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ruelgirl	help		Lead	[-]
Posts: 13 05/27/09 07:54 AM	Tags : None Hi , I recently rescued 2 boys from a lady who rescues guinea pigs. They are full grown and have been together since november at the ladies house. One boy is a rumble strutter, the other simon is older I think and just tolerates it. 2 weeks ago I went to the pet store to buy a glass water bottle ( was told they dont leak as much) and watched the guinea pigs for 20 min one pig was being chased they had 5 in a small space and this little white one being bullied and running for its life ! I bought it was told is was a male and brought it home to live in another c&c that I had availabe to make a cage for outside when we are out there. I found a bald spot on the little white one and brought it to the vet had all 3 treated for mites just in case and was told it was a female who could be pregnant if it was in a cage with males! They live in oposites sides of the room and we have been careful to do the boys cage first then the girl etc. Every night I put in their beds and for a month they each had their own bed , sunday the rumble strutting guy bubba he decides to go in simon's bed and poor old simon spent the night meandering around the cage. Monday morning I hear a banging over and over and the boys are in the air fighting HUGE fight teeth chattering, I clap my hands and throw a blanket on them and remove one from the cage Bubba now has a split lip poor guy and simon a scratch on his nose. I seperated them all day put them in the entrance with water hay food etc , changed the cage and had to put a seperation between them, they now hate each other and if I put them together in a big space it takes 45 sec for the teeth and rumbles and yawns to begin! Now their 2x4 c&c has turned into 2x2, and still Bubba spends his day biting the divider... Its a nightmare I now have 3 seperate guinea pigs. I have no more room to build as they are in my dining room aside from putting them downstaires where I think its too quiet, and dont know what to do! The rescue lady said I could return one, get one neutered to live with the female , return both, make new cages... I tried to ask the kids if we should keep simon and get him neutered and one daughter said yes the other said no she loves Bubba ! I would never had brought a female into the situation, I have never bought a pet other than a fish from a pet store! The rescue lady has 2 females will they get along with mine or can this happen again? will bubba and simon ever get along again? Is it safe to neuter a male and is it guareenteed that simon will get along with the female? sorry its so long, I am just so sad about this! Thanks....
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PooksiedAnimals		#1	[url]	[-]
Posts: 4082 05/27/09 10:06 AM Moderator	Given the fact that Bubba had been rumblestrutting for a while, I think this is has been building up for some time. If one of them is under a year old, it may be an upset with the pecking order. If Simon is young, he may be passively not being as submissive as before. If Bubba is the younger one, then obviously he's being aggressive about being the top pig. He may grow out of it and stop being such a butt-head. Unfortunately, there are no pat answers for any of your questions. Bubba and Simon may get along again, but it may take 6 months or more to get them to the point of reintroducing them. Neutering is safer than spaying a sow, but it is surgery, and there is always a chance that the boar will not make it through the surgery, or develop an infection later. Guinea pigs all have different personalities, and so just because you put a fixed boar and sow together, there's no guarantee they'll like each other (although, I've rarely heard of a boar and sow drawing blood from a fight). If you can deal with the bar-chewing, and want to give Bubba and Simon a chance, you could leave them as they are now. Its not ideal, but give it a few months, and see if it all calms down. If Bubba mellows out a bit, you could try reintroductions in a few months. But you should probably think about what to do if that doesn't work (either get larger cages for both of them, get one neutered, bring them back to the rescue, etc). Or you can work something out with the rescue. What are you planning to do with this sow you got, or with the babies if she has them? How many pigs total are you looking to keep? You say the rescue has 2 sows -- are they spayed, and you're hoping to split up Bubba and Simon with them? I guess I'm confused at what you're hoping to get as a final pig configuration.
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ruelgirl		#2	[url]	[-]
Posts: 13 05/27/09 01:51 PM	Hi again, The girl I have may or may not be pregnant. If she is the rescue will place the babies and if one is a female I will keep it with her. If she isn't pregnant which I dont think she is I want to get her a female companion. that would mean 2 pairs. What I meant is if the rescue lady had a home for the boys seperately I would take the girls she has and make one big cage, but from what I understand the girls may not get along and I will be back where I started. so I will try and make a seperate cage for simon and bubba where they cant see each other and then in a few week try and reintroduce them. right now I feel bad that they are in such small living area. I guess we had them for a month . (Simon and bubba and the girl 2 wks). Simon is older than bubba the lady said Bubba is about 18 months? Simon hard to tell because he is already grown, I know he weighs more than bubba and looks bigger.? Thanks again... I am so stressed ... I put them together again, in a large space and its bubba who is starting it he rumble struts then walks by and with his back leg kicks simon! Oh well I will have them seperated!
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PooksiedAnimals		#3	[url]	[-]
Posts: 4082 05/27/09 02:49 PM Moderator	Did Simon and Bubba live together before you got them? It seems odd, that if they're both over a year old, that they'd be having a falling-out now. It sometimes happens if one is ill, but it sounds like all of your pigs are healthy. If Bubba is 18 months, he certainly shouldn't be growing. Different pigs can be different sizes. How much do each of them weigh? If the rescue has a pair of bonded adult sows, that may be the easiest route to go. They shouldn't have a falling out. You always run the risk of an upset when introducing a third pig into any mix. So if you get the sows, adding in your current sow will require that dominance gets reestablished. I know this can be stressful. I've had a bonded pair start fighting because one was ill and the other decided to take advantage of it. I've also tried introducing a bonded pair to a single pig, with less than stellar results. And all you want is for them all to get along! How hard can that be??
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ruelgirl		#4	[url]	[-]
Posts: 13 05/27/09 09:22 PM	Hi again, I spent the whole day re-arranging their house so that they cant see each other. In a few weeks, months, I will try and get them back together! I made them a 2x3 each and Simon is so happy he runs around it but Bubba is a bit out of sorts.. I stacked them so if they become friends again I can always make it a 2 story house... more correlated plastic but I couldn't give them back. Simon was found in a box with a female, outside our local spca, when the rescue lady adopted him, she only rescues guinea pigs, the female with him had babies and have all since been adopted this was in nov. last year, and Bubba was a private release, he was caged with his brother who used to dominate him so the lady put them together and they really got along well, until this week. I think Simon was not feeling well when we first got him and has since gotten his confidence back so he doesn't want to take Bubbas rumble struts anymore! Next week I have a vet appointment so I will bring all 3 and make sure they are all healthy. The sow is still skittish as she is still not used to us and noise etc. but when we hold her she snuggles up to our shoulder and enjoys being petted. The only sad thing is they all now live alone! I will post pics tomorrow of their house etc. Just too tired tonight! Simon weighs 2.77lbs Bubba 2.11 lbs Mabel the sow weighs 1.54lbs this was 2 wks ago when I brought them to the vet for mites treatment just incase the sow coming from a pet store had mites, she had a small bald spot but it may have been a bite mark, from the pigs in the store. The vet tech. weighed them as the vet who deals with guinea pigs was not in but next week I see the vet. so she will be able to weigh them and check ! Last Edited By: ruelgirl 05/27/09 09:29 PM. Edited 1 time.
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ruelgirl	new pics	#5	[url]	[-]
Posts: 13 05/28/09 08:24 AM	Hi posted their house pictures on my page. If anyone wants to check them out. I will give them a few days and then try and re introduce them. Poor boys... The girl is the all white one we decided to call her mabel. she is on the other side of the room in her own cage, I wasn't planning on having 3 guinea pigs all alone but hopefully the boys will be friends again and if all goes well we will adopt a female for Mabel.
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faeriechylde		#6	[url]	[-]
Posts: 71 05/30/09 02:45 PM	I don't know enough to offer any advice but I've read it just to get the information. The most I could say is try purchasing some guinea pig books. I have some here and I refer to them a lot. Every time I refer to one I learn something new. You could always borrow one from the library too. Not that I think people in here don't know - because certainly they do - but this may offer another avenue for information. Sarah
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