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Introducing Non Litter Males?

PiggyProdigy

Junior Guinea Pig
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Hey so my dad agreed to me getting guinea pigs, and I have references on cages, food, veggies, vet bills, all the necessities and I have an eye on a cage I would like to purchase online, but there is just one thing. My local pet store has 2 male guinea pigs who haven't been there for very long so I assume they're young and all. But they're both males and have been kept separately their whole lives... once I get all my stuff setup and my piggies in my designated room, how am I to introduce them to where they will get along?
I have done research on this part too but some sites say different things.
Thanks for any feedback :)
 
Welcome to the Forum.
:wel:

I would start by reading this thread.
I personally found the photos very helpful too.

Illustrated Bonding / Dominance Behaviours And Dynamics

It doesn't make any difference if piggies are related or not - it simply comes down to personalities.

Well done for doing your research first - you sound like you will be a very caring piggy owner.
 
Welcome! The first thing I would recommend would be keeping them in separate spaces at first, wether that be two cages or creating a barrier in your cage out of mesh or a c&c grid to split it in half, so that they can sniff each other and become familiar with each other too. When you introduce them to eachother make sure you are always watching to make sure they're not biting eachother, after a few short meetings, they should become more familiar with each other and be able to live happily aslong as they don't fight. Hope this helped! :nod::D
 
The fact that they aren't littermates doesn't mean much... whether guinea pigs like one another comes down more to personality than the blood relations.

The above link from Swissgreys should give you some idea of how to do introductions. It's best to do introductions in a neutral environment, somewhere where neither pig can corner the other and provoke a fight. I do my introductions in a bathtub with towels down! LOL! Best wishes for smooth introductions!
 
Thanks everyone. I'm gonna ask my dad to pitch in making a nice big c and c cage instead of buying one and I'm gonna start putting a third of my cash away for unexpected veg bills! Can't wait to be a piggy owner! :) :) :) :)
 
Also, if anyone is still reading, should I just get two guinea pigs? I feel like I should start small and introduce more later but I was told the more the better as they are clan type animals...
 
Start with two. I have five 2 neutered boars and 3 sows and it is a lot of work. I'm lucky that they all get on well and so far there has been no major fall outs. I only have 5 because one of the sows I bought had a surprise shop litter. Otherwise I would have stuck with two. Guinea Pigs need a lot of time and patience and aren't just those pets you can stick in a hutch in the garden or a cage in the corner and just forget about. They need interaction every day and as much as possible of it.

They can be expensive too if they need vet treatment. At the mo I have to decide whether to risk putting one of my sows through an operation at the cost of £100 + around £80 if I want the lumps analysed. So far she has cost me £55 in vets bills and then if I decide to go ahead and let her have the op there will be the aftercare fees plus any meds she needs and the list goes on.
 
Start with two. I have five 2 neutered boars and 3 sows and it is a lot of work. I'm lucky that they all get on well and so far there has been no major fall outs. I only have 5 because one of the sows I bought had a surprise shop litter. Otherwise I would have stuck with two. Guinea Pigs need a lot of time and patience and aren't just those pets you can stick in a hutch in the garden or a cage in the corner and just forget about. They need interaction every day and as much as possible of it.

They can be expensive too if they need vet treatment. At the mo I have to decide whether to risk putting one of my sows through an operation at the cost of £100 + around £80 if I want the lumps analysed. So far she has cost me £55 in vets bills and then if I decide to go ahead and let her have the op there will be the aftercare fees plus any meds she needs and the list goes on.
Thanks. I'll start with two.
 
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