Sudden separation of 4 sows

Rob Collins

Rob Collins

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My guinea pig saga continues. I had 2 sows and introduced 2 sows. Ultimately they were all getting along ok(ish) - the details of that are here: 2 sows bonding 2 sows
BUT today I realised that the original 2 sows who I got 3 weeks ago were PREGNANT (no wonder their behaviour was a bit hyper). I took them to a guinea pig rescue nearby who has confrimed this for me and taken them in. That leaves the other 2 new ones. What has really surprised me is that the two newer ones, who are quite tame and came together now seem to be showing agressive behaviour. Well, one of them is bullying the other one so that she constantly hides in a hay rack (!) squeeking loudly when the other one comes near. How is that 2 piggies who knew each other before are now at loggerheads? Is it because the consensus that was taking place with the four has now been broken again and they have to re-set their hierarchy again? I thought these 2 would be friends for life, previously they were often curled up together etc.
In the long run (I don't want to change anything now for at least a few months) I would like to introduce a neutered boar - I think 3 is probably a better combo than 2?
Any help much appreciated. Thanks Rob
 
I’m sorry to hear this.

Yes now there has been a change in the grouping, they now have to establish a hierarchy as a pair - if they can.
You and they now have to work out whether this is normal dominance and if they do actually like each other enough to sort things out.

If there are bullying behaviours taking place (these are a specific set of behaviours which go beyond dominance) then the bond is unlikely to survive and they will probably need to be permanently separated.

You won’t be able to add a boar in with two sows who don’t get on.
A boar won’t fix any issues the sows have (he is not part of sow hierarchy); he would ultimately have to side with one of the sows and the trio won’t work.

If the sows have to be separated then they will each need their own friend

The guide below explains how to check the functionality of a relationship and how to spot when sows are bullying (which tends to be more subtle and harder to spot in sows than in boars)

Bonds In Trouble
 
I’m sorry they are having trouble settling down. Hopefully it will sort itself out quickly 🤞🏻🤞🏻
 
These two are still not getting on, or rather one is dominating the other in a low-level but upsetting kind of way. It has only been 5 days since they were back alone together. There have been no fights and the squealing of the dominated piggie is much less. But I see her often just sitting in her hide while the other one roams around and occasionally buts in to chase her. I can't imagine that these two will ever be curled up together. On a positive note, whenever I bring lettuce to the cage, they both leap and squeal with their noses together and eat from the same leaf without any problems. With this kind of low-level dominance, when will I know whether they can live together or not? Should I get another sow to difuse the tension a bit?
 
As per my advice above - You have to check the functionality of the bond of the two you have by following the advice in the guide I linked in earlier - Bonds In Trouble

Separate them for several days and watch and see if the piggy who is hiding, comes out and is happier once she is no longer with the other.
If she does perk up and appear happier separated from the other piggy then that can mean there is a dysfunctional bond and they then can need to be permanently separated.

Adding another piggy won’t necessarily diffuse anything if there’s an issue between them - it could in fact makes things worse. So you need to find out if the two you have can get on before you do anything else
 
Hello - so the situation is this. At times both piggies seem happy to be together, eating next to each other from the same hay stack. They both use each other's hides, although they kind of have their own. There are no nip marks on the subservient piggy, who seems happy enough, foreaging about and so on. But - occasionally there will be short nose-to-nose and then a short chase, and a bit of rumble strutting (from both). They don't curl up together in the same hide, which they did when there were 4 of them. What do you think? Its only been 5 days since the other 2 sows left?
 
Rob Collins said:
Hello - so the situation is this. At times both piggies seem happy to be together, eating next to each other from the same hay stack. They both use each other's hides, although they kind of have their own. There are no nip marks on the subservient piggy, who seems happy enough, foreaging about and so on. But - occasionally there will be short nose-to-nose and then a short chase, and a bit of rumble strutting (from both). They don't curl up together in the same hide, which they did when there were 4 of them. What do you think? Its only been 5 days since the other 2 sows left?
Click to expand...

So this post reads differently to the previous one. This one sounds like their relationship is really rather normal including normal dominance.

It’s also very normal for piggies to not snuggle up together in the same hide.
They aren’t like other species such as rabbits for whom bonded pairs will snuggle up together - I never saw my bonded piggies choose to sleep together but my bonded rabbit pairs don’t ever leave each other alone!
 
Sounds like my two boars. They will eat happily together and beg together for treats, but will never share a hide or even sleep together at the same end of the cage. One of them (Pebble) will usually chase Patrick away from where he wants to eat, sleep, sit. It’s not unkind. Just the hierarchy.
 
Keep an eye on them. But hopefully in another week or so they will be fine.
 
Thanks - they will probably never be really good friends, but they seem to rub along ok. I've never seen anything that resembles a fight, and most of the time seem to content to sit munching together in the same hay tray. I have a question though, I would like to introduce another piggie at some point, maybe in a couple of months - what is the easiest option with the highest success rate? I am thinking a baby female sow, or an older neutered boar? Thanks
 
Sounds a lot like my two sows (sisters) who did a lot of rumbling and squeaking when they first came to me. They are now totally fine. It took around two weeks for them to settle.
 
Rob Collins said:
Thanks - they will probably never be really good friends, but they seem to rub along ok. I've never seen anything that resembles a fight, and most of the time seem to content to sit munching together in the same hay tray. I have a question though, I would like to introduce another piggie at some point, maybe in a couple of months - what is the easiest option with the highest success rate? I am thinking a baby female sow, or an older neutered boar? Thanks
Click to expand...

A baby sow can’t challenge the hierarchy and a neutered boar (he doesn’t have to be older) isn’t part of sow hierarchy - so yes, either one of those has a good chance of success provided you get the right piggies…, any bond comes down to compatibility so while they are good options there is no complete guarantee of success.

I can’t remember how old the two sows you have are but generally speaking, the older the sows the less chance of accepting any other piggy into their pairing - and that goes for babies or neutered boars.

Adding More Guinea Pigs Or Merging Pairs – What Works And What Not?
 
2 years old is fine (assuming the piggies have character compatibility). It’s after 3 years old that the can start to be less accepting of a boar.

The guide I added previously explains everything more
 
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