Need Help With My Two Piggies?! - Failed Boar Bonding

[Brianna Lupton]

I am new at this forum and I live in the states but this is the only forum I could find. I bought a Guinea pig from the pet store about a month ago who is about 3 months old. He had his own cage and was living all good but I didn't want him to get lonely. I rescued another Guinea pig who is 6 months old ( but looks like he is full grown! He's huge) the rescue had a severe ear infection and has a head tilt now and may be a little brain dead. The two lived in separate cages while I quarantined the new piggy. Today I put them together and they did okay. They were in a neutral territory and got along fine. Of course there was a little dominant personalities showing but they were fine and chasing each other and eating together. So I transferred them to a brand new c&c cage with plenty of food and room and they both were trying to be dominant and started a fight. I put a divider in between them and now they are trying to get through the divider to each other. I don't know what they want? Is it okay for them to both live separate with the divider? I don't want them to get lonely but I also don't want to buy more piggies for them to have friends. By the way, they are both boars. I want them to either live together and be happy or live with the divider and be happy.

 

[Wiebke]

I am new at this forum and I live in the states but this is the only forum I could find. I bought a Guinea pig from the pet store about a month ago who is about 3 months old. He had his own cage and was living all good but I didn't want him to get lonely. I rescued another Guinea pig who is 6 months old ( but looks like he is full grown! He's huge) the rescue had a severe ear infection and has a head tilt now and may be a little brain dead. The two lived in separate cages while I quarantined the new piggy. Today I put them together and they did okay. They were in a neutral territory and got along fine. Of course there was a little dominant personalities showing but they were fine and chasing each other and eating together. So I transferred them to a brand new c&c cage with plenty of food and room and they both were trying to be dominant and started a fight. I put a divider in between them and now they are trying to get through the divider to each other. I don't know what they want? Is it okay for them to both live separate with the divider? I don't want them to get lonely but I also don't want to buy more piggies for them to have friends. By the way, they are both boars. I want them to either live together and be happy or live with the divider and be happy.

Hi and welcome!

Your two boys can live with a divider in between, so they have their own territory, but have got the round the clock mutual stimulation from each other. Bonding teenage boys is the most difficult age for success as the testosterone levels are at an all-time high. We have got a number of members who have got "can't live with but can't live without" relationship boars who are firmly bonded through the bars, but will start fighting whenever they share space.
You may find the information in this thread here helpful: Boars: Bullying, Fighting, Fall-outs And What Next?

Sadly, an ear infection that is not being treated promptly (which in your case was not possible for you) can leave a piggy with a permanent head tilt, but your rescue boy should in time get more used to it.

We have got members from all over the world including the US, but in order to help us always being able to tailor any advice for what is relevant for where you are straight aways we ask our members to please add their country and/or state to their details. Click on your username on the top bar, then go to personal details and scroll down to location. Thank you!

 

[MerryPip]

Like @Wiebke says living with a divider is fine if this works best for them. Boys at the age of your two are the most difficult to bond as they are full of the joys of spring and hormones which make the battle for dominance a tricky one!

It may be that as they get older things calm down and you could try again to reintroduce them. After the age of 2 boars are often much easier to bond as they are more calm and settled in their personalities. Successful bonds are all about personality, just like in people There are a fair amount of people who have boys in the same situation where they can't chare a cage but don't like to be apart and often 'chat' through the divider. As long as they can see, hear and sniff each other then they are getting plenty of interaction and shouldn't be too lonely.

By considering introducing another friend for either of them you run the same risk you have already, yet another boar which may need to live separately. Ideally bonding via a good rescue helps reduce this risk but I know good rescues, especially those with experience of boar bonding, can be few and far between in the US.