New Skinny Pig

Question
I`ve had two skinny pigs for almost two years now. Their names are Rupert & Snookums, and they get along great. Recently my friend decided he wanted a skinny pig too. A couple weeks after he bought him, he decided he didn`t want him because he was really jumpy. I had a big enough cage for the three of them, so I decided I`d take him. I`ve had the third skinny pig for a couple of days, and I named him Phil. As you could imagine, he`s just a baby (I`m not exactly sure how old) and my skinny pigs are GIGANTIC compaired to him. They aren`t fighting or anything, but I noticed Rupert keeps trying to mount poor little Phil (as well, Rupert follows him endlessly around their cage)! I thought they were all boys, but I`m not sure anymore. Is there anything I can do to stop this from occuring? Phil cries when he does it, because Rupert is much heavier than him. I don`t really want to move Phil out of the cage-- Since he`s seemed to flourish with all the company. And whats worst, is Snookums seems to be getting depressed. He barely leaves his little igloo.

Answer
Courtney,

Your going to need to separate Phil from Rupert and Snookums. Get him a cage and place it next to the other two's cage that way they are getting to know each other, having Phil just plopped in the cage as Rupert declaring dominance and has Snookums depressed because this is a big change. After separating them introduce Phil to the other two slowly as to give everyone time to adjust.

Here are some helpful hints in introducing them all to each other.


Have patience, take your time, always on neutral territory, and don't give up too soon. Brief words of wisdom for introducing guinea pigs. What you don't want to do is plop the new guinea pig into your existing guinea pig's cage. Never try to introduce guinea pigs in one of their cages. Be prepared. This may happen in one afternoon or it may take months!

Get a large bath towel or two.

Put the towels on the couch (neutral, unfamiliar territory).
Spread them out over the middle of the couch.

Each person holding a pig, sits at opposite ends of the couch.

Make sure the towels are between you and there is a good amount of space (it helps to have a big couch!). Floor works, too. Keep kids quiet and out of reach. No other distractions.

Let the pigs find each other on their own time.
You may need to nudge them in the right direction. Have another towel handy to toss on the pigs if you need to separate them.

Let the games begin!
More often than not, pet owners want to break up guinea pigs exhibiting normal dominant behavior. Everyone looks worried and asks, "Is that normal?" How long and what next?
Usually, the first 15 minutes is just getting acclimated to the new surroundings and the idea that there is another guinea pig there. It's the next 15 to 30 minutes that can get interesting. The nice thing about being on the couch is it makes it easy for them to run to you when they get uncomfortable. But, keep your interactions and interference to an absolute minimum. Some guinea pigs will get along just great. Some will decide on peaceful co-existence right from the beginning. Some will act like long lost buddies! When to separate them? Serious blood is drawn or a wound is inflicted. Some nipping or minor biting can be quite normal. Even little tufts of hair in the mouth can be normal.

Normal dominance behavior is to be expected between the two. Here is a list of normal behavior that is fine and should not be interfered with.

Safe, non-combative, dominance behavior
Rumblestrutting
Butt sniffing
Butt nudging
Chasing
Butt dragging (they are leaving their scent)
Mounting (any which way: rear mount, head mount, side mount, flying leap mount!)
Nose face-offs (higher in the air wins, one must lower their nose to be subservient to the other)
Teeth chattering: a little (signal of dominance)
Raised hackles (hair on the back of the neck and along the spine)

Posturing for possible attack, battle for dominance is escalating
Teeth chattering: sustained (signal of anger, aggression, warning)
Nips, light bites, may result in little tufts of fur in their teeth
Wide yawn, but this is no yawn, they are showing their teeth
Snorting (like a strong puff or hiss)

These behaviors may sound serious and they should be monitored VERY CLOSELY, BUT do NOT separate the pigs exhibiting this behavior, yet. This is when the average pet owner loses it and pulls the pig out. Most of the time, this behavior will continue for a while until one backs down.

What fallows is serious fighting behavior and you should separate the two before they seriously hurt each other.

Fighting with intent to harm
Bite attacks are no longer warning nips, they are lunges with intent to harm.
Combination of raised hackles, loud and angry teeth chattering, rumblestrutting in place with the head staying in one position while facing the other guinea pig doing the same thing. Usually a signal of a biting attack. But they may back down before they engage.
Both pigs rear up on their haunches, face to face. This is a clear, brief signal of their intent to launch full attacks at each other. Separate if possible before the attack.
Full battle. The pigs are locked together in a vicious ball of fur. This is very serious. Separate immediately, but be careful. Throw a towel over them and use a dustpan or something other than your hand to separate them. Unintended bites from their very sharp incisors can cause serious damage.

I hope this helps,
Take care,
   Jules