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new piggie to the cage

21 14:47:34

Question
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Followup To
Question -
Hello I am Candi and I have a question.  I have a piggie that is about 7-8 months old, male.  And I just bought another piggie from the pet store, another male.  Right now we have them separated because when we first came home we put them together and they were, don't be offended but they were humping each other.  Now that we have them apart they can still see eachother and they will stand next to each other purr, and sway their back half back and forth.  What does this mean, are they just determining rank? And will it stop? Thanks for all your help if you need more info. just email.  Candi
Answer -
It means that both are definately males! LOL...this is how they tell rank! You should introduce them on "neutral grounds" for example, on the floor, couch, bed, or someplace other than a cage!Your original guinea pig "owns" that cage, and the new one wants to be boss! But first a word of advice, FROM NOW ON, quarantine new guinea pigs for AT LEAST 3 weeks, pet store piggies are prone to all kinds of dieseases,...he could make your old piggie sick!

But, it will stop within a few days, maybe weeks...but most likely a few days! What kind of cage do you use? Is the cage big enough for them to run and play? They do need plenty of room!

Good Luck
Jess


Thank you for your help.  well the cage is pretty big what we have done is taken a regular cage and placed inside another self created cage that we made out of "yaffa blocks".  It is about 2 ft wide by 6ft long.  When we first brought home "Tuiey" the new piggie we cleaned the entire cage and moved everything around so that "Sully" was not used to it.  and we introduced them on the floor but for right now we have Tuie in the little cage and Sully in the big cage....they can still see eachother.  Any other suggestions?  Thanks Candi

Answer
Sully will be territorial...they are going to fight, I reccomend just putting them together for a day or two, they will get thier problems worked out! As long as thier is NO bloodshed, they will be ok! Your cage sounds PERFECT! A few "fights", rumbling, and "humping" is PERFECTLY normal...even though it is not  what we want! Some males NEVER get along, but I believe that with lots of space...all will eventually become friends...it just takes lots of time & patience...Good luck

Jess