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Introductions Female and male pigs living together?

MissesMcKisses

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Hello,

Long story short I was messing around on Craigslist and found someone selling a guinea pig. I wouldn't have bought him except for the fact that the owner had been keeping him in a small hamster cage for two years by himself and stored him in the closet . There was no way in Hell I planned on leaving him in the care of someone like that. I went against my parent's demands and brought my new pig home. He is now named Maximus Prime.

The problem is that I have two female guinea pigs already. I was planning on getting him neutered, but I read about the death risk and I'm not so sure about it anymore. I was thinking that when he is done being quarantined and has finally become friends with the other two I could move him into the cage with the others. When I leave them or go to bed I could just fix up two panels in between them so that they can interact, but not interact interact. Regardless, when I am home I let them run around the apartment all day so I always have my eye on them.

Is this a good idea or no? I literally bought this fluffy Boi less than ten hours ago, but I'm already attached to him. I don't want him to die from some wack surgery.
 

LittleSqueakers

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Do NOT allow the intact male and females to be together -- supervised or not -- for any length of time. Mating takes seconds for guinea pigs and all it takes if for you to turn your head away at the wrong moment. It's just asking for trouble. And a determined boar can climb/cross incredible obstacles to get to a sow in heat. Keeping him next-door to 2 females with only a panel in-between is risky and will drive him crazy (which in turn will drive you crazy).

Any surgical procedure involves some risk, but neutering is generally a very safe procedure as long as it's done by a cavy-savvy vet. It'd be way more risky for both your sows to get pregnant than it would be to just neuter the boar.
 
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Smileandnod

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I completely agree with [MENTION=33063]LittleSqueakers[/MENTION].

Good for you for adopting the little guy, but you must also consider your female pigs and their wellbeing regarding potential pregnancy if he is not housed properly or put together for any amount of time without being neutered.

Pregnancy can be difficult for them. It could result in a painful death for them and the babies, especially if they are older and have never had a litter before. I adopted two females from a shelter and both were pregnant...after seeing their struggle, I never want to go through that again.

I neutered my only male (one of the babies that survived) and found a great cavy savvy vet to perform the surgery. I agree with you that it is a tough decision and carries possible risks, but I encourage you to do research on here about pregnancy risks.

You don't have to neuter your new guy if you don't want to. But as a responsible, loving owner please don't risk pregnancy for your girls. Put him in his own cage that has a reliable cover if he is near the girls.

Good luck to you, I know you will make the right decisions because you seem to really care about your guinea pigs.
 

spy9doc

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Neutering is quite safe when done by a cavy saavy vet. :cool: I have literally had all my boars neutered with no problems. Of course, it IS a surgery and all surgeries carry risks, but the risk really is minimal. The Internet has a wealth of information available, but one must be wary of the source of that information. Be sure that you are getting reliable information and not just hearsay.
 

bpatters

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Also, if you decide not to neuter him but to house him in his own cage, put the lid on the girls' cage. A determined male can push up the lid on his own cage, but can't lift the lid on the other cage.
 

MissesMcKisses

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I am going to get him neutered. I have an appointment to check his wellness on 18th and from there I'll make schedule his surgery. A risky surgery is better than two pregnant sows.

Maximus is a really odd pig. He isn't scared or cautious of anything in the slightest. The moment I opened up the box his started nudging my finger. An hour in he was giving me nibbles and kisses and pushing my hand for more petting. It took three weeks for my first pig to get somewhat comfortable with me and the second still rarely gives kisses. He doesn't bother showing any dominance or real annoyance to the girls. Max isn't interested in them at all really. One of the females are more insistent on proving she's top dog even though he doesn't seem to care who's in charge.

Regardless, he seems very happy. Max has been sprinting around the floor and popcorning like there is no tomorrow. I think he's glad not to be cooped up in a hamster cage by himself anymore.

On a completely different side note, I'm pretty sure he is diabetic. I'll ask the vet about it.

I appreciate it your guy's input though! Thank you!
 

bpatters

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Why do you think he's diabetic?
 

MissesMcKisses

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Excessive amount of water drinking and eating although he really doesn't weigh much.
 

CavyMama

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MissesMcKisses

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It's more than just at once. He goes back every two minutes and shoves half of his face into the water bowl for a good couple of seconds before coming out for breath then going on in again for seconds. I have to refill his bowl more than once a day. I can't tell you if he's always been like this since today is the second day of owning him, but that's how he's been acting so far.
 

CavyMama

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Switch to a water bottle. Bowls are difficult for guinea pigs to drink from since their noses can get wet which can cause them to ingest some of the water.
 

bpatters

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Also weigh him daily, first thing in the morning before breakfast. If he's diabetic, he'll be steadily losing weight. If he's not, he won't.
 
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