Bonding baby boar with adult

[teddy7625]

I have a baby boar from a re-homing of his mom. I wasn't aware of her pregnancy but luckily she only had two and everything went well and everyone is healthy. Because he is the only boy and I had only girls, I know I have to get him a friend or wait until he is of age to neuter him. I don't think it is wise to make him wait since he grew up in his little herd with 3 other piggies. He turns 3 weeks old tomorrow and I separated him yesterday.

Because he is so young, I was worried about him eating and drinking but he seems to be doing fine (besides the occasional cry for mommy lol). I just had a general worry of his young age. Is it ok to get and adult boar when he is so young? I read over when boars reach their teenage years there can be fall-outs. I don't want to get another piggie and then have to separate them when baby gets older.

Thoughts? Advice?

 

[Piggies&buns]

Whichever way you choose is absolutely fine. He will be ok to be kept in a separate cage alongside the girls until he is old enough to be neutered, had the six week post op wait and can then be rebonded back in with the girls. But you are right it is a long time to wait and babies are most desperate for companionship.
You can get him a new friend now and have two separate pairs.

A bond comes down to character compatibility. Most boar bonds are successful but there is always an element of unknown.
Most babies are accepted by adults but not all. Finding him a friend via a rescue centre is the safest thing ao you can ensure they are going to get on. There is a chance as your baby gets older that could try to become more dominant than his adult cagemate may allow.

The other thing to bear in mind is that keeping a boar in the presence of sows who is not used to the presence of sows, will produce a strong reaction. Your baby should be ok as he will have grown up around sows, but the piggy you get to be his cagemate may not be used to sow pheromones.
Boar pairs require more room than sow pairs - a 6ft x 2ft cage is recommended for boar pairs

The guides below cover further on bonding and keeping boar pairs.

A Comprehensive Guide to Guinea Pig Boars
Boars: Teenage, Bullying, Fighting, Fall-outs And What Next?
Bonding and Interaction: Illustrated social behaviours and bonding dynamics
A Closer Look At Pairs (Boars - Sows - Mixed)

 

[teddy7625]

Whichever way you choose is absolutely fine. He will be ok to be kept in a separate cage alongside the girls until he is old enough to be neutered, had the six week post op wait and can then be rebonded back in with the girls. But you are right it is a long time to wait and babies are most desperate for companionship.
You can get him a new friend now and have two separate pairs.

A bond comes down to character compatibility. Most boar bonds are successful but there is always an element of unknown.
Most babies are accepted by adults but not all. Finding him a friend via a rescue centre is the safest thing ao you can ensure they are going to get on. There is a chance as your baby gets older that could try to become more dominant than his adult cagemate may allow.

The other thing to bear in mind is that keeping a boar in the presence of sows who is not used to the presence of sows, will produce a strong reaction. Your baby should be ok as he will have grown up around sows, but the piggy you get to be his cagemate may not be used to sow pheromones.
Boar pairs require more room than sow pairs - a 6ft x 2ft cage is recommended for boar pairs

The guides below cover further on bonding and keeping boar pairs.

A Comprehensive Guide to Guinea Pig Boars
Boars: Teenage, Bullying, Fighting, Fall-outs And What Next?
Bonding and Interaction: Illustrated social behaviours and bonding dynamics
A Closer Look At Pairs (Boars - Sows - Mixed)

Thanks! The closest rescue is unfortunately 4 hours away. There are sometimes re-homings in my area which is how I’ve gotten all my pigs.

Would a boar who is not familiar to sows have to “acclimate” to them first before bonding? My pigs are all in the same room and I could only keep them in my bedroom for a short while if they need to be separated completely.

 

[Piggies&buns]

Thanks! The closest rescue is unfortunately 4 hours away. There are sometimes re-homings in my area which is how I’ve gotten all my pigs.

Would a boar who is not familiar to sows have to “acclimate” to them first before bonding? My pigs are all in the same room and I could only keep them in my bedroom for a short while if they need to be separated completely.

Any boar who smells sows for the first time is going to have a strong reaction to them - there will be no avoiding that.
Equally, keeping a boar pair in the same room as sows can, for some boars, cause huge problems and will cause them to fight over the sows (even though they cannot get in with them) and will break the bond of a boar pair.
If you are going to keep a boar pair in the same room as sows, then there would need to be as much space as possible between the cages or the cages would be stacked with the sows at the bottom so sow pheromones cannot fall down onto the boys. It’s essential to always handle the boys first so you don’t risk transferring sow pheromones onto them
The boar guide I linked in above explains further