Advice on a new friend for unneutered male

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Tanoposc

Post   » Wed Apr 05, 2023 2:10 am


5 years ago, I rescued two male guinea pigs that were deserted outside of an apartment building. 2 months ago, one of them died. Now my poor little guy is all by himself and seems very lonely.

I assumed I needed to get another male since that's what he's used to. Also, because he's not neutered, I worry that he would harass a spayed female and make her life miserable.

But now I'm seeing stuff about 2 males not being a good idea, even though he lived with a male for years. But they were probably litter mates and I'm guessing that's a lot different from introducing a brand new unrelated male.

Does anybody have any thoughts or advice about what I should look for in a new friend for him? Thank you.

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Renonvsparky

Post   » Wed Apr 05, 2023 3:32 am


Two males are fine together as long as they are properly introduced and bonded. More than two males doesn't work, but a pair of males is fine. As a matter of fact, I have 3 pairs of them and they get along fine. It's a bit tricky in a situation like yours where you have a senior pig who just lost a lifelong companion. A young and energetic companion for your senior is a double edged sword. On the one hand, it might give him a renewed sense of youth and entertain him. On the other, a youngster might be a constant harassment. You could get a rescue piggie closer to his age to be his companion, but you don't know how that pig would be with your guy. Regardless, you have to be prepared to have 2 single guinea pigs if the pairing fails.

You have to make the best decision based on his personality, health and the situation. Some pigs do just fine after losing their cage mate. I have one such pig. My Dean was paired with Sammy from birth since they were brothers and were together for 4 years until we lost Sammy unexpectedly. He sulked a little bit for a couple of days and then he snapped out of it and he's doing just fine by himself. Of course, he's not alone, as there are 8 other guinea pigs in the same room, including the pair of girls right next to him. That's another thing you have to keep in mind. If You don't have any other guinea pigs, it would be worth it to try and get him a companion. If it doesn't work out, you can put the cages right next to each other and that would be good for both of them.

Wishing you the best of luck with whatever you decide to do. You can read about guinea pig companionship here: https://www.guinealynx.info/companionship.html

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Lynx
Celebrate!!!

Post   » Wed Apr 05, 2023 8:28 am


Great advice, Renonvsparky! You have had male guinea pigs for long enough to speak from wide experience.

Do read that companionship page. Several links to other pages.

Each guinea pig is unique - it can be a challenge to find a good match (some rescues will allow you to do a "meet and greet" to see if signs point to a pair getting along. They also often know the personality of a guinea pig they are placing. Even the presence of a second guinea pig in a nearby cage can cheer them up - seeing they are not the only guinea pig in the house.

In the meantime, check out:
https://www.guinealynx.info/alone.html

Tanoposc

Post   » Wed Apr 05, 2023 2:00 pm


Thank you for the reply. So do you have an opinion on whether he would harass a spayed female? There is a rescue locally who does meet and greets but they will only pair him with a female. I just see so many more males up for adoption than females.

I do worry about him because he's had a stone before and he's just sitting around barely doing anything, which I understand is a risk factor for developing another one.

The other problem is I live in a tiny place where I don't have room for two full size enclosures. But if I had to house them separately, I would have to split the existing one in half and then neither one of them would really have enough room. Right now it's a 4x3 but I don't really think a 2x3 is enough for each pig. What a dilemma.

Tanoposc

Post   » Wed Apr 05, 2023 3:10 pm


I'm reading some of these introduction links. Makes me want to forget the whole thing! 😐

I guess I shouldn't fight putting him with a female if people think he won't harass her. Wouldn't pairing him with a female just be easier overall? Are there advantages to pairing him up with another boar? I had no experience with pigs before I rescued these guys so I still consider myself to be pretty piggy naive.

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Lynx
Celebrate!!!

Post   » Wed Apr 05, 2023 9:53 pm


I would talk with the rescue about your concerns. It is hard to predict how well a pair of guinea pigs will get along. By the way, I have heard of some females that are able to put the males in their place and discourage them from bugging them.

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Renonvsparky

Post   » Wed Apr 05, 2023 10:48 pm


I've never dealt with a spayed female, so I can't speak on that. It sounds like a daunting task to pair up two guinea pigs, but it's not as bad as it seems. Another option is to see if your shelter has a pig that is in foster. The foster parent is a valuable source of information on the personality and character of the rescue piggie. Can you accommodate two guinea pigs in separate cages? If you can, it is more than worth it to try and get your little guy a companion. If not, then you will have to be his companion and spend extra time with him.

You can try multiple times to pair them. It doesn't always work out on the first try. With my first two males, they went right after each other on the first try, but it was nothing more than mounting attempts and a lot of angry teeth clicking. So we let them calm down for a day and tried again in a different neutral area. The second time was a complete disaster. They took small chunks out of each other's ears. It was then we knew they wouldn't pair up. A little bit of back and forth is natural at first. Sometimes they pair up seamlessly on the first try and sometimes they take a little longer.

I know you will do the best you can.

Tanoposc

Post   » Thu Apr 06, 2023 5:05 am


So let me try another question then. I see a lot of guidance on how much space is needed for two pigs but how much would be needed for one male? Then I can figure out if I have space for two of them housed separately if absolutely necessary, but right now that's not looking like a good option. I live in a shoebox.

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Lynx
Celebrate!!!

Post   » Thu Apr 06, 2023 8:02 am



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Renonvsparky

Post   » Thu Apr 06, 2023 1:43 pm


My single guy has a 2 by 3 foot Wabitat cage and that's plenty for him. He's coming up on 5 years of age and doesn't run around as much as he used to. If you have to go smaller than that, it's possible, although not optimal. If you end up needing 2 of them and are space limited, consider stacking them. That eliminates interaction through the wires of the cage, but both pigs still know their not alone if the pairing doesn't work out.

You can also make up for a smaller cage with more floor time. Guinea pig proofing a room is relatively easy and you can set it up to be in place while they're running around and then taken down when floor time is over. There are inexpensive floor pens you can get, or you can put one together. I even had a playpen that my grandson outgrew which I modified for the guinea pigs to go outside in. You could do the same for inside floor time. When we were kids, my dad cut a bunch of 1 by 6 inch boards for us to block places we didn't want our guinea pigs to go. The possibilities are endless.

RubySimon

Post   » Fri Apr 07, 2023 8:30 am


Personally, I think you might be better off not trying at this point to match him with someone. My exotics vet really did not like spaying females, I think maybe neutering a male might be better if you absolutely feel you have to get him a buddy. It is a much easier operation.

That being said, I have read a lot of articles on getting new companions for pets that lost their mates. Many times, we do it more for ourselves, totally good intentioned, but not what they need or want. Sometimes if it is done too quickly, they are not done mourning and it does not go well.

Can you just give him some more attention and floor time to get him moving?

Sorry if this duplicates anything anyone else wrote. I didn't read the posts.

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