HELP: Aggressive new guinea pig

[RAWguineapig]

Sorry for the long post:

So we have two older guinea pigs that are very gentle and easy. We bought two new toddler guinea pigs about 5 weeks ago. All four are male. One of the new new guinea pigs is borderline hyperactive (his name is Sparky) but we figured he was just young. When we take him out of the cage he just runs in circles. The two new pigs were together when we bought them and seemed to get along well. When we brought them home we kept them separate for a bit then introduced all four of them on the floor etc all together. Sparky immediately started asserting dominance over the other three, but we let it play out over a few hours and they all seemed to go along with it, so we finally put them all together in the same cage. Once in the cage, the Sparky literally did not stop moving, he's jumping on each of them constantly but worse of all he is terrifying the other younger one. Chasing him around the cage day and night, and the other younger one if basically shaking in fright in the corner all the time. The older two seems to deal with Sparky but do get irritated, but the younger one seems miserable because of Sparky's non stop aggression. No biting but just constantly going after everyone non-stop. So, after a few days of non stop, we put a cage divider in the cage and separated Sparky from the rest. The other three get along just great now and there are no issues. But all Sparky does is claw and chew at the cage to get to the other side. Sitting in the corner staring at them all. We feel badly and give them all floor time at least once a week so they can play. We've even tried to put Sparky back in the cage with the rest of them, same disaster each time. The pet shop where we got the two little ones suggested we put Sparky and the other little one together separate from the older ones, since they got along before. We did that. Same thing. Sparky tormented the little one non-stop. We're wondering if something is wrong with Sparky. It seems like it a bit. And we feel badly that he is by himself, but at this point we don't see an alternative. If anyone has any advice, please let me know.

 

[Hath]

Hi. You cannot have more than 2 males sharing accommodation. They're extremely territorial and often end up fighting. Can you send pic of your accommodation and measurements? The experts will be in soon, but it'll give them better idea of what your set up is to give better advice.

Some pigs are like that. My foster baby boy was relentless humping machine and upset everyone he dated.

 

[Piggies&buns]

Attempting to put four males piggies together is a recipe for disaster, it causes fights and breaks bonds. The fact you've got the other three together is also highly unlikely to work out for the long term. Once that baby hits his teens (at four months old) there is a real risk of further problems occurring with a trio. Boar trios just dont have the odds in their favour of working out sadly - boars do much better as pairs as getting the character compatibility right in a trio of boars (particularly when youve got one youngster who will turn a teenager in the not too distant future) is very difficult, plus they require a huge amount of space beyond normal cage size requirements. If you are going to attempt to keep them as a trio, then you will need to ensure their cage allows them to have at least one square metre each. (12 sq ft cage size is needed for a pair boar but 32 sq ft for a boar trio) but space alone is not a guarantee that they will have compatibility

You cant ever put a piggy back into another piggy's cage as yes it will be a disaster and seen as a territory invasion. All bonding needs to be done in neutral territory and following the correct procedure, but sadly you are past the point of being able to do that.

Unfortunately putting more than two boars together has the potential to ruin the bond between the original pairs and it sounds as if this is what may have happened. If Sparky and his little friend were just put together for sale (as is what happens with pet shop piggies) rather than actually be compatible and correctly bonded, then their bond would not have been a solid one to begin with so adding them in with the other piggies has broken that. P
There is absolutely nothing wrong with Sparky though, he just needs his own character compatible friend.

As it is likely the trio won't work out for the long term, you will need have to have a plan for living arrangements. The most likely outcome is that the older boars can remain together in one cage and the two babies will need to live separately in their own cages - so you'll need three cages. They can all interact through the bars for companionship (never being allowed floor time or any physical interaction) but as they are so young, the best thing is for each of them to be bonded with another piggy each. As character compatibility is vital, buying any piggies on spec has the risk factor. If you can take the two little ones dating at a rescue centre and find their own new friends then that will make for a better bond.

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?
Dominance Behaviours In Guinea Pigs

 

[Swissgreys]

You have had some excellent advice above.
Your current set up is unlikely to work in the long term and places the three piggies that are together at risk.
You should start looking into alternative set ups and if you older boys were happy previously I would actually remove the younger piggy now rather than place their relationship at risk, as when the baby hits the teenage months they have a high chance of falling out, not only with him but also with each other leading to 4 single piggies!

Depending on where you are based it might be worth contacting a local rescue and asking about boar dating. You could date the younger piggies with other boars and possibly agree to take on a compatible boar for one of your current singles and hand over the other to the rescue to be responsibly rehomed by them.

 

[RAWguineapig]

Thank you everyone! We are exploring your options and are looking to make their cage bigger at the very least while we figure out the pairings!

 

[Free Ranger]

Just a very obvious post script - don't waste time thinking about neutering and bringing in sows because the smell of a lovely lady will cause no end of fighting among them all. I don't know whether your two younger ones can be re-bonded on neutral territory...?