Adding a second Guinea Pig?

[Bexicles]

I already have a two year old male Guinea Pig, recently I have been considering introducing a second GuInea Pig. I was wondering if anyone had successfully done this?

Also would I need to ensure they are similar ages?

TIA

[lemonbiscuit]

Hi great idea as guineas are happier in company.Yes I have done this successfully a couple of times following one of a pair of adult males (non neutered) dying and remaining guinea being lonely. I think it is important that when you introduce the new guinea, it is in some kind of neutral territory rather than just by putting the new and old guinea together in the hutch. I had an outside run that I placed a barrier across the middle of so guineas could see each other and sniff through the wire. If they looked happy and interested I let them mix after an hour or so. I have found it is either love or hate at first sight. I think the greatest chance of success is if you try to introduce a younger guinea to the older one. Good luck!

[guineapiglet]

Hi there, there are lots of boar owners on here, who will be able to give you lots of advice about boar stuff! I have integrated a lot of new girl guineas into established guinea families, and it is hard work, as they will not automatically get on. It is quite sad for a guinea to be the lonely only one, as they are very sociable, pack creatures and do enjoy each others company. Is there a local rescue near you where you could go and get some advice and see if there are any singleton males? Is your boy a friendly guinea? You may have to have them separately for a while, so it depends on how much space you already have, as they will need separate living space and runs - it is very labour intensive to start with as you have to build up their time with each other. IF you have a biggish garden you can let them loose with each other, as long as there are hidey holes and escape routes, as you must expect them to fight, be arsey and territorial to start with. It might be too much for your established boy, and too stressful for a small baby, but an older male might be glad of the company. You will see posts from 70, Fernie and Kritiq whose boys all get along ( mostly and with some human intervention now and again!!!!) and then from Bonkey who keeps hers separate but together if you get my drift - I guess they are like humans, if someone put a stranger in a cage next to you, there is no guarantee of success!!

[70isaLimitNotaTarget]

Hi Bexicles - have a look on the Barmy4Boars website. It's not been updated for a while but there's lots of boar information on there.

My fur babies were a year old when I got them but they were established (brothers) so although they have the odd arsey moment, they are by-and-large pretty mellow with each other.

You could: contact a Rescue or a breeder to find yourself a baby boar (this was what Bonkey did but her new boy turned into a little monster when puberty hit)

Or ask a Rescue to Boar-Date your boy. They will have singleton boys and will be able to assess your boys best match personality wise. Then they can put them in a neutral environment and assess them.
They might be the same age or they might have an older boy.

Or would you consider neutering your pig (reduces the risk of impaction too Bonus) and you could get a couple of laydeez for him to be head of the hareem.

If the worst happened you could end up with two side by side boars. They'd have company , might have a bit of bickering through the bars, but you'd need to have two cages.

There's no secret with boars but space. food (lots) and 'get out of my face' space helps alot.

[Bexicles]

Thank you all so much for the replies, my MIL knows a lady locally who rescues guinea pigs, I am going to ring here and see if she a suitable boar.

70isa the Barmy4boars website is fantastic, thank you.