Boar Trio Fighting, Need Advice

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crazygal330

crazygal330

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Hiya folks.
Its been a number of years since I have been on here but I find myself in need of expert advice!
We have a trio of boars (siblings) who are now 4 years old and the last few months have gradually had escelating tiffs and it is now at a point where I am getting concerned and considering my options. They have a 6ft x 2ft hutch, there are always at least 3 houses, multiple water and food bowls and hay all over to minimise causes for fights as much as possible. And apart from the typical occasional argument they have been fine all these years!

However lately I have noticed fur pulling, some scratches on all their bums, more chasing than usual and more high pitched surrender squeaking too. I cant identify a particular bully or a particular bullied pig other than one that has more scratches on his bum than the other two.

I know I have various options, in an ideal world I would like to remove one, leave a happy pair and find a friend for the lone boar so i have two pairs. I dont have the space for six really so separating into singles and bonding all of them isn't an option, although I don't want to rehome any of them so if this is the last resort then so be it.
So long story short- I believe that it is serious enough that they need to be separated in some way. How do I know who to try? Any tips for ending up with a potentially more successful pair? If I separate one and the pair still fight can I swap them back and try a different pairing or will the remaining bond there be gone? Why are boars such lol?! :mal:
 
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I've had a few trios work and one that didn't.

I think there's a sticky post on bonding somewhere on the forum that would be good to have a read through. I can't find it as I'm on my phone, sorry.

My main suggestion is cage size. Boys need a lot of space and when you try to have more than 2 boys then you need as much space as you can possibly give them. My trios have had a 2x7 C&C cage and even that wasn't big enough for the last 3 pigs. When I had outdoor hutches I struggled sometimes to keep 2 boys bonded, as they like their own space.
 
Sorry your boys are having a relationship crisis. I think weight can be a clue. If one boar is being bullied more, he is likely to be eating less, stressed and will lose weight. I have found this with boar pairings which were going wrong in the past.
I would be thinking about removing the one with the most scratches and going boar dating for a new friend for him but the reaction when u separate would tell u a lot. And only u can see the behaviour which can be difficult to determine as boars can be noisy and chase etc even when bonded. My piggy room of boy pairs is rarely quiet!
Whatever happens it is going to be quite a major change for senior boys. Just tagging @pig in the city who does a lot of boy bonding for BARC.
 
They had mites about a month ago so have all been vet checked quite recently. within the time span of them escelating in their arguments. One boy has been to and from the vets a few times also in the last few months and now is on a low calcium diet for suspected kidney stones. I wasn't quite sure if this would cause it. We have separated the smallest boy as he had quite a few nasty scabs on his bum, and a small one on his face. They all seem much happier with this arrangement, although Runty seems a bit lonely bless him.
 
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