Sibling Rivalry getting out of hand

RedVipey

RedVipey

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As of now my two boars are having a pretty big stink with each other, of course they often have a lot of little fights about dominance or they get annoyed at each other (and it seems to be happening more and more lately...) but this evening it's been bad and I'm concerned.

Teddy (who is the dominant one) seems very stressed out and annoyed chewing the cage bars and throwing around a blanket while his brother Goro keeps approaching and provokes him by rumble strutting or bearing his teeth, Teddy immediately is agitated and will charge him and teeth chatter just seeming really upset. I don't see any injuries or see them actually attacking each other.

Another problem is they only sleep in a certain spot close together, even with other beds around the cage they feel safe together but then argue anyway 😒 Teddy just keeps jumping up to the second story to get away from Mr rumblestrut, would just separate them temporarily but it's getting late here.
Is there anything I should do or let them be for tonight thanks
 
They're two months old, seem to be in the warning stage. By "little fights" just being agitated with each other, showing teeth and angry squeaking at most. Tonight feels a bit more intense though.
 
Please do keep a close eye if things are in the warning stage.

do they have two of every item?
All hideys have two exits?
Is their cage big enough? Boars need a lot of room as they are more territorial and need space to get away from each other, so a cage measuring 180x60cm is recommended.
 
They live in a 140x70cm cage, They do have two of every item aside from two fresh food bowls which I fixed today. Their hidey/sleep area is below a second floor so it's quite spacious and they can exit wherever, Also put another bed across the cage incase last night.

Luckily today they seem okay, just annoyed squeaks when they're close. Reason I thought it wasn't normal dominance behavior is Teddy often is the instigator and will mount Goro, after 10 or 15 minutes they'll back to popcorning or hanging out. Teddy was very upset jumping the top floor to get away from Goro and being very aggressive.
 
If the submissive is now doing the mounting and rumbling, then it may be he is trying to take over.
Some dominance is normal and to be expected, but if they can’t even walk past each other without bearing their teeth, I’d be keeping a very close eye on the situation. Even being biological siblings doesn’t mean they will have compatibility and be able to remain together.

I’ll add in some guides below to help you work out whether there are deeper set problems in their relationship. Character compatibility is vital to a successful bond and if two piggies don’t have it, then they will not be able to remain living together.

If you can increase the cage size then it would be of huge benefit - every cm really does count when it comes to boars as they need so much more space. While, as I said, character compatibility is the most important part, lack of space can cause them problems. Your cage converts to 10 square ft which is the minimum size for a boar pair, 12 square feet is the recommended size. More space won’t fix compatibility problems though and it is also worth bearing in mind that if they do need to be split, then they both need a cage measuring 120x60cm as a minimum.

Bonds In Trouble
A Comprehensive Guide to Guinea Pig Boars
Dominance Behaviours In Guinea Pigs
Boars: Teenage, Bullying, Fighting, Fall-outs And What Next?
 
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Cheers I'll check out the guides, Unfortunately not allowed to get a larger cage (for now at least) but can work on their compatibility and monitor them. Thanks for your help.
 
RedVipey said:
Cheers I'll check out the guides, Unfortunately not allowed to get a larger cage (for now at least) but can work on their compatibility and monitor them. Thanks for your help.
Click to expand...

I'm afraid you can’t work on their compatibility. They either have it or they don’t and there is nothing you can do if they don’t get on other than permanently separate them.
It really is in their best interests to have a bigger cage as soon as possible as lack of space can cause a fight and break their bond. I appreciate it may not be your decision but just a word of warning that waiting until later to get a bigger cage may already be too late.
 
:agr: They really need a bigger cage. Even though it won’t necessarily mean they get on. What would you do if you had to separate? They’d each need a 120x60cm cage. Would that be possible? Bearing in mind you can’t keep piggies alone?
 
Unfortunately can't at all, living with my family and my father is really strict about space in the house. He'd probably rather get rid of them then have a bigger CxC cage. We did look at a 5x2 cage before getting the one we have now and he wasn't keen at all.
 
I’m afraid given those circumstances you may have to consider whether you can meet all their needs. I know it’s not what you want to hear though.
 
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