Bonding Reintroducing my Guinea Pigs

[Strekeos]

Hey there cavy friends,



These are my boars, Snoop and Eminem. Snoop is around 11 months old and 900 gr. Eminem is around 11 months old while he is only 800 gr. anyway, they never got along and Snoop was always dominating and mounting Eminem and then they've started fighting much more while the fights only got fiercer. I've separated them around 1.5 weeks ago and now Eminem is in a different cage.



However yesterday Eminem has jumped from his cage to Snoop's and there was a lethal and menacing furball immediately.

I really want them to get along better and and become cagemates without fighting like this. I'm thinkin about giving them a buddy bath and reintroducing them.

Any tips are welcome

 

[LittleSqueakers]

What are the dimensions of the cage they were sharing? Looking at the first picture of the them together, I notice that the space looks very narrow. Sometimes when two pigs don't have enough space to pass by without disturbing one another, it can lead to fights.

 

[bpatters]

That cage is way too small for two boars -- they need at least 10-12 square feet in a large flat area so they can run around. I wouldn't put them back together until I'd provided much different housing.

And before you do, read this: https://guinea-pigs.livejournal.com/3002707.html. Reintroduce them in a large neutral area that smells nothing like either pig, and do it at a time when you've got all day to give to it if necessary -- don't rush the process.

 

[Strekeos]

One of the cages is 140*50 and the other one is 100*80, I'm thinking about linking them together with a tunnel after reintroducing them if they decide that they like each other after a buddy bath, or I may try the 100*80 cage if I can't link them together.

 

[Strekeos]

That cage is way too small for two boars -- they need at least 10-12 square feet in a large flat area so they can run around. I wouldn't put them back together until I'd provided much different housing.

And before you do, read this: https://guinea-pigs.livejournal.com/3002707.html. Reintroduce them in a large neutral area that smells nothing like either pig, and do it at a time when you've got all day to give to it if necessary -- don't rush the process.

What are the dimensions of the cage they were sharing? Looking at the first picture of the them together, I notice that the space looks very narrow. Sometimes when two pigs don't have enough space to pass by without disturbing one another, it can lead to fights.

One of the cages is 140*50 and the other one is 100*80, I'm thinking about linking them together with a tunnel after reintroducing them if they decide that they like each other after a buddy bath, or I may try the 100*80 cage if I can't link them together.

 

[bpatters]

140x50 what? Centimeters?

If so, neither of those is large enough for even one guinea pig, much less two, still less for two boars. And connecting them with a tunnel won't help at all -- that'll just be a good place for fights to start.

Guinea pigs need a large open flat area to run around in. The minimum for one pig is about eight square feet, the minimum for two sows in 10, and for two boars is more than that. Male guinea pigs can be territorial, and when you add in testosterone-fueled dominance squabbles, you've got a recipe for disaster in a small cage.

 

[Strekeos]

140x50 what? Centimeters?

If so, neither of those is large enough for even one guinea pig, much less two, still less for two boars. And connecting them with a tunnel won't help at all -- that'll just be a good place for fights to start.

Guinea pigs need a large open flat area to run around in. The minimum for one pig is about eight square feet, the minimum for two sows in 10, and for two boars is more than that. Male guinea pigs can be territorial, and when you add in testosterone-fueled dominance squabbles, you've got a recipe for disaster in a small cage.

I'm thinking about splitting the narrow cage and mounting on top oh the other one which will make a 2 story cage with 100*80 on the first story and 100*70 (maybe I'll cut it to 100*50 for easier cleaning, etc.) on the second story, the it will be big enough and it will have seperate floor for each boar.

 

[Soecara]

If the measurements you are listing are in cm I can tell you none of what you have planned will work out in the long term. Male guinea pig pairs need a minimum of 1sq metre on a single floor, adding more floors doesn't help as they need one big flat area. Also for boars often wider is better, definitely don't go under 60cm wide.

If you did go 60cm wide the cage would need to be at least 180cm long to get it to 1sq metre.
For the cage that is 80cm wide you need it to be at least 130cm long to meet the 1sq metre.

 

[bpatters]

I'm not sure what you're not understanding about their needing a large flat area to run in. Two floors won't help. Any ramp or tunnel will be an invitation for one pig to squabble with another, as will any narrow area in the cage.

 

[Strekeos]

I'm just trying to work with what I have and the space that is available. It looks like I'm bound to have them in separate cages with these measurements then :/ I'm open to build them a new cage, so a cage that is 60*180 would work then ?

 

[Soecara]

Yes a cage that is 60cm by 180cm would be 1.08 square metres so is an okay size for two boars.

I have a cage 66cm by 182cm it is really easy to clean and that extra 6cm width and 2cm length brings it up to 1.2 square metres. I chose to make it this long and wide because the closet shelving at my local hardware store came pre-cut in both these lengths so I just needed to buy 2 of each size to get all 4 sides for a cage. It also just so happened to fit perfectly into the space I wanted to put the cage (after some furniture shuffling) so that worked out great.

 

[Strekeos]

Yes a cage that is 60cm by 180cm would be 1.08 square metres so is an okay size for two boars.

I have a cage 66cm by 182cm it is really easy to clean and that extra 6cm width and 2cm length brings it up to 1.2 square metres. I chose to make it this long and wide because the closet shelving at my local hardware store came pre-cut in both these lengths so I just needed to buy 2 of each size to get all 4 sides for a cage. It also just so happened to fit perfectly into the space I wanted to put the cage (after some furniture shuffling) so that worked out great.

This is the room that I have to work with 60*180 fits but it blocks the entrance :/ any other tips ? This bed is the bed that I sleep when we have guests over, I may remove the bed but I don't want it.

 

[Strekeos]

It has been done

 

[Soecara]

My first thought. Can the desk be moved to the other wall where your longer green cage currently is? If so you could put the cage on the other side of the room (where the desk is now) along the full wall, even put it on a stand so you can have some storage under it.

 

[Strekeos]

I'll extend the brown cage to 80*180 today which will give me around 1.5 sqm cage size, the green cage may be added as a second story to the big cage later but I'll retire it for now. And after that I can place the bed where the green cage stands now if I need it for the night, that way I'll have the max space.

The bed and the cage will overlap for the night but I'm fine about that. If it becomes a problem I'll make the cage a little bit smaller later.

 

[Soecara]

That sounds like it would work. Certainly a large enough cage to give them a good shot at being able to work it out. Just make sure when you do go to put them back together introduce them from scratch first, more info about proper introductions can be found here https://guinea-pigs.livejournal.com/3002707.html

 

[Strekeos]

Sure, ill put them together after a buddy bath and introduction