A new friend for Honkey

[HonkeysMummy]

I think in a few weeks Honkey may need a friend, our local P@H have piggies but when I have been in there the piggies just lie there, I want one which is handled.
Because Honkey is so young I do not think a rescued piggy is a good idea, I would like a boar about the same age as he is.
The last 4 animals I have had from a pet shop have all died and the vet said it was due to the way they were breed.
I would prefer to get a piggy from a family, who knows what they have been doing with concerns to breeding and handling etc..
I am in Somerset, so what is the best way to find Honkey a new friend?

 

[Niki]

I think in a few weeks Honkey may need a friend, our local P@H have piggies but when I have been in there the piggies just lie there, I want one which is handled.
Because Honkey is so young I do not think a rescued piggy is a good idea, I would like a boar about the same age as he is.
The last 4 animals I have had from a pet shop have all died and the vet said it was due to the way they were breed.
I would prefer to get a piggy from a family, who knows what they have been doing with concerns to breeding and handling etc..
I am in Somerset, so what is the best way to find Honkey a new friend?

Boy/boy relationships are delicate & they "can" fall out at any stage; for whatever reason. I haven't had much luck with my boys, 2 were paired but have lived separately for over a year due to bullying, another pair (littermates) had a very up & down relationship but they did stay together until one left for the bridge.
I have only had one success; i paired a 1year old with my 3wk old boy & these 2 love one another mainly because the younger one accepts the older one as boss & has never challenged him.
There are many people, far more experienced than me on pairing boys but i would say to have another boy at a similar age to Honkey you would have to be prepared to separate them as they become teens, this is when the probs could start.
In my opinion, only because it's worked for me, it is better to pair a young boy with an older boy.
You could also look for a speyed girl for him tho' these are rare or have Honkey neutered when he's old enough & get him a girl. I personally haven't had any of my boys neutered because i'm wary of the risks.

 

[smiler]

I dont understand why you wont go to a rescue :-\

Then he can choose which piggy he wants to be friends with, which with boar + boar is very important, theres no use having a well handled boar you like, if honkey and him fight

Neutered boar and sow is always the best option in my mind

If you get a young boar, the chances are they could fall out when they are older, but with an older boar, the personality is unlikely to change, so is a better option in that respect.

How old is Honkey?

 

[HonkeysMummy]

Honkey is 17 days old.
He seems happy enough all alone at the moment.
This may sound silly but as he has not been fed by his mother (she dead) would he be more at risk from picking any thing up?

 

[smiler]

The best thing you could do, considering his age is to buy a young boar from a GOOD breeder

The younger the better O0

No, I dont think he will be more vunerable as he was hand raised, should be fine, but due to his size, I would go with another young boar, also because of his age, if you can get a boar at 3-8 weeks, they have more chance of being friends for life O0

 

[HonkeysMummy]

OK, now that is a problem I am in Somerset and do not know of any local breeders, I just shudder at the idea of a puppy farm for piggies.
If anybody could recommend a local breeder I would be very happy.

 

[lolseh]

This may sound silly but as he has not been fed by his mother (she dead) would he be more at risk from picking any thing up?

Buttons was the same. His mum never died but she had became pregnant and couldn't handle feeding the litter. He's smaller than the rest and has had 2 ops on his eye because it kept filling up with pus plus he's had a mouth infection. I'm not sure if it's anything to do with that though.