Advice needed - recently bereaved pig

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abijay

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Hi everyone. I would really appreciate your advice.

I had a long loved guinea pig (Papua) for whom I got a young friend (Reg). Sadly, Reg bought a disease with him and made Papua very ill. Once he got ill Reg started persecuting him frequently. Papua ended up in hospital with his illness (probably not helped by the ocassional bullying) and was seperated temporaily from Reg who was in the next door cage untl he got better. They came back home with Papua still very underweight, the advice from the hospital was that they were friends and should stay together.

They struggled though the last 3 months together with regular sparring - I was so torn about whether to seperate them and potentially upset them more, or leave them together with the odd fight (even though I suspected Papua wasnt really up to the challenge). In the end it got too much and Papua stopped eating (whether from the illness or from stress I dont know). I seperated them and took Papua to the vet who gave him antibiotics, but he died a week later. I feel incredibly guilty and sad and just confused about the advice I was given.

I am now left with a fairly aggressive guinea pig who I am struggling to love after everything he seems to have caused. He should be living outdoors but is currently inside so we can be company for him. My options seem to be very limited and none of them are great:
  • Get another pig and hope he doesnt aggress him (not convinced, he is quite an aggro pig)
  • Keep him inside with us for company (not at all what I want to do, I got them as outdoor pets)
  • Put him back outside on his own (I think that would be unkind)
  • Get him a rabbit as a friend (generally advised against because of the kicking danger)
  • Have him adopted by someone who wants to keep him indoors as a friend

Does anyone else have any other recommendations or can you suggest which of these would be best to do?

Thanks
Abijay
 
you could try talking to local rescues as some will offer boar dating and see if he is able to pick his own friend, there will be more chance of a successful pairing if he picks a friend himself. There are also posts on here about boar behaviour and tips on bonding pigs that might help you. It would be a shame for Reg to be kept on his own
 
Aww poor boy.
I'd never say put piggies and rabbits together. As well as the risk of him being kicked and possibly killed, they have totally different nutritional requirements. I hope you get it sorted :)
 
I am sorry about what happened. Please do not blame Reg for Papua's problems - they are not his fault in the first place! It would have been your responsibility to get a piggy from a less doubtful background (some shop and breeders are not good at all) and to make sure that you found a suitable friend for Papua. I assume that Reg is not a year old yet and in the midst of the big hormones?

You have in effect three options that take Reg's happiness into account:
- find a rescue that allows to bring Reg for some boar dating, so he can find a friend he clicks with
- rehome Reg to a reputable rescue who will bond him before rehoming him to a home checked good home
- have Reg neutered by an expericenced vet (that cuts down a lot on the risks and complications, even though you can never completely exclude them) and have him living with a girl or two. Cross gender bonds are very stable, so you would not have to worry about fall outs. He will have to wait 4-6 weeks after the operation until he can join any girls, but he would be a VERY happy boar indeed!

Putting a piggy with a rabbit is a big NO NO - they also have very different food and vitamin requirements and there are a couple of illnesses that can be transmitted that are fatal for guinea pigs.
Living alone is not a good option for a piggy. They are herd animals and are wired to be in company.

Whereabouts are you so we can point you to a rescue?
 
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Thanks so much for all that advice. I'm in Abingdon, Oxfordshire. I just phoned RSPCA's Willow Farm Rescue Centre just down to road to follow your advice about dating. Unfortunately they dont have any suitable pigs at the moment. The Blue Cross near me dont do introductions but said they would try and rehome him for us if we couldnt find a suitable arrangement.

Any other thoughts on where I could go for boar introductons would be gratefully recieved.
 
PS I got Reg from Pets at Home which struck me to be the largest and best reputed pet shop I could find. I thought there would be no way that they would give away diseased pets. They also checked the pig over thoroughly before they gave him to me. How else are you supposed to check that a supplier is reputable?
 
tempting as it might be I would never get a guinea pig from pets at home, I am not a big fan of the supermarket anyway. I am against puppy farming and I am against the factory farming that pet shops use to get their livestock
 
Firstly i'm sorry to read about Papua. Do you know for sure Reg brought a disease with him? It may have been pure coincidence.

Regarding finding him a friend, i have had/have boars with similar personalities to Reg & all bullied/fought with their new friends.
My first boar bullied his brother in rescue & was separated, when he first arrived here he lived alone but craved the company of another pig so i took him to choose himself a baby & all was well for approx 6wks when he bullied the baby & i had no option but to separate. He lived alone again until i made the decision to have him neutered. He lived happily with a group of sows until he passed away.

My next boar also lived alone when he first arrived, he had attacked babies in rescue as he was so terrified. Once i'd spent time with him & he was happy in the company of humans i decided to take him to choose a friend, he loved his baby until the baby hit 5 months & then the fights started. I separated, bathed, re-bonded & it did nothing, they fought again. This time i had the younger one neutered but because i don't know the elders true age decided against it for him.
Both now live with girls (the intact boar lives with spayed sows).

I can't say Reg won't bond to a baby, he may do but wether he & the baby will remain together cannot be guaranteed. I wish you luck with whatever you decide. :)
 
Thanks Niki for your thoughts about guinea pigs getting on with babies until they get a bit older, very interesting. My instincts say that this might happen with Reg. I'm having a go at introducing him to a 1 year old male on Monday. I'm not holding my breath but it might be worth a try. Failing that, neutering might just be the best option.

You've all been very helpful. Thanks.
 
abijay said:
Thanks Niki for your thoughts about guinea pigs getting on with babies until they get a bit older, very interesting. My instincts say that this might happen with Reg. I'm having a go at introducing him to a 1 year old male on Monday. I'm not holding my breath but it might be worth a try. Failing that, neutering might just be the best option.

You've all been very helpful. Thanks.
Click to expand...

I hope all goes well on Monday & if it does, it remains that way. :)
 
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