Boars..

The3LittlePigs

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*Eyeroll*
So, my boar, pickle, is a bit of a trouble maker. We have had him since he was tiny, and to begin with he lived with my elderly boar thistle, and his young companion, kiwi. Of course, when the two young boys reached.. the dreaded teenage years.. they immediately fell out with one another, and had to be separated as they were having constant face offs, and I really doubted it would work itself out due to the instability of a trio. Pickle was the unfortunate pig to be left alone. My elderly boar and kiwi had the most beautiful relationship, unlike any piggy pair I've had since. They cuddled, ear licked and really truly loved one another. Never a squabble in sight.. or sound!
After a little cool off time for pickle, we got him a nice new hutch and set out to find a friend! After a boar date we ended up adopting pepper; an older boy, perhaps a year or so old, who was very frightened of people but overjoyed to have a piggy friend! They never had a cuddly bond, but they got on well, slept together, ect.
Eventually, my older boar thistle passed away. This was a very upsetting time, as he was my first ever pig, and so beloved by all. Kiwi was very afraid on his own, and benefitted massively from some special human time.
After leaving time to recover from his loss, we took in turbo, a pig who came from a distant family member who had noticed her daughter and granddaughter werent taking care of their piggy, and no longer wanted him. I was eager to take him on, inspire of having no idea of the gender, I wanted to take him from the situation. Luckily, he turned out to be a boy, and settled in fine with kiwi. He was definitely a bit younger, but very placid and quiet.

Now, all my pigs are about 2-3 years old. All of a sudden, pepper has had enough of pickles dominance. They are both very large pigs. I've tried several time to reintroduce them - they've been in almost every room in my house now! - but it just doesn't seem to be working. They've drawn blood twice and I don't want to risk somepig getting hurt. Every time their interactions end with loud chattering each time they walk past one another, face offs, and eventually a horrific roll around the floor, with fur flying. Kiwi and turbo tend to hump away their anger at one another, but pickle and pepper can't share the love.

I've ordered a new hutch, with two separate layers so that they can stay apart. Pickle is fine with the arrangements; he's always wanted to be an only pig. But pepper, having been at a rescue and then living with pickle for the best part of his life, probably hasn't seen much alone time (depending on his past) and is really unhappy. He's still eating like a champ and romping around, but his little squeaks are so loud hoping for some attention! I really want to get another piggy friend for him, and for pickle, but I'm worried; if there's more fall outs, I just won't have the space to house six piggies separately. I boar dated pepper and pickle at a rescue to start with, but since the bond has failed so late on in the relationship, how can I trust that doing the same thing again will work? Any advice would be great, I just want the best for them !
 
I am so sorry to hear about your fallen out boys - boars can be tricky like that I think.

I know it didn't work out long term, but I still think boar dating will give you the absolute best chance of success.
I think it is quite unusual for them to have fallen out now, so hopefully it won't happen again and you will be able to find a friend for Pepper.
I think you have handled everything brilliantly so far, and they are very lucky boys to have such an expereinced and devoted owner.
 
*Eyeroll*
So, my boar, pickle, is a bit of a trouble maker. We have had him since he was tiny, and to begin with he lived with my elderly boar thistle, and his young companion, kiwi. Of course, when the two young boys reached.. the dreaded teenage years.. they immediately fell out with one another, and had to be separated as they were having constant face offs, and I really doubted it would work itself out due to the instability of a trio. Pickle was the unfortunate pig to be left alone. My elderly boar and kiwi had the most beautiful relationship, unlike any piggy pair I've had since. They cuddled, ear licked and really truly loved one another. Never a squabble in sight.. or sound!
After a little cool off time for pickle, we got him a nice new hutch and set out to find a friend! After a boar date we ended up adopting pepper; an older boy, perhaps a year or so old, who was very frightened of people but overjoyed to have a piggy friend! They never had a cuddly bond, but they got on well, slept together, ect.
Eventually, my older boar thistle passed away. This was a very upsetting time, as he was my first ever pig, and so beloved by all. Kiwi was very afraid on his own, and benefitted massively from some special human time.
After leaving time to recover from his loss, we took in turbo, a pig who came from a distant family member who had noticed her daughter and granddaughter werent taking care of their piggy, and no longer wanted him. I was eager to take him on, inspire of having no idea of the gender, I wanted to take him from the situation. Luckily, he turned out to be a boy, and settled in fine with kiwi. He was definitely a bit younger, but very placid and quiet.

Now, all my pigs are about 2-3 years old. All of a sudden, pepper has had enough of pickles dominance. They are both very large pigs. I've tried several time to reintroduce them - they've been in almost every room in my house now! - but it just doesn't seem to be working. They've drawn blood twice and I don't want to risk somepig getting hurt. Every time their interactions end with loud chattering each time they walk past one another, face offs, and eventually a horrific roll around the floor, with fur flying. Kiwi and turbo tend to hump away their anger at one another, but pickle and pepper can't share the love.

I've ordered a new hutch, with two separate layers so that they can stay apart. Pickle is fine with the arrangements; he's always wanted to be an only pig. But pepper, having been at a rescue and then living with pickle for the best part of his life, probably hasn't seen much alone time (depending on his past) and is really unhappy. He's still eating like a champ and romping around, but his little squeaks are so loud hoping for some attention! I really want to get another piggy friend for him, and for pickle, but I'm worried; if there's more fall outs, I just won't have the space to house six piggies separately. I boar dated pepper and pickle at a rescue to start with, but since the bond has failed so late on in the relationship, how can I trust that doing the same thing again will work? Any advice would be great, I just want the best for them !

Hi!

I am very sorry for boar woes.

You can consider either rescue dating with another adult boar (I would recommend travelling to Cavy Corner in Doncaster for that and see whether residential dating, i.e. bonding over several days will get you there). You will be in very kind and experienced hands there and can be assured that Pepper will come home only with a piggy he is working out with. Sue will take your history and concerns fully on board.
Cavy Corner

Alternatively, you could consider having Pepper and even Pickles neutered so they can live with a sow each (preferably dated from a good rescue to avoid the risk of acquiring an already pregnant or mis-sexed piggy). Cross gender pairs are the most stable of all. In the decade I have been on this forum I have come across less than a handful of fall-outs whereas we deal with boars all the time and see several sow fall-outs every year.
The best neutering vets are the Cat and Rabbit Care Clinic in Northampton, which specialise in cats, rabbits and guinea pigs and have 2 decades of experience and plenty of practice in neutering and spaying. It is well worth the longer trip for utter peace of mind - their success rate of complications-free ops is as close to 100% as you can reasonably get. A neutering op there is costing around £50, which is very cheap for the service you are getting. I take all my own boys there if they do not come already neutered as well as any piggies that may require an operation; if necessary by train!
Neutered / De-sexed Boars And Neutering Operations: Myths And Facts
The Cat and Rabbit Care Clinic

All the best! You are a very caring owner and your boys are lucky to have you!
 
Thanks so much for your advice. I'll definitely be trying pepper with a new boar, not sure which rescue to go to at the moment but I'll be having a look around. Bramcote is a possibility, if either of you have heard of them, do they have a good reputation on here at all? Unfortunately doncaster is way too far a field for me but I'm sure I'll be able to find somewhere a little closer to try. I had never actually considered getting pickle neutered, but now that you've mentioned it that might be the perfect fix! I'll be looking into that over the next few days and I'll definitely update this thread when I make my decision. Thanks so much for your advice!
 
Today I'm picking up a new boar mate for one of the lads! Going to try the new guy with pepper first, and if there are problems I can always try him with pickle. Once things have settled I'll look into getting a friend for pickle too :) exciting times ahead!
 
I have my new boy! The rescue lady tried with a baby first but i explained I wanted to try with an older boy first.. thus.. meet Raz! Bonding is going well so far, we tried them out in our run first and they seemed fine, some dominance from my boy pepper but Raz didn't seem bothered by it! He's a bit shy about his new home, but seems ok with people! A very curious and friendly little guy. I think he's about ten months old, badly needed his nails clipping and a bit of a hair cut though!
 

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