend to mellow quite a bit in old age).
Living alongside is often the best option; I've had a time when I four single older sows, none of which would go with any of the other for several months. Eventually two of them would move in with each other and a third would go an live her sister (and her sister's toy boy hubby) on the third attempt over several months.

Please take the time to read these guides here:
Bonds In Trouble
Sow Behaviour
Guinea Lynx :: Ovarian Tumors

Thank you, I'm making an apointment for her and just because I'm not familiar with it, can someone explain what it means exactly, I'm familiar with it in humans but what does it mean for a guinea pig, risks and so on.
Thank you immensely