My 2 guinea pigs behaviors

Question
I have two male guinea pigs very sweet pigs.  I had to seperate the two of them because one of them is way more agressive.  Ever since i seperated the two of them the less agressive one has been weaking all the time, very upset not eating as much as he used to.  It seems like he is really unhappy. I've been giving him as much attention as i can, but even when i hold him for cuddle time or play time he lets me know that he is upset.  What should i do?? Do you think if i go another guinea pig it will help him?
Also a second question,  My other guinea pig has gotten bigger apitite since we split the two and has gained some wait. What size is considered an over waight guinea pig, and should i put him of diet pelite food??
Thank you
  Sarah

Answer
Hi Sarah,

Firstly ... are you 100& sure they're both males? Have a look between their legs to check! If one is a female, this will explain the aggressive behaviour, and you'll most likely have some babies on the way!

Presuming they're both definitely male ...

What aggressive behaviour was your piggy expressing? All animals (just like people) get fed up with their friends from time-to-time, and unless he was attacking your other guinea pig, splitting them up probably wasn't a good idea, as guinea pigs get very lonely when they live on their own. As they've now been separated, they may not take kindly to each other again, but it's worth trying to put them together.

What you need to do is bath them both (let me know if you need to know how to do this), clean out the bigger cage thoroughly, and then put them in it together with their favourite vegetables. They are likely to rumble and circle each other, and the more dominant guinea pig will hump the submissive guinea pig; this is normal, and part of the bonding process. Watch out to make sure they don't try to bite each other, and listen for any teeth-chattering. If they start to fight, you'll need to grab one of them quickly (wear gloves, or you'll get scratched to pieces). If they don't get on, try the process again, but put a little bit of Vicks on each of their noses and bottoms; they will then smell the same.

If they don't get on, the best thing to do will be to keep them in a divided hutch. Attach chicken wire to separate the hutch in half, and have one piggy on each side; they won't be able to fight, but they will be able to see each other and talk to each other. If your less-aggressive piggy still seems miserable, then yes, a new guinea pig may perk him up; make sure it is a boar, under 10 weeks of age (ideally 6 weeks old). Get him from a rescue, not a pet shop. You'll need to do the bathing thing again ... and this won't work in a divided cage as the guinea pig on the other side of the mesh may try to attack the new piggy.

Good luck!

PS - Try to feed your guinea pigs the same amount. To share between two adult guinea pigs (so half each for yours) a good portion is: a carrot, or a large pepper (with the seeds/stalk removed), or 2 dark cabbage leaves, or 2 sticks of celery (cut into small pieces to prevent choking). I give mine this portion of food twice a day (once at around 7.30am, once at around 6pm) and then a guinea-pig sized portion of hay each, and a sprinkling of dried food at bed-time.

If you have any other questions ... just ask!

Best wishes,
Jenny.