Bonding Do playdates work?

Some people say meet-and-greets work, others say they don't.

What I think they do is let you know right off the bat whether two or more pigs absolutely hate each other at first sight, so you can save time in looking for a better match. If they do get along well when they first meet, chances are they will continue to do so. There's no guarantee of that, but the chances are good.

I've always done it whenever possible, and it's always worked well.

Ditto what @bpatters said. We got our 2nd pig from a rescue, and we did a meet-and-greet. The lady from the rescue said that sometimes right off the bat pigs do not get along and you can at least eliminate those from consideration.

Granted ours are both young, but they had a VERY mellow playdate and their whole "get to know each other" period was equally uneventful and mellow!

Awesome! That's a relief to hear, as I was hoping that was the case.

After my Chester's brother died, I decided to get a female roommate for him......with Chester being neutered some months previously. A female had been surrendered to this pet store where they know that I love cavies. The owner gave her to me to take home. When I introduced her to Chester, he was totally indifferent to her........not hostile, just absolutely indifferent.hmy: I rubbed them together to mix scents, put both in my lap, and nothing worked. So, that same day I returned her to the store.

Fast forward some months, I brought Maya home and it was love at first sight for both she and Chester.

I do a lot of introductions for my rescue. Many guinea pigs get along so well during the first half hour or so that it's tempting to think it's a great match. But then issues start coming up and can escalate to the point that I have to call off the introduction. So be patient and give the introduction an hour or two before deciding to take the new piggy home.

@CavyHouse ditto that! our rescue person said the same thing. we stayed for a very uneventful 90 minutes watching them eat, sniff, rumblestrut, and occasionally hump.