Behavior Taking in another male piggie

[katkor03]

Hi guys!

I already have two male piggies who get along great. Occasional dominance behavior, otherwise the two like to cuddle through the wall of a hidey (I guess as close to cuddling as they'll ever get).

However, a good friend of ours has had a piggie all by them self for quite some time after his partner died. He is graduating and cannot take the piggie named Oreo, with him and is leaving him to us.

We're going to get all of little Oreo's stuff, and I'm currently asking the owner about his history, preferences, personality, etc.

My wonder is because we are in a little condo, should I try to bond the three? We have our boys in an emptied out closet, which has a nice nook for them with the doors removed. It's a 2X5, but that's the best we could do. My husband doesn't want to move anything outwards from the closet (width wise).

Should we try to bond the three and see if I can use Oreo's supplies to create a whole second level the size of oreo's current cage 2X4, to give all three ample space? Or should I try and build it where Oreo is in his cage (2X4) all by himself on top of my two boys?

The problem is that I don't think I could get another piggie to be Oreo's bud if we separated them all, or my husband would have an aneurysm, going from two boys to four in such a short period. He already wants me to get a mini fridge for their vegetables (as we live with a rented out room to his friend and share fridge space) and chip into the utilities every month.

I really appreciate all the help! I would also appreciate if the answers were nice....I have had pigs for years and use this website often, but many times there haven't been nice answers. I'm just asking to try and make all the little ones happy and give them the best life they could lead.

 

[elewis618]

From my understanding, it's extremely hard (if not impossible) to bond 3 males. Also, only the lower level will count towards the square footage since guinea pigs are ground dwellers. I would think it would be better to give him his own level above your current babies. Let us know what you decide to do! Congratulations on the new member of the family!

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[bpatters]

Don't do it.

We never recommend putting three males together. It fails almost EVERY time. You might be able to get away with a large herd of males, or with two pair of males, but not three. You're just setting yourself up for failure, and you will probably wind up severing the bond of your original pair, giving you three solo pigs, none of which will live with either of the other two.

And a 2x5 is a little tight even for two boars, and certainly not large enough for three.

 

[katkor03]

Hi! Thanks, that's what I thought. I'm going to add his cage above my two boys. Pick oreo up on Monday