# guinea pig brothers fighting - help please!



## Daisyblue1 (Jul 23, 2012)

We have 3 boars, all from the same litter and have been living together since birth. We have had them almost 2 months now and they are between 4-5 months old.

We noticed a few weeks ago that one of them (Gunner) kept trying to mount the smallest of the three (Eric) and making a rumbling noise. We spoke to a vet about it and the possibility of getting them neutered because she said they are hitting sexual maturation. We hung on and observed and it seemed to happen less frequently. Interestingly, whenever Gunner bothered Eric in this way, the third brother (Omo) would try and shoo Gunner away (not aggressively).

Over the weekend, we went out to them to find scratches around Gunners nose and face, and down one isde of Omo's face. A fight had clearly occurred. We checked them over and all was superficial. We decided to let them have outdoor run time seperately and in pairs to observe behaviour.

Omo and Eric - all fine. A little bit of mounting by Omo but infrequently and there was no upset beyond Eric running away and Omo then leaving him alone.

When Gunner was introduced, Gunner and Omo squared up to each other and they started to pounce but I removed Omo before anything occurred. Clearly they were not happy together.

Gunner and Eric together was fine, except for the incessant mounting of Eric by Gunner. Eric seemed to get a bit cheesed off with this but there was no hint of fighting - just running away or shifting his bottom away. However they were equally happy to snuggle up together and eat side by side etc.

We havea 2 tiered cage which houses 3-4 guinea pigs (size wise). We decided to block off the top from the bottom and overnight we placed Omo and Eric together and popped Gunner underneath. He wasnt very happy and kept going up the ramp to where the blockage was and making the little talking noises at the other two. He did settle down after a while.

This morning although no obvious signs of fighting, Omo and Eric didnt look happy and when I introduced all three again, Omo looked happy to have a fight with anyone! I have now borrowed a spare cage from a friend and put Omo on his own and left Gunner and Eric the free run of the whole large cage in the hope that Eric can keep away from Gunner's humping!! 

Kids are really upset that they arent getting on, and I am really confused about what to do. Do I neuter them? Will I have to get rid of one of them, if so, which one? They clearly dont like being on their own but cant get along either!! I'm so worried about them either hurting each other or being lonely!!!

Any advice welcomed.....


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## cats galore (Jul 17, 2012)

it's very rare for three boars to get on. trios rarely work even if they are from the same litter. it is also thought that having a guinea pig neutered will not effect their hormones and calm them down. you really should keep the one seperate from the others before they seriously hurt him. i am a member of this forum : The Guinea Pig Forum - Powered by vBulletin
it may be worth taking a look as they can help with any queries you have. there are also piggy rescues that do boar dating so that your lone boar could pick a friend that her would be happy living with. hope this helps and good luck


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## swatton42 (Oct 29, 2011)

cats galore said:


> it's very rare for three boars to get on. trios rarely work even if they are from the same litter. it is also thought that having a guinea pig neutered will not effect their hormones and calm them down. you really should keep the one seperate from the others before they seriously hurt him. i am a member of this forum : The Guinea Pig Forum - Powered by vBulletin
> it may be worth taking a look as they can help with any queries you have. there are also piggy rescues that do boar dating so that your lone boar could pick a freind that her would be happy living with. hope this helps and good luck


You beat me to it!!

All I can add is that I would suggest taking the most dominant 1 out.


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## sullivan (Aug 29, 2008)

will agree some boars never get on when getting to breeding age. I had one that started off with his brother and they began to fight. In the end i split them and had the males neutered and got them a female each Of course not everyone wants that many piggies. I found introducing a female once male was done after 6 weeks gap after op was easier. Do it in a neutral area ie bath is good. Add a little vics vapour rub on there rump and nose can help introductions as they get to know each other and vapour wears off they are already friends. if you dont want so many as suggested talk to a rescue they may be able to pair your male off with a female they have. no piggies like being on there own in the wild they live in groups. but beware dont put them together if fighting as can become really agressive and cause bad injurys


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## swatton42 (Oct 29, 2011)

Well if you're going to neuter then please make sure you have a rodent savvy vet. Although it is harder males can be bonded with other males. Neutering does nothing except mean they can go with a female without the risk of pregnancy. Neutering can be quite a high risk procedure in piggies, and it is becomming less common practice at the moment, so ensure your vet has experience.


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