Hoppsan's Got A New Cagemate! I Think We've Got A Successful Bonding, What Now?

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Hoppsan

Hoppsan

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Hoppsan was our only boy until he reaches 15 month old, we then got him a friend named Ojdå which is about 6 month old. We housed them in the same cage which we transformed from a bookshelf and devided the living area with a fence because we were not sure if Hoppsan still can communicate with his own kind and we didn't want anyone gets hurt... There were intense rumble strutting for the first couple of nights even there was fence in between, and then it reduced a lot to almost never. They lived like this for more than a week and until last night Ojdå decided to jump over the fence. It all happened so sudden and since the bonding ritual started, and we were very sure that Ojdå will jump over again if we put him back, so we just put more hay in the middle and removed Hoppsan's house and let them did what they gotta do. It was very intense but according to what I've learnt here, every move is by the book and no blood has been drawn so we let them be. We monitored them until midnight (about 4hrs since it began) and then We left more hay there and let them spend the night together (they are in our bedroom so we can hear if things got wrong). They actually got better by the morning. :D

2015-07-04 18.21.05.webp
original cage setting

2015-07-14 22.50.23.webp
What happend last night

2015-07-15 13.46.03.webp
This morning

We took both of them out into a neutral area while we clean and redesign the cage and now they are living together in the new arranged cage. We do not have hide outs that has 2 opening so we put 2 boards over the cage so that they have some cover on the top and we put a cloth tunnel there which Ojdå loves. They are still chasing each other and mounting each other now and then, sometimes it still sounds like it's pretty intense but there are no broken skin. We assume this pair matched and the bonding is successful?

2015-07-15 17.29.16.webp
Today after 6hrs of work

Now I wonder when can we put their house back and remove the board? I read that it takes about 2 more weeks to let them really work out the small details in their agreement, but is there a clear sign to say it's safe to give hide outs with only one opening? Also, when can we give Hoppsan a bath? It smells pretty strong during the bonding... Ojdå is new to our home so we are not confident to bathe him, will there be any problem if we only give Hoppsan a bath?

We've learnt so much here in this forum, thanks for all the help we've got! :D
 
Glad that it is working out so far!

You can put back any houses that have got two exits (preferably on opposite sides), but leave off any with just one exit, as they can cause problems in the course of a chase during the dominance phase.


As to bathing - it is either both or none. They carry each other testosterone-laden pee, not just their own scent. Could you give them a wipe down with a damp cloth? I would be careful about rocking the boat too much right now. Boar bonding is unfortunately a VERY smelly affair, whether a boar is neutered or not! :(
 
Wiebke said:
Glad that it is working out so far!

You can put back any houses that have got two exits (preferably on opposite sides), but leave off any with just one exit, as they can cause problems in the course of a chase during the dominance phase.


As to bathing - it is either both or none. They carry each other testosterone-laden pee, not just their own scent. Could you give them a wipe down with a damp cloth? I would be careful about rocking the boat too much right now. Boar bonding is unfortunately a VERY smelly affair, whether a boar is neutered or not! :(
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Thank you for always being so helpful Wiebke! I think we'll just leave the bathe or wipe for a while, but what about nail clipping? Will it be ok if we take one boar out at a time for clipping so that they will be separated for a while? Also, when will it be ok to put in hidies with only one opening? Or maybe never put it in and let them live under the board?(since we don't have hidies with 2 openings, except for the tunnel in the picture) :)
 
Hoppsan said:
Thank you for always being so helpful Wiebke! I think we'll just leave the bathe or wipe for a while, but what about nail clipping? Will it be ok if we take one boar out at a time for clipping so that they will be separated for a while? Also, when will it be ok to put in hidies with only one opening? Or maybe never put it in and let them live under the board?(since we don't have hidies with 2 openings, except for the tunnel in the picture) :)
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You have to judge whether they are OK enough for a nail clip and ready for their usual houses, but as long as it is intense at times, I would lay off and let them settle down first. Have you got a cardboard box or two that you could cut two sizeable doors into?
 
Wiebke said:
You have to judge whether they are OK enough for a nail clip and ready for their usual houses, but as long as it is intense at times, I would lay off and let them settle down first. Have you got a cardboard box or two that you could cut two sizeable doors into?
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Oh yes! In fact we used 2 cardboard boxes in their neutral area when we were fixing the cage, but they are a bit too big to put into the cage, guess I'll make 2 smaller ones, good idea! :) And I hope their nails don't grow too fast since it looks like it's still a bit intense between them sometimes.
 
Glad it as gone well. Your cage is amazing and they look lovely together :love:
 
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