Can A Father Guinea Pig Be With The Babies? (Find Out Now)
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Your guinea pig has had some babies. You love them and you want to make sure they have the best life possible. But you don’t know what to do with the father of the babies. Can he be with them?
You father guinea pig shouldn’t be with the babies. They don’t help take care of the newborns and can be a disturbance to the mother. Plus, he can impregnate the mother guinea pig again which isn’t good for her health. Not only that, he can also impregnate the female baby guinea pigs once they reach 3 weeks old – which is way too young for them to be having babies. It’s best to keep him separated from the mother and babies.
Now that might have come as a shock to you. Trust me, I can relate ( I was shocked when I found out too).
Keep calm though, I’ll tell you all you need to know about your new cavies and their dad. What are we waiting for? Let’s dive in!
Can A Father Guinea Pig Be With The Babies?
No, father guinea pigs shouldn’t be with the babies. You should take the daddy guinea pig away as soon as the babies arrive. Guinea pig mothers don’t need the father’s help in taking care of their litter. So are fathers needed in any other way? No, they aren’t (sorry piggie dads!)
The father guinea pig is even a distraction to the mother who’s focused on caring for her babies. He can impregnate the mother again once it’s 12 hours past her delivery. And that’ll be a disaster for the new babies because their mother won’t be able to provide the care they need.
Also, father guinea pigs aren’t very great at bonding with new babies. And I don’t think you wanna risk having your cavies eaten by their dad.
The daddy guinea pig should be taken away as soon as the babies arrive.
If you have a pregnant guinea pig, it’s best to plan to remove the father at least week or two before she’s due. Just make sure you have a big enclosure ready for the father – preferably in a separate room. The separation will let the mama guinea pig get more rest before the delivery.
Father and Daughter
Guinea pig fathers should be separated from their daughters once they’re born. You can introduce them to each other for short moments under your supervision.
But once the female babies are 3 weeks old, keep them away from their fathers. This is because they’re capable of getting pregnant once they’re above 3 weeks.
I hope you get what I mean.
Keeping them with their father is a huge risk because he’ll try to mate with them. Father guinea pigs may also not get along well with the female babies. They may act hostile to them and stress them too.
Plus if a baby guinea pig gets pregnant, she’s very likely to suffer complications. No joke, pregnancy isn’t easy for adult females (it’ll be disastrous for a baby cavy). Point is to keep the father and daughter relationship at a distance.
Father and Son
Some guinea pig fathers may get along with their sons while others may not. And in some situations, the father will interact with the baby guinea pig by showing dominance behaviors like:
- rumble strutting
- mounting
- teeth chattering
- chasing
- nipping
Now don’t get me wrong. Dominance behaviors are perfectly normal when guinea pigs are meeting each other for the first time.
But, the experience can be pretty stressful for baby piggies. In my experience, I wouldn’t recommend officially introducing the father to the new baby (with the intent of matching them up) until after 4 weeks.
Just because two male guinea pigs are born as part of the same litter doesn’t mean that they’ll get along. It’s still important to keep an eye on their interactions and make sure they’re not being too rough with each other. Incompatible pairs can easily fall out and end up hating each other. Yes, even if they’re brothers.
When Can Baby Guinea Pigs Meet Their Dad?
Baby guinea pigs can meet their dad when they’re about two weeks old. This meeting must be supervised by you. You should introduce them to their dad briefly (a minute or two WITHOUT touching) and then return them to their mother’s care.
Within 3 to 5 weeks after birth, they’re more or less adult piggies. So you can introduce the males fully to their father.
As for the females, you shouldn’t bring them close to their dad else he’ll impregnate them. And that’s a situation you don’t wanna see, trust me.
Separate the male babies from the females once they are 3 weeks old. Their male siblings are now capable of impregnating them or their mother.
Should A Father Guinea Pig Be Separated From the Mother?
Yes, a father guinea pig should be separated from the mother. If you don’t separate them, mating is just a matter of time. And if she’s already pregnant, he can stress her by trying to mate again.
Let’s see more details on why they shouldn’t be together…
After Birth
Female guinea pigs’ pregnancy lasts for about 59 to 72 days. Separate her from her male partner when it’s close to her estimated delivery time.
Always make sure to separate the dad from the mom immediately after the babies are born. This is because the father guinea pig can stress the mother by getting her pregnant again. What’s worse? It can happen in as little as 12 hours!
Now imagine giving birth and becoming pregnant again the same day?
I’m feel my anxiety bubbling to the surface just thinking about it. It’ll completely stress out your female piggie and/or make her fall sick or die.
And that right there… is the reason why you should take away the father as soon as she gives birth.
No delays okay?
Don’t even give them time for teary goodbyes.
Like I said earlier, the mother guinea pig doesn’t need the dad’s help in caring for her babies. So there’s no reason why you should keep them together (well, unless you want a baby-making marathon).
Here’s some more information on how and why guinea pigs fight and how to stop it: How To Tell If Your Guinea Pigs Are Playing Or Fighting (9 Simple Tips) and 5 Surprising Reasons Your Guinea Pigs Are Suddenly Fighting
During Pregnancy
If you discover that your sow who has a male partner is pregnant, separate them ASAP. You shouldn’t keep the father guinea pig with the pregnant sow either.
You are wondering why, aren’t you? Well, the primary reason is that he may injure her while attempting to mate with her again.
Also, pregnant sows can experience hormonal changes and mood swings. And the father may not tolerate the attitudes. And that’s just asking for a fight to break out – which might her the mama and the babies she’s carrying.
So the bottom line is that you should separate them and be on the safer side.
What To Do With the Father Guinea Pig After Birth? (Pet Parents Weigh In)
It’s best to transfer the father guinea pig to a separate cage after the birth of the newborns. Now, this is what most piggie owners do when their cavies are put to bed. But how do they separate them?
As a lover of details, I researched 47 people who own guinea pigs. I wanted to know what they did with their male guinea pigs when they got new babies.
From the information I gathered, I highlighted the following:
- Most guinea pig owners created a new space in their house for the daddy piggie before the babies were born.
- Several owners said they moved the newborns and their mother to a new cage and left the dad in the former one.
- Some owners said they paired the guinea pig dad with another adult male in their home.
- A few owners said they paired their guinea pig dad with another female (a post-menopausal one)
- Several owners said they got the guinea pig’s dad neutered and let him stay with the mother.
One story caught my attention:
This new piggie owner helped her friend who relocated to care for two lovely piggies. Funny enough, she didn’t know they weren’t both females. So it came as a shock when she found out one was pregnant.
Well, she got over it and cared for the sow till she delivered. Now here’s the interesting part, she didn’t know a sow can get pregnant again easily.
I don’t blame her, she knew very little about guinea pigs. Now back to the story…
Her friend informed her to separate the guinea pig’s dad from the mother. But she didn’t do it until after 2 days.
You can’t imagine the shock she felt when she found out the sow was pregnant AGAIN. Apparently, she didn’t separate them early enough.
Long story short…
The sow died before the second delivery. And she got the guinea pig dad neutered. She’s got three lovely young cavies now though and she’s becoming a professional piggie parent.
Breeding guinea pigs is very dangerous for the females. A high percentage of them end up dying from the process. It’s actually better (and safer!) to just adopt when you want piggies instead of breeding them.
Now, that was an interesting story but let’s move to the research conclusion…
- 65% (31 piggie owners) got their guinea pigs’ dad a new separate cage away from the babies. Some of the people in this group paired him with another adult male piggie in the house.
- 35% (16 piggie owners) got their guinea pigs’ dads neutered. Most of these people are new owners who were unprepared for baby cavies. So they got the dad neutered to prevent future occurrences.
I bet you’ll find this post useful: Can Three Male Guinea Pigs Live Together? (Find Out Now) and Can You Separate Bonded Guinea Pigs? (Find Out Now)
Can Two Baby Male Guinea Pigs Live Together?
Yes, two baby male guinea pigs can live together. In fact, they should be paired together. If you’ve just welcomed some new boars (congratulations!), they’re great at bonding.
After they’ve been separated from their mother and are becoming mature, it’s time to let them bond. Truth be told, bonding guinea pigs as babies is the best.
Pairing two male guinea pigs have had high success rates over the years. I can tell you this confidently (yo! I’m your favorite researcher).
One thing that you’re going to have to watch out for is dominance issues that pop up with male guinea pigs when they hit their hormonal period (at around 6 months old or so). During this time, their testicles drop and an insane amount of testosterone flows through their bodies, which can lead to them getting a little too feisty with each other. If your male piggies are the same age, that means that they’re going to be going through it at the same time. And then it gets really tricky .
Can You Breed Brother and Sister Guinea Pigs?
No, you shouldn’t breed brother and sister guinea pigs. Their babies would likely end up with a bunch of genetic defects that would give them lots of health issues and shorten their lives.
You can only keep the males and females together when they’re still below 3 weeks of age.
That’s when they’re still dependent on their mother. But as soon as each one starts to mature, separate them. Keep the females with their mama, because they can’t impregnate each other.
When looking for the right guinea pig cage, make sure that it’s big enough for two pigs. A good rule of thumb is at least 7.5 square feet per guinea pig, but the more space the better.
Things To Remember About Separating Male and Female Guinea Pigs
Now let’s be serious, breeding guinea pigs is really dangerous for the mama guinea pigs AND it’s really not necessary, because there’s so many guinea pigs in rescues and shelters waiting to be adopted.
But…
If you do have a pregnant piggie, separate her from the daddy sooner rather than later.
And once the babies have arrived, you have roughly 3 weeks to make your arrangements. Now your preparation should be based on the sex of the newborns.
If you’ve got only sows, well lucky you! After 4 weeks with their mama, you can move them to their cage or leave them to grow up with her – depending on how compatible they are in terms of personalities.
But if you’ve got boars, you’ll need to get them their housing ASAP. Otherwise they’ll impregnate their mother and sisters (crazy, right?).
Whatever you do, make sure that after the first month, everyone’s got their own space.