Male or female guinea pigs - advice please

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Animal Lover

Hello to all you guinea pig experts. I'm new to the site and would be grateful for your advice on getting a pair of guinea pigs. I am getting my daughter 2 for Xmas and am trying to do all my homework to make sure I know how to look after them properly. My main problem is knowing whether to get 2 sows or 2 boars. Many of the books I've read give conflicting advice. The breeder that I'm getting them from said 2 boars make better pets if they're castrated. She said sows can get quite territorial. My vet said that it probably wouldn't be necessary to castrate the boars at all. The guinea pigs will have been raised together since pups, although not necessarily related. Looking at this site, it seems to me that there are significant issues with boars fighting and that castration is not a guarantee.

Help please ?

Diane
www.animalloversweb.com
 
Hi!

Everyone on here will tell you that castration makes no difference whatsoever to their temperament, it simply stops them from reproducing - that all!

In my opinion (un neutered!) boys make better pets - they are bolder, calmer and cheekier! I'm slightly biased I have 7! Usually if you get a young pair of brothers or two very young boys together they will be ok , its all down to personality really. Whatever you get for her just make sure its a same sex pair! ::)

Theres loads of information on here so as you have been doing just browse through and you be able to glean as much info as you can!

Good luck!
 
Hi and Welcome,

I have four boars in 2 pairs. Sunshine and Twinkle have been together since they were 2 months old they are now 7 months and they have had some disagreements but generally they do get on, even now when I put them in a new setting Twinkle will mount Sunshine just to tell him he is the boss it is all normal behaviour.

I have 2 Sows too who are sisters and even they can have the odd little disagreement, so what I am saying is it doesn't matter on the sex of the pig it's just finding two that can be friends together. Like people, they all have different personalities a dominant boar won't get along with aother dominant boar.

There are some good websites that are all for boars http://www.susieandpigs.pwp.blueyonder.co.uk/home.htm and http://jackiesguineapiggies.com/ is good for general info too.

I love boars, they have such big personalities, but with this being your first lot of pigs perhaps sows would be better. I wouldn't castrate unless there was a medical reason for doing so but that is a personal viewpoint. Castration doesn't calm a pig down if boars are going to fight, they are going to fight. :)

Good luck!

Louise
:)
 
I have 6 Boars. In Three Pairs!
One pair have been a nightmare. They used to chatter and argue all the time even though they are brothers, so we separated them for a while, then re-introduced them and they are now so happy together. I think they have worked out where they stand with each other and have grown up. One of my other pairs are also fab together. They have been with each other since birth and they have never ever had an arguement. Never hear any teeth chattering, they are always together cuddling.
My Sows however, have their disagreements, but they are in a group of 7 so you have to expect a bit of it really. When I have had two sows on there own together, they have been great.
IMO, I think it just depends on the pig. O0

Sophie
 
I agree with what everyone has said it is mainly down to personality. I would only like to add that with every young pair (males or females) although they may get on as babies this could change once they grow up and especially through adolescence.
I know that you probably want babies but it might be worth considering a slightly older pair (from a rescue for example) as they will have already have an established hierarchy and therefore have less chances of falling out in the future.
There are loads of people who run rescues on this forum that would be happy to help.
 
i have 5 girls and 2 boys, i never chose to have boys i just got a girly who was pregnant and kept her bubs..

i personally prefer girls as they dont scent therefore they dont smell as bad as the boys do.. having said that i do love my boys to pieces and they seem to have more character.. like duke is a complete social bee lol he loves any attention and is afraid of nothing.. which is good hes very confident, meeka is my little sow and shes like duke her brother.. so i guess it depends on the pig but personally i prefer females even though ive got both :) and i probably will not get any more boars after duke and archie have gone which hopefully wont be for 4-5 years yet if not more :)
 
I love boars, I have 8 of them in 4 pairs :smitten: :smitten:

They are cheeky, lovable and all have huge but very different personalities. There is a risk with boars falling out but I think if the owner is more nervous about it, it is more likely to happen. An already bonded pair or a pair of baby brothers is ideal. It is true about them scenting, mine do it sometimes but not all that much.
 
HI :D

I currently have 2 boars and 2 sows (had 3 of each in total over the years) and they seem to me to have two distinct personalities.

My boars have always been very fun, robust, more outgoing (like they've been wired to the national grid sometimes) like there are no half measures - when they're lively they jump everywhere but when snuggle up they go to sleep. But they are a little bit smelly occassionally and cna be tougher to handle.

My sows have always been more gentle, calm and delicate. They're easier to handle and snuggle more, albeit just by laying down and resting their heads - no sleeping. They are a little more moody though, and I found them less trusting :(

I'd suggest you and your daughter choosing the animals you feel you have a connection with, regardless of sex (as long as they're both the same sex of couse ;) ) But which would your daughter prefer?
 
lavenderjade said:
I love boars, I have 8 of them in 4 pairs :smitten: :smitten:

They are cheeky, lovable and all have huge but very different personalities. There is a risk with boars falling out but I think if the owner is more nervous about it, it is more likely to happen. An already bonded pair or a pair of baby brothers is ideal. It is true about them scenting, mine do it sometimes but not all that much.
Click to expand...
really? mine seem to scent everyday, every time i clean the cage etc..
 
i personally think sows are just as nice. I have one castrated boar living with 5 sows, and the girls are as friendly as my boy, and just as funny.

I think it is down to the individual guinea pigs, and I agree that getting a slightly older pair with a stronger bond from a rescue is the best idea. Just take the pair that you take to most, regardless of their sex.

Well done for coming on here to do your research first, before buying them on impulse. Have a look around and get familiar with things like minimum cage sizes and that, just so that you dont buy the wrong equipment and waste your money. No exercise balls or salt/mineral licks!

Good luck finding your pair! I hope you find them by xmas! If you start a thread in the rescue section on here, you'll get loads of replies. There are hundreds of guinea pigs that are in need of new homes.

Oh, and when you get them, we want to see the pictures on here! ;D
 
I meant to say that 2 of my boys came from pet shops and it was harder getting them to settle. My other 2 boys 1 came from a vets whose mum had been abandoned and my other boy was from p@h but he was out the back and seemed to be cared for better as he is allergic to woodshavings.

My girls on the other hand came from a rescue and it did show, they were so placid and lovely from day one and extremely cuddly. You may touch lucky with a couple of young pigs from a rescue but really at this time of year rescues are full to the brim and need genuine people to give some pigs a home. :)
 
I had the same problem when me and my OH decided to get some pigs, lots of conflicting information around. From what I have learnt I agree with everyone on here, it is (unfortunately) down to luck in most cases. You can push things in your favour by getting young ones or a bonded pair from a rescue.

– perhaps a rescue (there are people on here that run them just shout and someone will come running) would have a bonded pair that are already quite tame and therefore more suitable for your daughter to learn to handle and about animals.

Do make sure you do all of your homework, I never realised before I had them how much work Guinea pigs actually are, not that I mind it, I love my pigs but just saying, they do require a significant amount of attention and care, My 2 tiny little “look-how-cute-sweetheart-shall-we-have-those-and-put-them-in-the-cage-we-have?†boys now take up a 6ft x 3ft space on my living room floor, weigh 1250g and 968g and eat about £4 worth of salad and veg, £2 of herbage hay and £2 of medow hay every week.

On the upside, they are great fun, noisy, cheeky, and with their own (not so little) personalities.
 
spudnik said:
lavenderjade said:
I love boars, I have 8 of them in 4 pairs :smitten: :smitten:

They are cheeky, lovable and all have huge but very different personalities. There is a risk with boars falling out but I think if the owner is more nervous about it, it is more likely to happen. An already bonded pair or a pair of baby brothers is ideal. It is true about them scenting, mine do it sometimes but not all that much.
Click to expand...
really? mine seem to scent everyday, every time i clean the cage etc..
Click to expand...

Mine only do it if they smell where some of my others have been during floor time or if they are having a bit of a tiff! I clean their floor time areas now with animal deodoriser so it has eliminated that part of the problem! I really dont find them too smelly at all :)
 
Hi Diane. I would recommend 2 sows. Although I agree with others that there's no absolute guarentee of them getting on even if they are female, you have a better chance of them getting on than a pair of males. I have never had problems with 2 females together.
 
i have two sows and their gr8 :smitten: and really affectionate especially fudge who 1 year old i think it depends on the piggy itself

;D
 
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