Bonding Separated Boars

[Little Pigs]

Hi, I have two boars, Ollie and Biscuit. Unfortunately, I had to separate them as a few months back as the fighting became constant and I felt I had no choice but to separate them until I could afford a bigger cage... Currently, they are living side by side in separate cages and I have been working on bonding them which had been going very well until Biscuit became unusually snappy with Ollie...

I gave Biscuit a quick health check and found he had scabs behind his ears I believe he has been scratching himself out of boredom due to the cage size as unfortunately I only had an old small cage to temporarily house him in! I have given up the majority of my room and extended his cage by using the black bars I use for outside in the summer and luckily he has been much happier!

I am getting my C & C cage for Christmas and it will be approx 5 x 8 grids so I am hoping to put them back together then.

Anyone got any good bonding tips to help?
- Thanks x

 

[Wiebke]

Hi, I have two boars, Ollie and Biscuit. Unfortunately, I had to separate them as a few months back as the fighting became constant and I felt I had no choice but to separate them until I could afford a bigger cage... Currently, they are living side by side in separate cages and I have been working on bonding them which had been going very well until Biscuit became unusually snappy with Ollie...

I gave Biscuit a quick health check and found he had scabs behind his ears I believe he has been scratching himself out of boredom due to the cage size as unfortunately I only had an old small cage to temporarily house him in! I have given up the majority of my room and extended his cage by using the black bars I use for outside in the summer and luckily he has been much happier!

I am getting my C & C cage for Christmas and it will be approx 5 x 8 grids so I am hoping to put them back together then.

Anyone got any good bonding tips to help?
- Thanks x

Here are our bonding tips.
Please note that there is NOTHING you can do that is going to make your boys gel if they do not get on. When the chips are down, they are or they are not personality compatible.
We HAVE tried all the tricks that are making or have made the rounds ourselves over the years and have found them all either ineffective or actually counterproductive, like an unnecessary bonding bath (only necessary to remove the stink of testosterone from the coat after a short separation in a near fighting situation), masking the smell with often noxious substances etc.
What is recommended in our bonding guide is what has stood the test of time. But you can only create the best conditions. The outcome is down to the boys - and the majority of fallen boars will not go back together.
Illustrated Bonding / Dominance Behaviours And Dynamics

 

[VickiA]

With @Wiebke - it’s unlikely that anything you do will lead to them going back to a happy co-existence. They will either tolerate each other or they won’t. But if you want to give it a try make sure you follow all the guide to give it the best chance.
What’s plan B if it doesn’t work?

 

[Little Pigs]

With @Wiebke - it’s unlikely that anything you do will lead to them going back to a happy co-existence. They will either tolerate each other or they won’t. But if you want to give it a try make sure you follow all the guide to give it the best chance.
What’s plan B if it doesn’t work?

The c and c cage will have to be split if they can't get along. Recently, they spent 2 hours in a cage I set up and they were OK however Ollie was aggressive and would not let Biscuit approach him

 

[VickiA]

Please don’t keep introducing & separating them. Each time they have to re-establish the hierarchy. If you are serious about this then please introduce them on neutral territory when you are ready and see the whole process through to the end (either successful bond or failed bond and permanent separation).