HELP ASAP FIGHT

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miloandmason

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Hello everyone, my two boars have been living together now for over 7 months. They have NEVER had a fight and have always gotten along. Today, I had put a new fleece tunnel in from Etsy without washing it just to see if they liked it. They suddenly started going crazy and started to fight and spin in circles. They have NEVER done this before. I do know the Etsy seller has piggies of their own. Is there any way the tunnel could’ve had other pigs scents on it that cause them to become so territorial and fight? I know I should’ve washed it before I put it into their cage. My one pig kept running to my other one and sniffing them like crazy then fighting. I do not feel comfortable leaving them together overnight, so I have moved them into their old cage and put grids in the middle so they can still see and smell each other but not fight. Tomorrow after work I will be deep cleaning all fleece and their cage to make sure no scents are left. I really need some tips and advice on what could’ve caused this and how to prevent them fighting once I try to reunite them tomorrow after everything is cleaned. Attached is what I have them in now, I know it is small but it is the only thing I have for them to be in temporarily until I deep clean their regular cage, which is MUCH bigger. Please help me. Thank you!
 

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We are mainly UK based forum and you posted in the early hours of the morning here. Someone will be along later to help you.
 
I am so sorry to hear this.

If it was a brand new tunnel then I wouldn't think it has scents of other piggies on it?

I see you posted in March and said they were around four months old. Meaning now they are 10-11 months?

Boars mostly have trouble at around 6 months of age but occasionally they can get through absolutely fine to the age yours are now and suddenly fall out. It doesnt happen often, but does happen. If they have had a full on, blood drawing fight, then I am afraid reintroduction is likely to be rather tricky.

Please do not put them back into their normal cage if you are going to try a reintroduction. You must do it on neutral territory - bathroom or kitchen floor - somewhere they dont normally go. See what happens during the reintroduction - if they want to be together then things will be ok but if the fight has broken their bond then it will descend into a further fight and you will have your answer.
If they are ok in neutral territory then thoroughly clean out their cage and put them back in after several hours in the neutral territory.
If they do fight again, then you will need to have them permanently separated and living as neighbours. Each piggy needing a 120x60cm minimum cage.

Boars: Teenage, Bullying, Fighting, Fall-outs And What Next?
Bonding and Interaction: Illustrated social behaviours and bonding dynamics
Bonds In Trouble
 
Piggies&buns said:
I am so sorry to hear this.

If it was a brand new tunnel then I wouldn't think it has scents of other piggies on it?

I see you posted in March and said they were around four months old. Meaning now they are 10-11 months?

Boars mostly have trouble at around 6 months of age but occasionally they can get through absolutely fine to the age yours are now and suddenly fall out. It doesnt happen often, but does happen. If they have had a full on, blood drawing fight, then I am afraid reintroduction is likely to be rather tricky.

Please do not put them back into their normal cage if you are going to try a reintroduction. You must do it on neutral territory - bathroom or kitchen floor - somewhere they dont normally go. See what happens during the reintroduction - if they want to be together then things will be ok but if the fight has broken their bond then it will descend into a further fight and you will have your answer.
If they are ok in neutral territory then thoroughly clean out their cage and put them back in after several hours in the neutral territory.
If they do fight again, then you will need to have them permanently separated and living as neighbours. Each piggy needing a 120x60cm minimum cage.

Boars: Teenage, Bullying, Fighting, Fall-outs And What Next?
Bonding and Interaction: Illustrated social behaviours and bonding dynamics
Bonds In Trouble
Click to expand...
By some miracle, the boys were put into a play pen for 3 hours without a single fight. They are now living in their deep cleaned cage for about an hour now happy and back to their old selves!🥰
 
I am having a similar situation and it truly made me cry. My boys are about 8 months old, and have been together since birth. They usually never fight, sometimes argue a little bit over food. Tonight we were having playpen time as we usually do and the younger one seem to try biting the other one’s ear 😭. He was aggressive, not the usual dominant “humping” behavior that they occasionally do. I actually started crying when I had to put a separator in their large CNC cage. I think for tonight I will have to separate them but they are literally staring at each other through the slats. Thankfully the cage is 27“ x 82“. There is enough room overnight for them each to have their Hideys, hay, water bottles and food bowls. I am hoping and praying that this behavior was temporary and they can go back to normal in the morning. Is there hope?
 
Few questions. Blood drawn? If so I’m afraid they might spar off again.

Do you have any females in the room or at all?

Is there only one tunnel? With boars you should have two of everything and if they fought over the tunnel this is a possible cause.

Last question. Are they biting at the bars to get back with each other?
 
Dawnieruns said:
I am having a similar situation and it truly made me cry. My boys are about 8 months old, and have been together since birth. They usually never fight, sometimes argue a little bit over food. Tonight we were having playpen time as we usually do and the younger one seem to try biting the other one’s ear 😭. He was aggressive, not the usual dominant “humping” behavior that they occasionally do. I actually started crying when I had to put a separator in their large CNC cage. I think for tonight I will have to separate them but they are literally staring at each other through the slats. Thankfully the cage is 27“ x 82“. There is enough room overnight for them each to have their Hideys, hay, water bottles and food bowls. I am hoping and praying that this behavior was temporary and they can go back to normal in the morning. Is there hope?
Click to expand...

I'm sorry to hear this.

At around this age there is another big hormone spike which can suddenly break bonds which have seemingly been ok up until then.

Youve done the right thing by separating them. Being sat staring at each other isn’t necessarily a good sign - it doesnt automatically mean they want to be back together, so do prepare yourself for that.

Give them a few days apart to calm down. You can then carry out a neutral territory reintroduction and allow them to make their decision on their relationship. If they can sort out whatever caused the issue and still want to be together, then reintroduction will be successful. If they can’t, then they will fight again unfortunately and that is then very clear that they must live separated going forward.

The guide below will help further
Bonds In Trouble
 
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