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Is It Wrong That My Pet Shop Only Sells Boars In Threes?

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kittyfalol

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Hi
When we were looking at guinea pigs our pet shop was insistent that they would only sell girls in pairs or more and they would only sell boys in threes. Their reasoning was that you were less likely to have bullying or a dominant guinea pig if you had three, but everything else I've read says that boars should be kept in bonded pairs.
What do you think?
 
What you have been reading is correct, boars are best kept as bonded pairs. Or if you have a stroppy boar, have him neutered so he can go and live his life with some ladies :)
Your pet shop is telling you a load of tripe, you are more likely to have a fall out with a trio of boars. Very rarely do they work out. We learnt the hard way as we once had a trio, they were fine on the grass with oodles of space but all hell let loose when they went back home. I'll tag @Wiebke as she will be able to tell you why boars are best in pairs in more detail :tu:
 
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Hi
When we were looking at guinea pigs our pet shop was insistent that they would only sell girls in pairs or more and they would only sell boys in threes. Their reasoning was that you were less likely to have bullying or a dominant guinea pig if you had three, but everything else I've read says that boars should be kept in bonded pairs.
What do you think?

Trios are the most difficult constellation to get right in guinea pigs of all genders, ages and combinations in the first place. You end up with an outsider situation of some sort or other more often than not. Boars work best in personality matched pairs or in large bachelor groups with plenty of space to get out of each other's way.

In fact, bullying and fighting is much more likely in trios, as you rather inevitably end up with either one dominant boar waging war on the other two or the two strongest ones turning onto the weakest once they hit the big hormones. If you have bought three dominant boars, you are likely to end up with three singles that won't go with any of the others. You need three very laid-back baby boys to have a chance of them making it without fights or bullying. Lack of space in too small cages will exacerbate the problem, as boars are wired to get out of the way if they cannot compete. The key to any successful boar (or actual guinea pig bond) is character compatibility, i.e. the right mix of dominant/submissive personalities, not age or being related.

In same age sub-adult boars, the fall-out rate with trios is about 90% before they reach adulthood. Testosterone output is at its all time highest during the teenage months between 4-14 months; it starts when the testicles start descending at around 4 months of age and are the worst around 6 months once the testicles have fully descended. These are the typical ages for boar fall-outs with trios and couples that are not character matched. There are some tricky periods later on, but they don't lead as often to splits as the worst personality clashes have long since happened.

Our forum has been going for 10 years now; we are one of the busiest and longest-lived guinea pig forums internationally and the largest UK forum. In that time, we have seen hundreds of boar bonds pass through here, so we can claim some experience on that score.
You can find our forum littered with people in trouble over boar problems. We really noticed it on here once shops started selling trios; we suddenly got lots more posts over fighting and fallen-out teenage boars. :(

By the way, boar quartets have a fall-out rate of nearly 100%; they usually work only with a disabled/carer pig situation or with old boars where the testosterone output has mostly ceased.

Boars, sows or mixed pairs; babies or adults?
Boars: Bullying, Fighting, Fall-outs And What Next?
Boars: A guide to successful companionship.
Cage Size Guide
 
Thank you so much for your very helpful reply. Everyone, especially you, has been so helpful and knowledgeable.

My problem is that one of the pet shop girls I bought before Christmas turned out to be pregnant and has just had a boy and a girl.

When I told the pet shop that I thought my guinea pig might be pregnant, they just said to bring in any babies we didn't want and they would buy them off us.

Now that she's had them, it would be a lone 3 week old boy returning to the store and it can't be the right thing to do, especially as they insist on selling boars in threes.

Oh dear, it looks like I'm going to have to find a rescue for this little chap...
 
Thank you so much for your very helpful reply. Everyone, especially you, has been so helpful and knowledgeable.

My problem is that one of the pet shop girls I bought before Christmas turned out to be pregnant and has just had a boy and a girl.

When I told the pet shop that I thought my guinea pig might be pregnant, they just said to bring in any babies we didn't want and they would buy them off us.

Now that she's had them, it would be a lone 3 week old boy returning to the store and it can't be the right thing to do, especially as they insist on selling boars in threes.

Oh dear, it looks like I'm going to have to find a rescue for this little chap...

Please contact Honeybunnies, they are the safest place in your county! Do NOT take any babies to a place that sells pregnant piggies and has not the first idea on how boars work! :yikes:
HONEYBUNNIES - RABBIT & GUINEA PIG RESCUE | Facebook
 
I suggest you direct the pet shop to this forum. It angers me so much when pet shops don't know what they are doing.
 
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Thank you. I've contacted Honeybunnies and they're going to take him for me. They obviously really care about the animals they look after. I feel so much better now. He'll be looked after until he's old enough to be neutered and then hopefully he'll find his forever home.

I'll definitely be forwarding the link to this thread onto the pet shop, along with a run down of everything buying a pregnant guinea pig has cost me. I'll also be expecting the pet shop to pay for the neutering as, in all conscience, I can't hand him over to a charity and expect them to foot that bill, along with everything else.
 
Thank you. I've contacted Honeybunnies and they're going to take him for me. They obviously really care about the animals they look after. I feel so much better now. He'll be looked after until he's old enough to be neutered and then hopefully he'll find his forever home.

I'll definitely be forwarding the link to this thread onto the pet shop, along with a run down of everything buying a pregnant guinea pig has cost me. I'll also be expecting the pet shop to pay for the neutering as, in all conscience, I can't hand him over to a charity and expect them to foot that bill, along with everything else.

Glad that Honeybunnies have offered to take him in, so you can be sure that he only goes to a safe home after being bonded at the rescue. They will be delighted if they don't have to foot the neutering bill!
And yes, they really care about their piggies and bunnies and are very experienced, too. My Caron has come from them in 2010.
 
I just thought I'd update you so far. After writing a very long letter of complaint to the pet shop and detailing all of the extras I had to buy, plus the donation I gave to Honeybunnies; yesterday I received a cheque for £90 and a letter of apology. The pet shop are going to make sure that their breeders change their practices regarding separating babies. Unfortunately I haven't managed to convince them that selling boars in threes is not a good idea. I'm not giving up yet though...
 
I'm so glad you have managed to gain some compensation for their errors, it annoys me that they are not willing to change their practices though :( Keep up the fight! :nod: :box: x
 
Hi
When we were looking at guinea pigs our pet shop was insistent that they would only sell girls in pairs or more and they would only sell boys in threes. Their reasoning was that you were less likely to have bullying or a dominant guinea pig if you had three, but everything else I've read says that boars should be kept in bonded pairs.
What do you think?
Don't do 3, I learnt hard way, it's unlikely to work.
 
Ugh... I honestly wonder sometimes if pet shops aren't sabotaging owners in order to increase sales... if I were a more cynical person, I would wonder if they are selling boar trios with the expectation that they will end up separated and the owner will later come back for a fourth to pair up with a separated member of the original trio!
 
Ugh... I honestly wonder sometimes if pet shops aren't sabotaging owners in order to increase sales... if I were a more cynical person, I would wonder if they are selling boar trios with the expectation that they will end up separated and the owner will later come back for a fourth to pair up with a separated member of the original trio!

Nah, that would show too much knowledge on the part of the pet shop staff. Its just ignorance!
 
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