Mounting

[Bethanyxnicole]

I recently got 3 female guinea pigs they are DEFINITELY all female!
1 of them mounts another 1
It never does it to the other one however.
Do you think this could be a dominance thing and that they will be fine living together once they’ve resolved who’s ‘in charge’.

 

[Lady Kelly]

Hi and welcome to the forum. It's normal during dominance and can also happen during seasons as well. Particularly strong sow seasons can be pretty brutal to see and hear! How long have the girls been with you and living together? Initial dominance usually lasts a couple of weeks

 

[Wiebke]

I recently got 3 female guinea pigs they are DEFINITELY all female!
1 of them mounts another 1
It never does it to the other one however.
Do you think this could be a dominance thing and that they will be fine living together once they’ve resolved who’s ‘in charge’.

Hi and welcome

Sows mount each other in dominance in the weeks after initial bonding and also when they come into season. In adult/older sows sudden mounting can also be a sign of ovarian cysts. Generally sows will only mount the one just below or (lacking that) the one just ranked below in the group hierarchy.

Please take the time to read these very helpful guides here to work out what applies in your case and to understand better what is going on and what to look out for:
Sows: Behaviour and female health problems (including ovarian cysts)
When Sows Experience A Strong Season (videos)
Bonding and Interaction: Illustrated social behaviours and bonding dynamics (includes lots of pictures of interactive social behaviours and chapters on sow bonding and one the post-bonding dominance phase)

These guides are all part of our much more extensive New Owners guide collection, which aims to help them learning what is normal and not, what to look out for and which specifically addresses all the most often asked questions and concerns. The link makes a useful resource to refer to. It has the advantage that we can keep it constantly updated, unlike a printed book.
Getting Started - New Owners' Most Helpful Guides

 

[Bethanyxnicole]

Hi and welcome to the forum. It's normal during dominance and can also happen during seasons as well. Particularly strong sow seasons can be pretty brutal to see and hear! How long have the girls been with you and living together? Initial dominance usually lasts a couple of weeks

I got them last weekend but they’ve been living together in the pet shop
Thanks

 

[Wiebke]

I got them last weekend but they’ve been living together in the pet shop
Thanks

Your girls still have to establish a new group and group hierarchy in any new territory.

The dominance phase lasts around 2 weeks on average - but of course with sows, you will experience at lease one season per sow during this period, which can serve to make things more intense.

 

[Lady Kelly]

I got them last weekend but they’ve been living together in the pet shop
Thanks

Yes it will definitely be dominance then. New surroundings and a new cage to assert themselves in. What size cage do you have? 3 sows need a bit more space and then they should calm down in a week or so

 

[Bethanyxnicole]

I’m not sure exactly on the measurements but it’s the same size cage as I got for my 2 Netherland dwarfs to live in, Ive let them out for a run everyday since they have lived with me! It’s a lot bigger than the cage they was in at the shop

 

[Wiebke]

I’m not sure exactly on the measurements but it’s the same size cage as I got for my 2 Netherland dwarfs to live in, Ive let them out for a run everyday since they have lived with me! It’s a lot bigger than the cage they was in at the shop

Here is our cage size guide with a picture of all the generally available cages stacked into each other:
Cage Size Guide