Do I go for sows or boars?

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LittlePigPig

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Hi,

I am new to this forum and I was hoping for some advice from all you knowledgeable folk.

I recently lost one of my guinea pigs and now just have Little Pig, a one year old male. I rescued him from being on his own sat in a glass tank in Pets at Home (I'd gone to the retail park to buy a TV and came back with a male piggy - other half was NOT happy). He happily bonded with my 2 other male piggies Spud and Dolly (who were 3 and 4 at the time). Spud passed away at Christmas and we had to have Dolly put down last week so now Little Pig is all on his tod. 8...

Our intention is to adopt some rescue piggies to bond with Little Pig, thing is do I go for sows or boars and how many? (Little Pig is having THE operation today so no babies!).

Any help would be appreciated.

Thanks!
 
So sorry for your losses.

If Little Pig is being neutered then I would go for Sows. Boars can only live in pairs.

However with every operation their is a risk so if Little Pig didn't have the operation then he could live with a younger boar. :)
 
I agree that you should go for Sows if you are having little pig neutered. Vicky T on here has successfully bonded her boar with a group of Sows and she has lovely pictures to prove it. All the best with Little Pigs op xx
 
As he is having the operation (best of luck with that!), I'd go for sows, as you can have as many or as few as you want living with a neutered boar. It is generally a very stable relationship. (I have a boar with three girls at the moment, and he is a VERY happy boy!)

You will have to wait at least 4 weeks, better 6 weeks, after the operation to be on the safe side, so you have time enough to look around and have the homecheck etc. sorted. As there have been some big rescues all over the country in the last few weeks, you willl be spoilt for choice!

I would put a thread out in the "wanted" section, and several of the rescue fosterers/owners may contact you. Some rehome nationwide.

This forum is attached to a rescue website where you can find addresses of your nearest rescues as well as pictures. http://www.guineapigrehome.org.uk
Have a look on there! It is worth contacting rescues as they may have piggies "in the pipeline" that are not on the website yet.

Take your time to find the piggies that touch your heart!
 
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hello and welcome!
as much as anyone would know i am a boar lover but if you are neutering your boy then there isn't any point to putting him with boys as that is a waste of an operation,boys don't calm at all from being neutered it only stops them having babies,
so the best option would be a sow,and just think providing you pair them up correctly you can have your boar and 10 sows if you wanted all in the one huge cage,as far as i have seen with other members on here there really isnt a huge limit on how many sows will go with one boar,
if you do decide to go with boars they rarely work in more than pairs so you wouldnt be able to have more than two without having more cages xxxxx
 
Some branches of the RSPCA do rehome further afield, provided you pass a homecheck by the local branch and pick up the piggies yourself or organise a transport.

I've got my two new girls from RSPCA Walsall, for instance, but was checked out by Coventry.

If you like agoutis, Walsall (Birmingham) have several lovely girls rescued from a lightless shed. http://www.rspca-walsall.org.uk/newpages/guineapigs.htm
Th rehoming officer is a member on here (Lucy Woo, as is the fosterer x-vic-x ).

I know that fi.cantillon works from Bristol, so you might like to contact her on this board.
 
Hiya i agree with louise i would go for sows if he is being neutered :) good luck for the little piggy and his operation x
 
Despite being mightily pro-boar in a boar-only household myself, I'd have to agree with the other posts as in your case as your boy is going through the neuter op, he deserves to have that rewarded with a lovely wife or two! As already posted, neutering is believed to not alter behaviour, so it would be a waste for him to go through the op to be put with a boar.

I'm sure you won't have many problems finding him a freind :)
 
Vickyt said:
Some branches of the RSPCA do rehome further afield, provided you pass a homecheck by the local branch and pick up the piggies yourself or organise a transport.

I've got my two new girls from RSPCA Walsall, for instance, but was checked out by Coventry.

If you like agoutis, Walsall (Birmingham) have several lovely girls rescued from a lightless shed. http://www.rspca-walsall.org.uk/newpages/guineapigs.htm
Th rehoming officer is a member on here (Lucy Woo, as is the fosterer x-vic-x ).

I know that fi.cantillon works from Bristol, so you might like to contact her on this board.
Click to expand...

Thanks for this! I have just spoken to Lucy in Warsall RSPCA about Grace, Emily and Sadie x) who need a new home. Although they are keeping them until 30th July (incase they are pregnant) this isn't a problem because Little Pig is having his op today (6 weeks on would make it the end of July anyway). Unfortunately one of the lot that they came in with them has got ringworm so now all the groups have to be tested so I have to call back in 2 weeks to find out and then if all is ok look at having a home check done.
When she asked me what "facilities" I had for them I felt like it was an exam question, but have to admit am very proud of the space I could provide them! Move over boyfriends bikes...we are increasing the size of the play pen (again!). :)
 
I am very glad you found something you really liked! All the best for those lovely girls with such a sad past! I'm sure boy will enjoy their company!

You will get somebody round from your local RSPCA to look at your setup and measure it; they have obviously had their bad experiences! the paperwork can take a few days to come through. And I've just had a surprise check-up one month after the adoption to see whether everything was OK and my girls were really living in that new cage of theirs!

Please keep us updated on how "mister" is doing after the op; if he has problems you can post on the health/illness section. And, of course, the girls!
 
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