Best Combination For A Trio

[Kithri]

Hey, all! We adopted our girls, Eleanor and Lucy, just yesterday at a shelter! They're sisters and have been together all their lives.

My fiancé and I would like to eventually introduce a third piggy into the mix so one won't be left totally alone when her sister crosses the rainbow bridge. (They're only two, so it'll hopefully be a while, but still.). Would it be best to introduce another sow or would a neutered boar? The shelter we adopted from receives a lot of single pigs, so it won't be hard finding one of either gender.

Also, we currently have a c&c cage slightly larger than 2x4 (my measurements were off, so we had to expand the grids). Is this large enough for three adult pigs or should we expand when the third joins our family?

Thanks for the help! It'll be a while before we adopt a third, but I like to think about things ahead of time.

 

[Cavy Kung-Fu]

I believe a neutered boar is a better option, but be aware that in any gender trio one pig can often be left out. It's all trial and error though, I have 4 piggies and one of mine gets a little left out. But I'm pretty sure it's because she's a bit special, bless her 4 certainly seem more stable in any case!

 

[Wiebke]

Hey, all! We adopted our girls, Eleanor and Lucy, just yesterday at a shelter! They're sisters and have been together all their lives.

My fiancé and I would like to eventually introduce a third piggy into the mix so one won't be left totally alone when her sister crosses the rainbow bridge. (They're only two, so it'll hopefully be a while, but still.). Would it be best to introduce another sow or would a neutered boar? The shelter we adopted from receives a lot of single pigs, so it won't be hard finding one of either gender.

Also, we currently have a c&c cage slightly larger than 2x4 (my measurements were off, so we had to expand the grids). Is this large enough for three adult pigs or should we expand when the third joins our family?

Thanks for the help! It'll be a while before we adopt a third, but I like to think about things ahead of time.

If you can, try a neutered boar that the girls can choose, but either can work. Be aware that while the 1 husboar-2 sows option is generally the most successful, it only works for the longer term if the two sows are good friends. Otherwise you are more likely to end up with the usual outsider problem that tends to dog most trios. Adding a husboar is not a cure for a dysfunctional sow bond. You also need to be aware that it is the sows who choose to associate with a boar, not the other way round. With small groups, rescue dating is always the best way forward as you can never predict whether a bonding is going to work out or not.

If you have the option to extend, I would rather recommend to go from 2 to 4 piggies at some point (whether that includes a neutered boar or not) by introducing another bonded pair with the second pair ideally younger and not able to upset the current hierarchy. That moves dynamics on into small group dynamics and ensures that there is much less of a risk of an outsider problem. The age difference where the younger pair is sub-adult helps with bonding success and an easier dominance phase. It is always better to build up a group around the existing piggies, so their leadership is never in question.

 

[flowerfairy]

Really glad you asked that question kithri. I am expanding my cage and am tempted to get more gps ...

Good luck with expanding your gp family!