Boars and their popularity.

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Why have i not seen this thread before? I love boars! I admit, i am mad for them. Yes they bicker, and nag and rumble but thats what makes them interesting to me. I love watching their petty little man squabbles:

"Hey i want a drink"
"Theres another bottle over there"
"But i want this one!"
*headbutt, rumble, manly-ness*

I love working out why they do the things they do and learning about them. I love how big and chunky they get. And in my experiance, ive found them much more people friendly than sows.

So often i have families who come into work saying "We'd like some guinea-pigs but we dont want boys because they fight" or "Our vet said" (don't get me started on that one, no offence to any vets who may be here) and once i've spoken to them in person and had a chance to show them our bonded boys they inevitably change their tune.
 
Like most members on here with large numbers I also have more boars then sows! My favourites are all boys as well! Sows can be complete mares more often then not, whereas boars are always prettier and have the better personalities. I always recommend pairs of boars to people.

To be honest the male of most species is the best to have as a pet. My cat and rabbit are both boys as well. :)
 
Squidge said:
To be honest the male of most species is the best to have as a pet. My cat and rabbit are both boys as well. :)
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I nearly always have males i can help it too, i swear by Male hamsters and all my toads are boys aswell, actually my cat it my only intentional girl! (My hamster is an accidental girl, i was told she was a boy when i picked her up and no, no she wasnt!)
 
What a silly thing, to try to compare boars and sows. I have both (4 ladies and 2 gentlemen) and each group provides their own joys/stressors from an owner's perspective. Love the animal itself, not it's sex.
 
Out of my 14 piggies, 10 are boars. They live in pairs and I have never had any trouble. Possibly because they are all rescues and were either already bonded or were babies from the same litter. My sows can argue just as much!

I don't have a preference of boars/sows....my brood were rescued simply because they needed a home and they are gorgeous! I haven't deliberately set out to have more boys, that's just how it has worked out. I would recommend either sex :)
 
I must admit that I was advised as a first time owner that sows would be better.
However I did lots of research, including lots of questions on here, and I had very mixed opinions as a result.
In the end I decided to go for a bonded pair of youngsters that I liked and felt happiest with, regardless of gender. It just happens that the rescue had a pair of little sows but no bonded boars. I'm very happy with my girlies but I'm just as convinced I'd be saying the same if I'd got boars......I just love piggies!
:<>
 
I think that part of the reason that boar pairs have ended up with this reputation is that new owners will often put them in accommodation that doesn't give them enough personal space. I'm sure sows don't care for cramped conditions either, but boars tend to be more obvious in the way they object.

We all know that the sale of 'guinea pig' cages that are too small for one, let alone 2 pigs is widespread, so I think the 'boar problem' is often a symptom rather than the problem itself. Most of my pigs over the years have been boars and I have to say that I've never encountered any problems with them getting along in pairs once you've found a compatible partnership :)
 
I'm so glad this has been picked up again. :) I would like to say though, its not my feeling that they are BETTER than sows, (ive never had sows, so i really couldnt comment) I just feel sad that they seem to get so much stick for "fighting" all the time.

I think if they are bonded propperly, and kept in a big enough space, and kept correctly (ie, given vet treatment when needed, etc etc - because lets face it, youd be grumpy with your room mate if you were in pain or itching like crazy) And given two of things, cos nobody likes to share all the time, then the chances of having problems are fairly slim. Not non existant, but still, fairly slim. :)
 
The two of everything rule to me connie, is the golden one! Nor do i feel it should be applied to boars alone. It really doesn't take a lot to provide, even scatter feeding rather than using a bowl imediately reduces the stress of having the share.It's somthing i always tell perspective new owners when they ask me about boys fighting. We wouldn't share a plate with another person, and we wouldnt make our two dog's, for example drink from the same bowl, so why guineapigs?

Unfotunately, until minimum cage sizes for certain species are made legal, and people who new owners go to for advise (pets shops & vets most commonly) stop saying "You can't keep two males together unless they are brothers" then it's not going to change.
 
I've corrected a few people with the same ideas.

A vet of mine told me boys can't be together as they will bite one anothers balls off during a fight.
I then corrected his BS by telling him I've had two beautiful boars together for a year and a half and two younger boars together for a few months and neither have tried to rip each others man jewels away. -.-
 
I know. Its so sad. I can understand it being pet shop advice (because lets face it, they have no interest in the animal really) But occasionally peoples VETS tell them this. mallethead. What is it comming too where vets are giving out incorrect advice about animals? If your client asks a question and you dont know, because its not your area of experties, say so. *rolls eyes*

Ive never understood pet shops desire to sell small cages... Surely the bigger ones cost more, ergo more profit? Or atleast the same amount of profit... it makes no sense to me.
 
I have a pair of boars and they are adorable, they love each other dearly and are always cuddling up together.

I would defo recommend a pair of boars to anyone!
 
Personally, as much as I love my little boys, I find them to be slightly more complicated than sows. Its just because if you are looking to add to your piggy family, it is generally not possible with more than 2 boars. In my experience, boys smell quite a bit more, and they need more space. And sperm rods :)>>>. If you mistake sonething more serious for a mere sperm rod, then attempting to remove it can be extremely dangerous for the piggy. Boars are lovely, and I would reccomend them to anyone! However, for a first time owner with no experience of piggies, girls may be a slightly wiser choice. But I do love my big squishy boars! :))
 
I think that depends, as family pets to be enjoyed by children, i would recomend boars for their cheeky nature and cuddly character (assuming you go to a rescue and choose boars you know are not like my two mallethead :)) )
 
I'm sorry not had chance to read through all the thread but will tomorrow. Just putting my penny worth in, i LOVE boars, way more than sows. Boars rock, Boars are cuddly , boars are more frinedly, boars are at the front of the cage to great you, BOARS ALL THE WAY
 
I think ALL piggies are lovely :) I just fail to understand why, if someone is wanting a pair of piggies, they would care what sex the pair were. :) I mean obviously, if you already have loads of sows your not going to want boars, but if your looking for a pair, especially if its your only pair, then boars are just as good as sows :)
 
I do love my boars but you didn't see what I had to pick out of Spike's bottom fur and Bob's leg yesterday! Thanks for that Bob! :(|)
 
Connie said:
I think ALL piggies are lovely :) I just fail to understand why, if someone is wanting a pair of piggies, they would care what sex the pair were. :) I mean obviously, if you already have loads of sows your not going to want boars, but if your looking for a pair, especially if its your only pair, then boars are just as good as sows :)
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I remember when i was looking for a pair of piggies ~(comming up to 6 years ago now) i was certain i was going to get little girls, as i'd always had boars. Yep, dead certain that it was sow's for me, then i saw the two most beautiful little boars & i couldn't have cared less that they were, becasue i knew they were for me.
 
I think at some point in the future i may have sows, but it will be a long time away, as i have two one year old boars and only have space for a max trio of sows. :) lol.
Having a pair i cant add to has been a god sent for me, because I'm always looking at the piggies on here going "ooo what iff" I just know, if there was any actual chance of me adding to my brood i would have (even if its definatly not financially sensible!)
 
Connie said:
I think at some point in the future i may have sows, but it will be a long time away, as i have two one year old boars and only have space for a max trio of sows. :) lol.
Having a pair i cant add to has been a god sent for me, because I'm always looking at the piggies on here going "ooo what iff" I just know, if there was any actual chance of me adding to my brood i would have (even if its definatly not financially sensible!)
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I think thats a really good point. If I had girls I'd be unable to resist just adding one little extra piggy. Which turns into two extra piggies then three, then four. xD

Boar's make it so you have to stick to your guns otherwise you'd end up with many cages and many mouths to feed. :))
 
I absolutely adore my boys. I've had three boars (originally Freddie and Ringo, then Ringo passed away and we adopted Nelson) and they're the friendliest little piggies! They get on so much better than my girls do, surprisingly. Freddie and Nelson have a serious bromance going on :))

I can't say I've noticed much difference in smell, but I suppose the cleaning of bums and grease spots is a bit of an effort! As for space - it's actually my girls who need it more! They squabble like you wouldn't believe if they're kept together in a smaller space for too long, or have nothing to occupy them!
 
Only issue I ever had with my 2 boys was dominance as they both went through that hormonal stage at the same time and I had an awful sized cage ") But other then that they are lovely. If a little more cleaning is involved :))
 
My experience - I have boars and sows. Its not always the boars that have arguments. I have a lone female. Pollyanna is a little monkey. She was with a piggy but after Molly died she changed. Pollyanna has had a vet check as i thought maybe she had an underlying illness. Fortunately, nothing appeared wrong. She has been tried with 5 different sows.

I am currently looking for a neutered boar that maybe what she is looking for!
 
I looked after the school GPs which were a pair of boars and only had one squabble in the 2 weeks I had them.

When I got mine I was advised that boys are friendlier and as I was getting 2 before they reached sexual maturity they'd be fine. They get along fine 99% of the time, they have the odd squabble but then so do all siblings!

From what I understand about it, it's introducing a new boar to an established group that could be tricky rather than getting a couple of bonded pairs of boars but I really don't know a great deal about it.
 
If you get a bonded pair (ei from a rescue) You are very unlikely to have any problems (provided they are kept correctly)

People usualy have problems if a) They try to just plonk a new boar in with a current boar, or b) they purchase two from a pet store, as these two have been living in a big group they wont be bonded and may not even like eachother. :)

Adding a boar to an exisiting pair is not something i would ever recomend, but people have occasionally done it with succes, your right thought hats the tricky thing! :)
 
I have a pair of boys and from an early age they fell out (blood was drawn) and they live happily side by side. They still rumble every now and then but with the bars in the way no damage can be done!

It is more work and they do pong occasionally but I love them both to bits. I would not change them for the world!

I had sows as a child and I remember them being just as friendly but no way near as nosey or naughty.

If I get more piggies I would get boars.
 
Gracie01 said:
My experience - I have boars and sows. Its not always the boars that have arguments. I have a lone female. Pollyanna is a little monkey. She was with a piggy but after Molly died she changed. Pollyanna has had a vet check as i thought maybe she had an underlying illness. Fortunately, nothing appeared wrong. She has been tried with 5 different sows.

I am currently looking for a neutered boar that maybe what she is looking for!
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I have a she-devil of a sow, she originally had a sow friend and lived in a herd with about 6 other sows...but she just decided one day she didn't want to play nice any more and attacked everything that came into contact with her...I split her off and she lived on her own for a while, I tried her again with a sow, but she wasn't having any of it, and so I got a neutered boar for her. Although everything went fine initially, she didn't really like him too much and so she went back to living on her own. I've managed to find her another neutered boar to live with (the other boar is in my sow herd) and they're getting on fine at the moment...and I'm hoping she'll put up with him.

But sometimes sows can be worse, and you may need to go through a few neutered boars to find the right one. Although I don't like neutering boars 'un-necessarily', when you have a sow like mine sometimes you need a boar you already know the personality of, so that you know whether he'll work out with the sow...it might be something worth thinking about if you have trouble with her.
 
I have had boars and sows in the past sows i kept together but boars i only ever had one at a time as i thought you could not have them together,i am hoping to get two piggies and after hearing posts on this forum i am so pleased it is ok to have boars together as they always seemd cheeker to me.
 
It is not just this forum. The Internet is full of this myth. I recently discovered the pet shops here also perpetuate this nonsense. Fortunately I only pay attention to Peter Gurney's advice and the experiences of rescues. So, now I have two lovely boys I can't imagine being without.
 
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