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bumbling-bambi

Junior Guinea Pig
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So just as a quick disclaimer i am aware that boars can be grouchy and that dominance plays a big part in this! I know who is the dominant pig and who is the submissive but i was just wondering if anyone else finds this! Also i apologise in advance for the novel i am about to write!

So my boys are kept on shavings - I've tried them on various other beddings but they seem the happiest on shavings and thats fine with me! I do a full clean out of the cage every week or so (its a big double story cage so uses lots of shavings!) spot clean every other day and they spend a lot of their time out of the cage anyway so hygiene isn't really an issue. they are also bathed on a monthly basis (give or take!) to ensure they are kept clean in themselves as they are both very long haired!

So here is the thing - when I've left the cage and its slightly dirtier than normal (by that i mean i haven't done a spot clean in a few days and they are beginning to need a good clean out) they start to argue as it were - Sometimes if i am exceptionally busy that day and it gets to the evening they can start fighting... Now this only happens when they get a bit smelly!
In the interests of science and whatnot i did a little experiment today - I left spot cleaning for 3 days more than i usually would (it wasn't that dirty so they weren't uncomfortable) and the fighting started. So i took them out and popped them in a travel case/carrier to see if it was an issue between them in general (they were closely supervised at this point so had no chance of hurting one and other) and nope nothing not even a peep, now they were in there for a good 20/25 minutes while i cleaned and disinfected the cage. So my interpretation of that is that they get on pretty well (for boars anyway).
So now they have been in the clean cage for about 3 hours and not the slightest peep has been made from either of them - both pigs are sharing food (odd i know) and cleaning each other before snuggling up to sleep. This mostly happens when the cage is totally clean.

They have 2 of everything in the cage so there is no arguments over anything and the layout of the cage means if they don't want to they don't actually have to see each other! (or more importantly should anything go wrong and a big serious fight breaks out i can separate them quickly without anyone missing out on anything!)
The important point i'd like to make before someone tries to report me for neglect is that both of my boys are healthy, eat a full an varied diet, they have good ventilation/access to fresh air and sunlight and for the most part they are kept clean through baths (when they need it/about once a month) and I keep on top of their bedding/mess as they are indoor pigs its our best interests as well as theirs!
They are on the same cleaning schedule (more or less) as my particularly picky snake so cleanliness isn't usually an issue.
They only get smelly or messy when i have been exceptionally busy with Uni work or something major is going on in the house!

I was just wondering if anyone else has experienced this phenomenon with their boars? I would assume it has something to do with scent marking and dominance but please correct me if I'm wrong!
 
Sorry but I only have one boar, who is currently living next door to two bonded females.

He is going to be neutered in four weeks (just before Christmas) so he can go in with the girls mid February.

I have heard that large cages reduce the risks of fights. I am sure that someone more knowledgable will be along soon.
 
Sorry but I only have one boar, who is currently living next door to two bonded females.

He is going to be neutered in four weeks (just before Christmas) so he can go in with the girls mid February.

I have heard that large cages reduce the risks of fights. I am sure that someone more knowledgable will be along soon.

Thank you :) My boys are currently in a double story rabbit cage as they are still growing and i dont have the ability to give them a bigger more permanent house yet. We will be renting a bigger place next year with the sole intention of making sure they have an even bigger cage (just because i like to watch them run around and explore!) I've been told by my vet that the cage they are currently in is fine and suits them quite well especially as they spend most of their day in an indoor run (actually meant for dogs so its huge too - its actually bigger than my sofa xD)
 
Bigger than your sofa? I'm quite jealous. :D

I use a run/playpen for my girlies. My little Snowy has daily (sometimes more) cuddles. In fact all of my piggies have lap time, just at different times for obvious reasons.
 
Just to say, in a nutshell - yes! But I have two girls, and they don't fight, just get a little unsettled, as it were, if I leave their cage just one day longer than scheduled. I've been busy today, needing to pop in and out, and I like to have a couple of clear hours to do their change. Sunday's usually the change day, and they usually get extended play pen time if I'm in all day. As today has been unusually busy, they've had neither, and they're a little whiny and restless :(

Sorry gals, we'll have our Sunday tomorrow :)
 
It takes me 30mins to clean the cage...and an extra hour for cuddles!

If piggies were not so cute I would get it done faster...
 
Bigger than your sofa? I'm quite jealous. :D

I use a run/playpen for my girlies. My little Snowy has daily (sometimes more) cuddles. In fact all of my piggies have lap time, just at different times for obvious reasons.

it takes up most of my living room xD it drives my boyfriend nuts xD
 
Just to say, in a nutshell - yes! But I have two girls, and they don't fight, just get a little unsettled, as it were, if I leave their cage just one day longer than scheduled. I've been busy today, needing to pop in and out, and I like to have a couple of clear hours to do their change. Sunday's usually the change day, and they usually get extended play pen time if I'm in all day. As today has been unusually busy, they've had neither, and they're a little whiny and restless :(

Sorry gals, we'll have our Sunday tomorrow :)

I figured it can't just be my two xD they are both very high energy pigs so tend to need a lot of time in the run so as long as i can ensure they have food and water and the top is zipped up then they can be in there while I'm at uni because usually its only 2 hours or so before my boyfriend gets home to keep an eye on them xD If i didnt live so close to my uni or no one was in for large amounts of the day i probably wouldnt leave them in there unattended but its a pretty sturdy cage which can be secured well and they have a pretty good set up in there if they are in there for the day. they have a freestanding water bottle holder (i secure it to the side so no one can knock it over and get hurt though) some pellet food to nibble on and two big piles of hay to munch on. I like to leave some big igloos in there for them to hide in and they seem to like playing about under the towel i use to give them some more grip on the bottom along with other toys and stuff to do so they dont tend to get too bored xD
 
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