Male guinea pigs with cuts - are they fighting?

[Serenyx]

Hi,

We have two boars who are approximately 7 months old. We have had them since they were 12 weeks old and they have always lived together. I noticed a couple of small cuts on the side of one of them the other day and wondered what he had done, but as we have never seen any sign of aggression between them I assumed he had caught himself on something / pulled his fur out. Now today I have found several cuts on the other boar. They live outside in a 5ft hutch and have a good 4+ hours exercise per day in an outside run. In fact they are outside now, snuggled up together in the run. Is there anything else it could be or do I assume they have been fighting? Ideally separation would be a last resort. I know they could be vying for dominance at this age and I have had pairs in the past (although those were sows, not boars). Any advice would be gratefully received.

Thanks.

 

[Lady Kelly]

Can you see any tension between them? Do they lie down together or constantly chase? Have you noticed them scratching at all?

It could be bites but that doesn't mean that they are biting each other. When piggies have a mite infestation they itch a lot so can bite themselves

 

[Serenyx]

Thanks for your reply. There is no obvious tension, they chase each other in the run sometimes but since they are also popcorning at times I assume they are playing. They are content to nap together in their igloo and often graze right next to each other. In their hutch I haven't seen any chasing etc at all.

I haven't seen them scratch at all but have just given them a thorough check over and whilst I can't see anything on the shorter coated boar (who has the most cuts) the longer coated boar could have something in his coat. I think a trip to the vets may be in order just to rule out mites.

They are spot cleaned daily with a full clean out and the hutch disinfected once a week. I use the Johnsons disinfectant. Are there any better brands?

 

[Lady Kelly]

Mites are invisible to the human eye but quite often they get a telltale v halfway down the back where they have been biting at their hair/skin. Lice can also make them itch and this can be seen, especially on darker hair pigs but extremely tiny still. I think a vets check would be good as broken skin and scabbing could be a fungal condition too so better to be safe and ensure you get the right treatment.

I use F10 as a disinfectant as it is one of the few (or maybe the only) one that kills fungal spores. I invested the first time I had a ringworm outbreak and now its the disinfectant I use every week.

I think there is a health problem here rather than fighting. My experience of a fight or tussle involved a lot of teeth chattering and all four pigs sat in different corners (two upstairs and two down) quiet and subdued, its was a very eerie atmosphere. The fact your boys are popcorning and content to eat and sleep together indicates that it is not a bond in trouble.