Hello all. This is my first post but I have been reading various threads and guides for weeks. 5 weeks ago I adopted two boars from the rspca but one was a sow and must've been 4 weeks pregnant already. She had 4 lovely babies, they are now 18 days old, weighing 160 to 190g, I think three boys and a girl. I know I need to separate the boys before they reach 250g, and planned to put them in with the probable dad in the home alongside to continue to learn how to be pigs. But the rspca have said don't do that, the adult will likely kill them. Is there anyone here who has put babies boars in with dad, and was it okay?
Baby boars, can they go in with dad?
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The baby boars can go in with dad but only temporarily. More than two boars together long term does not work and you will need to have them separated out into two separate functioning pairs (two babies together and one baby with dad for the long term) by the time the baby boars hit their teens (16 weeks of age). Trying to keep four boars together long term will almost certainly fail.
Doing this will give you some time to find out which two piggies get on best to enable you to create those two separate pairs. The youngsters will also get the guidance from dad during their early months while learning how to be a piggy. Each boar pair will require a 180x60cm cage each as boars are more territorial and need more room.
Mum and daughter can continue living together.
this guide explains how to go about introducing piggies to each other. Don’t just put the babies in dads cage as it will be seen as a territory invasion.
Bonding and Interaction: Illustrated social behaviours and bonding dynamics
Further guides below
Adding More Guinea Pigs Or Merging Pairs – What Works And What Not?
A Comprehensive Guide to Guinea Pig Boars
Boars: Teenage, Bullying, Fighting, Fall-outs And What Next?
https://www.theguineapigforum.co.uk/threads/sexing-separating-baby-boars-and-rehoming-babies.109391/
Thank you, that's encouraging. Don't worry, I was never going to try to keep them all together for long, having read about the difficulties of trios and quartets just didn't want them to be alone when so tiny.
Please keep dad next to his family and allow him to meet any sons outside any cage for a few minutes a day in the run up (just until mother is starting to missing them and is getting upset); this will boost acceptance.
Our bonding guide has a chapter on baby bonding with a video of two newly separated baby boys meeting an adult boar.
By the time any sons hit teenage and the testicles start descending (which is also the time a boar will be old enough for the snip), you will know which boars are pairing off best with another in a quartet or have the odd one out boar in a trio (whether that is dad or one of the sons) neutered so he can live with mother and any daughters after a 6 weeks safety wait.
This allows you to have the best chance of ending up with stable boar bonds but provide the sons with the guidance and socialisation by a 'teacher boar' during the formative 'school weeks' between weaning and teenage.
Here is more information on development throughout life, so you can work alongside piggy instincts as much as possible and not agains them.