Puberty Boy pigs doing the dominance dance, are they teens already?

[MinoAddict]

I've posted once before that we received two guinea pigs from a pet store. They are both male and the first week or so there was an awful lot of mounting and chasing. Ginger piggy came out on top (he's bigger as well) and we had a decent amount of peace. The last 3 days they are constantly wheeling at each other, trying to mount each other and constantly lifting their little noses as if to fight. I know what most of the behaviors mean and they do appear to be "fighting" for dominance again. They were babies when we got them 2 months ago, are they teenagers already? How long should I expect them to try to dominate one another?
When can I consider them adults? They've grown quite a bit since they came to us as " young pigs" ( I called the pet store and all they could tell me was that they're young, they fit in the palm of my hand) I now know pet stores are bad and we should have adopted from a rescue. I attached a picture of them being fed by my 4yr old while I cleaned their C&C cage.
Thanks for any tips.

 

[Tam Piggy love]

How big is the cage you keep them in? Is the cage in the picture just where you put them while you clean, or is that their every day cage? I ask because boars need lots of room. They are very territorial, you may not have had issues while they were younger because it doesn't become problematic until later. Sometimes they work it out themselves fairly peacefully. Other times they won't and need to be separated. Have you noticed any bullying? It's also a good idea to have 2 of everything for boars. food dishes, hideys, and all that to help cut back on the territory issues. I currently have 3 boars. 2 teenagers, and their dad. They seem to be working out the pecking order pretty well. I have a 2x6 C&C cage. The 2 babies are almost 4 months old now, and starting to push for their dominance. But luckily no real bullying so far. They seem to know how far to go. But they have always been together.

 

[dirah93]

Generally pet store guinea pigs are anywhere from 8-12 weeks old so f i had to guess, they look to be about 4 months old, which is around the time they're considered to be "adolescents", and this stage can last anywhere from several months to a year.

You should definitely extend their cage to a 2x5, or more if needed. They need ample room to get away from each other. Also, you should have multiple food bowls, hidey's, and water bottles so they don't squabble over them. As for hidey's, make sure they have multiple entrances and exits so they don't trap each other in there and cause injuries.

Mounting is also completely normal, boars will always try to mount each other and assert their dominance, forever. I wouldn't worry about it, especially if there is no biting or bloodshed.

 

[MinoAddict]

They currently have 2 hay boxes, 2 pellet bowls, 2 veggie bowls and 5 hideys to hide in ( 2 of those are plastic pigloos). They also have 3 tunnels made from fleece with two entrances/exits. They're in a 2*5 C&C cage as of the week we received them in that tiny "cage" you see in the picture (glorified litter box). Thank you kindly for the pointers. I had hoped adolescence would be over in a few weeks. LOL silly me.

 

[MinoAddict]

They have a large C&C cage they normally live in that little cage is just there so I can put them somewhere safe while I clean the pig cage I have a 4 year old and she can't be trusted with pigs on the floor

 

[dirah93]

I would still advise you to remove the pigloos so you don't run the risk of having one of the boars trapping the other in there, resulting in facial injuries. Maybe you also might want to consider extending the cage to 2x6 so they have more room to get away from each other. Perhaps the 2x5 isn't big enough for them.

Like I said, boars assert their dominance forever but this is very normal behavior. Seems like you're doing everything right so far.

 

[MinoAddict]

I will remove their igloos for the time being ( they always "argue" in an empty part of the cage and then retreat to their respective pigloos so I don't know if taking them away will make them happy pigs or sad pigs. As for extending their cage it's really not an option at this time, I gave them the biggest cage I could in the space we have to give them (3 kids and 2 cats and 2 adults in the home) in an area that's appropriate (no drafts, no direct sunlight etc). If I am able to find another appropriate spot that's "piggy approved" I would gladly extend their cage. Thank you for the pointers though, will definitely remove the pigloos and see how they do.

 

[bpatters]

I'd also get rid of a lot of that cage furniture. You can rotate it through the cage every week or so to change things up, but they need a LOT of flat space to run and to keep from getting in each other's faces.

And yes, they're in puberty, and will be for many months to come. Try to arrange the cage so there's no area where one pig can trap another, and so they're not always visible to each other. Fleece forests work well for that.

 

[MinoAddict]

I have seen fleece forests but haven't had a chance to make them yet. I will definitely remove some furniture and put in a rotation system.