BonDing Guinea Pigs
Guinea Pigs are social animals. They like to live with their own kind. They interact with each other, they eat and snuggle together.
Having said that, occasionally there will be a guinea pig , who just does not appreciate the company of others. Those piggies can happily live alone, and maybe they would appreciate a side by side living arrangement. They live in their own space, but next to others. What ever the situation, it is important to meet the needs of each individual guinea pig. They are individuals, they all have their own unique personality, just like we do.
Sometimes the bonding process can be complex, other times it is a match made in Heaven.
Females always bond easier than males. It is almost a given that females will tolerate each other if not love each other after proper introductions. Males are another story, given that hormones play a part. Testosterone!
Females, you can bond at any age successfully. An introduction should be done in a neutral space. A space that is new to both pigs. That can be a run on the floor, a bathtub with towels laid down etc. Somewhere where they are safe. There should be no houses with only one entrance. You don’t want anyone feeling trapped. A tunnel is perfect. When any two pigs first meet, they do have to work out dominance. It is perfectly normal for them. Although we do not always like it. Never get involved. Never pick anyone up because you feel sorry for them. It interrupts the process and they have to start again. So unless blood is drawn, which is extremely rare with females, watch but don’t get involved.
You can expect to see chasing, wheeking, humping. Yes, girls will hump as well to assert dominance. All this is perfectly normal. With girls, the process is over relatively quickly. When things have calmed down, offer some veggies and see if they are relaxed enough to eat. Eating is a good sign. Prepare their permanent cage space. Move them to their cage and be aware they may need to assert dominance again, but it is short lived. I always say girls, bitch at each other, where as boys can fight. The squabbling can happen occasionally over a few days. Ignore it. They will work it out and peace will reign.
Boys on the other hand can be more difficult. The easiest pairing is baby to baby of course. Very little hormones to deal with. The next best pairing is adult male to baby male. The baby should be as young as possible. A month old is great. Boys wean from moms no later than three weeks. At a month old the baby is not yet interested in dominance, so the adult takes the lead right away. The adult male may rumblestrutt, purring and swaying hips, he may even try to mount his little fiend, but the baby will not react. He just wants love and reassurance. This has a high success rate. At around five to seven months old, the baby has reached teenager stage. At this time his hormones are in overdrive. He may challenge for the dominant role. I have found this normally passes without incident, but if a fight breaks out and blood is drawn, you will need to be ready and able to separate them if need be. You can put in a cage divider or have a cage side by side.
Adult to adult males, is not for the faint hearted. This can be much harder to achieve. Remember all pigs have their own personality. So thinking about this, a good match maybe a dominant and submissive pig. A dominant pig, needs a friend who will not stand up to him. Any reaction, meeting face to face, or seeing whose chin can get higher, are not good signs. You need a submissive pig who will run away and let the aggressor hump him. This is by far the hardest bonding. You should always be ready to separate boars. Never put your hand in with fighting boars, you will get bitten. Cover your hands in a towel, use a cushion to separate. Our natural instinct is to pull one out, so be prepared. So like the females, there will be chasing, wheeking and mounting. It will go on for longer with males. They will get tired and at that point, put in some veggies, and see if they will eat. Don’t rush this process with adult boys. Don’t get involved unless blood is drawn. Boys do need more space than females to live happily together, so be sure their cage size is big enough. Adult male bonding can work. My advice would be know your boy, and if he is dominant, either go for a submissive male friend, or a baby. Many males do live happily together.
One thing I would just like to say, never do play dates. I know some people advocate for this, but it is a bad idea. Guinea Pigs do not need or appreciate play dates. When guinea pigs meet, they have to go through the bonding process, described above. It is who they are. Each play date would be a bonding process, and this over time becomes stressful for the pigs. Make the decision to bond and just go for it. Play dates are a human need, not a guinea pig need.
Living side by side also does not help the bonding process. When they finally are allowed to be together, it is like they have never met each other and they still have to go through the process.
Bonding can be a stressful experience for us, but just keep in mind, it is not for the guinea pigs. It is perfectly natural for them. They don’t worry about it.
I personally have pairs of males here. I don’t tend to go any higher than that with males, although I know many happy male herds. I do have females live in herds, right now I have eight females living together very happily.
i would suggest research, watch videos on the internet. Know what to expect, try to be relaxed. If you are stressed the pigs will feel that. In the future I hope to put my own bonding videos up , to show examples of what to expect.
When people ask me for advice on bonding in Facebook, I have them send me videos, so I can advise on what I see in their pig’s body language etc. It can be helpful to have another set of eyes looking at the process.
So don't be afraid of the process. Pigs are social and do like to have piggy friends around for the most part, even if it is side by side living. You got this! 🐾🐾
Having said that, occasionally there will be a guinea pig , who just does not appreciate the company of others. Those piggies can happily live alone, and maybe they would appreciate a side by side living arrangement. They live in their own space, but next to others. What ever the situation, it is important to meet the needs of each individual guinea pig. They are individuals, they all have their own unique personality, just like we do.
Sometimes the bonding process can be complex, other times it is a match made in Heaven.
Females always bond easier than males. It is almost a given that females will tolerate each other if not love each other after proper introductions. Males are another story, given that hormones play a part. Testosterone!
Females, you can bond at any age successfully. An introduction should be done in a neutral space. A space that is new to both pigs. That can be a run on the floor, a bathtub with towels laid down etc. Somewhere where they are safe. There should be no houses with only one entrance. You don’t want anyone feeling trapped. A tunnel is perfect. When any two pigs first meet, they do have to work out dominance. It is perfectly normal for them. Although we do not always like it. Never get involved. Never pick anyone up because you feel sorry for them. It interrupts the process and they have to start again. So unless blood is drawn, which is extremely rare with females, watch but don’t get involved.
You can expect to see chasing, wheeking, humping. Yes, girls will hump as well to assert dominance. All this is perfectly normal. With girls, the process is over relatively quickly. When things have calmed down, offer some veggies and see if they are relaxed enough to eat. Eating is a good sign. Prepare their permanent cage space. Move them to their cage and be aware they may need to assert dominance again, but it is short lived. I always say girls, bitch at each other, where as boys can fight. The squabbling can happen occasionally over a few days. Ignore it. They will work it out and peace will reign.
Boys on the other hand can be more difficult. The easiest pairing is baby to baby of course. Very little hormones to deal with. The next best pairing is adult male to baby male. The baby should be as young as possible. A month old is great. Boys wean from moms no later than three weeks. At a month old the baby is not yet interested in dominance, so the adult takes the lead right away. The adult male may rumblestrutt, purring and swaying hips, he may even try to mount his little fiend, but the baby will not react. He just wants love and reassurance. This has a high success rate. At around five to seven months old, the baby has reached teenager stage. At this time his hormones are in overdrive. He may challenge for the dominant role. I have found this normally passes without incident, but if a fight breaks out and blood is drawn, you will need to be ready and able to separate them if need be. You can put in a cage divider or have a cage side by side.
Adult to adult males, is not for the faint hearted. This can be much harder to achieve. Remember all pigs have their own personality. So thinking about this, a good match maybe a dominant and submissive pig. A dominant pig, needs a friend who will not stand up to him. Any reaction, meeting face to face, or seeing whose chin can get higher, are not good signs. You need a submissive pig who will run away and let the aggressor hump him. This is by far the hardest bonding. You should always be ready to separate boars. Never put your hand in with fighting boars, you will get bitten. Cover your hands in a towel, use a cushion to separate. Our natural instinct is to pull one out, so be prepared. So like the females, there will be chasing, wheeking and mounting. It will go on for longer with males. They will get tired and at that point, put in some veggies, and see if they will eat. Don’t rush this process with adult boys. Don’t get involved unless blood is drawn. Boys do need more space than females to live happily together, so be sure their cage size is big enough. Adult male bonding can work. My advice would be know your boy, and if he is dominant, either go for a submissive male friend, or a baby. Many males do live happily together.
One thing I would just like to say, never do play dates. I know some people advocate for this, but it is a bad idea. Guinea Pigs do not need or appreciate play dates. When guinea pigs meet, they have to go through the bonding process, described above. It is who they are. Each play date would be a bonding process, and this over time becomes stressful for the pigs. Make the decision to bond and just go for it. Play dates are a human need, not a guinea pig need.
Living side by side also does not help the bonding process. When they finally are allowed to be together, it is like they have never met each other and they still have to go through the process.
Bonding can be a stressful experience for us, but just keep in mind, it is not for the guinea pigs. It is perfectly natural for them. They don’t worry about it.
I personally have pairs of males here. I don’t tend to go any higher than that with males, although I know many happy male herds. I do have females live in herds, right now I have eight females living together very happily.
i would suggest research, watch videos on the internet. Know what to expect, try to be relaxed. If you are stressed the pigs will feel that. In the future I hope to put my own bonding videos up , to show examples of what to expect.
When people ask me for advice on bonding in Facebook, I have them send me videos, so I can advise on what I see in their pig’s body language etc. It can be helpful to have another set of eyes looking at the process.
So don't be afraid of the process. Pigs are social and do like to have piggy friends around for the most part, even if it is side by side living. You got this! 🐾🐾