Neutered male guinea pigs living with Netherlan Dwarf Rabbit

[Vivien Aspey]

First I know guinea pigs and rabbits are not supposed to live together but it was a vet who actually suggested this. A Netherland Dwarf is almost the same size as a mature well fed boar guinea pig. And for over a year everything was hunky dory. The rabbit and the 3 male guinea pigs got on fine.
Then I noticed that one of the male guinea pigs, Hamish, had marks on his skin that turned out to be guinea pig bites. I had him checked out by the vet and it transpired that while I had thought Hamish had been neutered, he hadn't, which explained why there had been aggression among the three because the other two were definitely neutered.
So Hamish was duly neutered, but when I tried to reintroduce him to his 2 mates, Owen and Murphy, some time after his neutering, he and Owen flew at each other.
Somebody who knows a lot about animals has told.me that harmony will never be restored and that I need to find a little lady for Hamish. All very well but this is a road of no return.
Meanwhile the Netherland Dwarf still gets in with everyone and vice versa.
I'm thinking that I need to place the rabbit with the other 2 guinea pigs at the same time as introducing a female to Hamish.
What does everybody think? The history of Mishnish, the Netherland Dwarf, is that he was rescued from Gumtree after his owners decided to get rid of him because he and his former female cage mate fought.
An alternative would be to try Hamish and his former male buddies together again in a neutral environment, with or without Mishnish the rabbit.
This is all about humans creating an unnatural environment for small furries and the answer to the situation is about damage limitation.

 

[Merrypigs Sanctuary]

Sadly boar trios rarely work so you are right to separate Hamish (especially once blood has been drawn or someone is bitten!) Neutering has no effect on the behaviour of pigs sadly, unlike with buns, dogs etc

It's not only the size of bunnies which can be a problem, there are a few others too:

Different dietary requirements: Hamish would need g.pig food enriched with vit.c. Mishnish doesn't need this but will require his own rabbit food - it's very difficult to ensure rabbit eats only rabbit food and vice versa!

80% of domestic bunnies also carry bordatella - a cause of respiratory disease. As carriers the bunnies are not affected, but a pig could easily catch bordatella from a bunny and it can be very severe for them.

Bunnies and piggies speak a completely different language too! It would be like us living with someone we can't communicate with, which could be very frustrating. Things like, the high pitched wheek of an excited pig is similar to the sound of an incredibly distressed or dying bunny!

It's best really for buns to live with other buns and pigs to live with other pigs I am sure Hamish would most enjoy having a wife-pig to live with

 

[Wiebke]

First I know guinea pigs and rabbits are not supposed to live together but it was a vet who actually suggested this. A Netherland Dwarf is almost the same size as a mature well fed boar guinea pig. And for over a year everything was hunky dory. The rabbit and the 3 male guinea pigs got on fine.
Then I noticed that one of the male guinea pigs, Hamish, had marks on his skin that turned out to be guinea pig bites. I had him checked out by the vet and it transpired that while I had thought Hamish had been neutered, he hadn't, which explained why there had been aggression among the three because the other two were definitely neutered.
So Hamish was duly neutered, but when I tried to reintroduce him to his 2 mates, Owen and Murphy, some time after his neutering, he and Owen flew at each other.
Somebody who knows a lot about animals has told.me that harmony will never be restored and that I need to find a little lady for Hamish. All very well but this is a road of no return.
Meanwhile the Netherland Dwarf still gets in with everyone and vice versa.
I'm thinking that I need to place the rabbit with the other 2 guinea pigs at the same time as introducing a female to Hamish.
What does everybody think? The history of Mishnish, the Netherland Dwarf, is that he was rescued from Gumtree after his owners decided to get rid of him because he and his former female cage mate fought.
An alternative would be to try Hamish and his former male buddies together again in a neutral environment, with or without Mishnish the rabbit.
This is all about humans creating an unnatural environment for small furries and the answer to the situation is about damage limitation.

Hi and welcome

Neutering doesn't change boar behaviour or personality once bit. It sounds unfortunately like your vet is well behind the horizon when it comes to welfare developments or basic guinea pig knowledge.

Personally I would recommend to consider strongly rescue date your bunny (neutered of course, as that really is important for either gender) with a doe of his own at bunny rescue. He will be much more happy with a companion that speaks his own language and understands him in way that guinea pigs never can!

Keep your two boys that are getting on together, well away from any sow pheromones that can trigger more fights.
Sub-adult boar trios unfortunately have a 90% fall-out rate during the teenage months and are surefire recipe for disaster! Other trio combinations still fail more than they work as they are the constellation most prone to outsider issues of all kinds. Three are most often two and one...

Rescue date your fallen-out boar with a sow or two that will accept him so you come home only with new piggies if acceptance has happened. Piggies are like people; they don't just get on with everyone and have quite pronounced likes and dislikes. You are looking for complementary personalities. The best way of avoiding any more trouble (like bringing home an accidentally pregnant sows that has been in a presence of a full boar after 3 weeks of age) is a rescue with mandatory quarantine and pregnancy watch.

Neutered / De-sexed Boars And Neutering Operations: Myths And Facts
Boars: Teenage, Bullying, Fighting, Fall-outs And What Next?
Adding More Guinea Pigs Or Merging Pairs – What Works And What Not?
Guinea Pigs And Rabbits - Why Not

Recommended UK guinea pig rescues: Recommended Guinea Pig Rescues
Recommended rescues in some other countries: Guinea Lynx :: Rescue Organizations