Agression

[Haley0489]

I just adopted three male guinea pigs, about 6 weeks old. I went in looking for a hamster, but my mom saw one of the pigs and then heard it purr, she was sold. When we were trying to pick which two to take home, we realized that one would be left behind all alone, and my mom felt bad for the little guy. So we ended up taking all three males home.

Originally the one that should have been "left behind," had the best temperate towards humans, and still does...but now I'm noticing he walks around his cage quite a bit, low to the ground, rumbling at the other two, mounting them. I'm not sure if this is something that will pass in time, or something that could be resolved. My dad says once they establish their 'pecking order' that he'll stop...but I'm not so sure they're dog-like in that nature.

The lady I got him from said I was free to return him if, for whatever reason, things didn't work out. Do you think I should take him back? I feel so bad and irresponsible, but I didn't know he'd start acting out. I'm gonna give it a few more days, to see if he mellows out a little, but if not I'm worried a fight will erupt once their older [and my mom and I are much more attached.]

[sanyka]

You shouldn't worry about it. They DO mount each other. It's called rumblestrutting (something I've learnt on this forum). And while it is sometimes harder for males to get along, I think they should be fine since they've been together for some time in the pet store cage (correct?). I'm sure they'll settle down within a day or so. They just want to establish who's dominant and who is subordinate in between them. Just make sure the cage is big enough for them to have their space to run around in.

[suzilovespiggie]

Your Dad is right. They are just trying to figure out who is the boss.
One thing is make sure the cage is big enough with a hidey house. food dish, and water bottle for each one. Guys need lots of room to run around in. I know a 2x4 c&c is big enough for 4 GP's, so if you have not already built a cage then look to build one at least that big.
Kudos on adopting all 3. Would love to see pictures.

[rabbitsncavyluv]

That's normal.

How big is your cage?

[fourboys4now]

I have 4 boys in a cage together and they still mount occasionally. It will go on a few days and then they'll stop for a few days. As long as no blood is drawn, I would leave them be. One thing that may help is a buddy bath, that way everyone smells the same. I've read where a lot of people say this helps.

[Haley0489]

Those are my boys! Thor, Milo and "Goldie."
Goldie hasn't found a permanent name yet. He's also the one with the aggression [towards Thor in particular.]

They are in a store bought cage right now. It's about 24x40, and yes I know! It's not big enough for three grown pigs! Right now, they're so small I'm not so concerned, but I AM looking at C&C equipment. Especially now, I just gave them a huge oatmeal container and they went NUTS over it. Popcorning every where I'd love for them to have that sort of enjoyment in nice big cage.

Here's my dilemma though
I have two Jack Russell Terriers who roam freely around the house. Although the living room is spacious, my parents won't like the cage in there, and the floor obviously, isn't a good place for it with the dogs. My room doesn't have the floor space, or room for a piece of furniture to put a C&C on. We do however have a guestroom, and my mom and I said we'd love to get a murphy-bed in there, to free up some room, so hopefully we'll get some space in their, and could put up a baby-gate to keep the dogs out, but not isolate the pigs.

My mom and I have blocked the end of the hall for now, to let them have floor time. It would be the equivalent of a 3x12 or longer C&C.

Does anyone have suggestions for more space-savvy C&C?

[fourboys4now]

When we built our c&c cages we used grids for the bottom as well. That way its not at floor level with our dogs or cats. We also used wire shelving from Lowe's to use as the lid so our dogs and cats could not jump in if they tried. If you click on the camera on my post you will see a front and side view of our bigger cage. Your boys are very cute. Please post us some more pigtures!