How bad do boar herds smell? Herd questions in general too.

Little Piglets

Little Piglets

Junior Guinea Pig
Joined
May 8, 2018
Messages
263
Reaction score
150
Points
310
Location
US
As a kid, a teacher had 2 pigs, a boar and sow, that lived to be around 8 IIRC. That boar, was named "Skunky" by the previous year class when she got them. As a first-grader, I assumed it was named Skunky because he was black and white (sow was Buffy) like an actual skunk. As an adult, I realized he was named Skunky after my boar reached manhood and excretes that skunk-anus smell while flaring his perineal sac. Pretty noxious tbh (would be a great way for modern gp to stay wild if colored black/white and they sprayed that or hiked their bum at a cat) but tolerable unless he hasn't been rinsed off in a week and has been pooping on his hammock and laying on that overnight + the odor, which is enough I'll start gagging and need to walk away to get my wits back before a quick rinse (straight water seems to clean them really good, so haven't bothered with cleaning products they'll inevitably ingest during self-grooming).

It's looking like I'm going to have a decent-sized boar herd, and it dawned on me the smell might get really bad? Or do they settle after hierarchy is established? Do the lower-ranked members of the herd drop the noxious odor too? Or only the top-gp? Once dominance is established, do they routinely mount lessers? Also, how far away does the sow cage need to be to stop them from possibly bickering with each other?
 
I have 2 boars and neither smell bad. 1 of them likes to lie in his wee and a pile of poo so definitely could smell sweeter but I wouldn't say they smell. I have read that smell isn't gender specific so you might end up with some smelly sows. I think it just depends on the individual pig. Also you can't keep more than 2 boars together. They will fight. More than 2 has worked out on the very rare occasion but as I say from what I've read on this site it is rare! I wouldn't risk it and if u really want a group of piggies maybe go for all sows or all sows with 1 boar.
 
Well, it'd be however many baby boars I end up with (looks like 3, but hard to be certain at this stage as only a couple days old) along with their dad, in what will probably be a 6' x 3' C&C so they'll have room to do whatever. The baby boars are all litter mates and dad I'm assuming would be top gp. Since babies will be brought up together, not overly concerned about them getting along (vs. say 3-4 random boars from different environments, handling, ages, their pecking order in previous hierarchies, small confines, etc.) but I can make up another C&C if needed.

To be clear about smells, not talking about what they are rolling in (that can easily be rinsed off) if their poop piles up on one spot and they then directly lay on it (have the problem with a hammock he lays in and can't be bothered getting out of to poo) but rather if they all flare their sac constantly (or are they actually spraying something?)? I've seen my boar stick his bum up in the air while rumbling and he flares the sac opening. About a second later, it smells like a diluted solution of skunk urine and anus (sorry if explicit, it's about the only thing that comes to mind with the odor) wafting through the air. My main question is will ALL the boars drop this odor at the same time (like a proverbial stink bomb) or will it only be the top gp in the herd that does it? And once pecking order is established, will it be a constant thing, once in awhile, or never?
 
I have the elusive 3 boar combo, in fact, I have 5in total with the other pair living in a separate cage. None of mine ever do the stink thing (hope I've not spoken too soon, lol).
As far as cage is concerned, do you mean 6x3ft or 6x3 grids, which is quite a bit bigger. If you're going to try a boar trio, the more space, the better. Mine are in a 5x3 grids with a loft. It is famously difficult to make this work, and it comes down to the personalities of the piggies, so make sure you are able to split them really quickly should the need arise. The failure rate is about 90%, but that means 10% success rate, so give them the best chance with proper bonding tons of space, a bowl and water bottle each, well away from each other, and at least enough hideys with two exits for each of them to have their own space. These links will help Adding More Guinea Pigs Or Merging Pairs – What Works And What Not?
Bonding: Illustrated Dominance Behaviours And Dynamics
Boars: Teenage, Bullying, Fighting, Fall-outs And What Next?
Boars: A guide to successful companionship.
Introducing And Re-introducing Guinea Pigs
 
This forum has had much experience of boar groups and so has the rescue I’m involved with. A boar group will VERY rarely work. The fact they are father & sons makes no difference. Once the teenage hormones kick in there will almost inevitably be fighting, bullying, injuries etc. You’d be better to separate into pairs from the outset.

As for smell boars vary in their scenting. Some are very stinky and others less so. Changes to cages(even cage cleaning) or circumstances can prompt boars to scent more than usual. When cleaning it’s best to leave something already scent marked in the cage to discourage re-scenting.
 
I have 10 entire boars and wouldn't say they were stinky at all. The only ones who get a bit pongy are the couple that suffer from impaction and need evacuation. THAT stinks!
They definitely have an odour different from my girls but I don't find it unpleasant at all.

As other people have mentioned, I wouldn't recommend putting more than 2 together without knowing their character very well and doing very careful bonding. Babies may get on well in a group to start with but a couple of months down the line you could end up with them all falling out once their teenage hormones kick in. Sometimes babies in pairs together since birth will irreparably fall out at this time, so there's no guarantee.
My 3 who live together are all old, very mellow and went through a slow introduction and I know that I was very lucky that it worked out. They are also living in an enclose which provides all 3 of them separate areas to get away from each other with one bowl, water bottle and hay rack each, plus one spare to prevent resource hoarding.
 
The only time I've noticed my boars smelling in the way you describe is when I am doing a bonding. As others have said I tend to leave something in the cage that was there before it was cleaned out that already has their scent on it.
 
I think my little boar Theo smells lovely, sort of like goats and badgers close up but on a really small cute manageable scale... boys will be boys! The smell intensifies a bit when ladies are close by but its still really not very strong, kind of cute he's trying to be all musky and macho! I guess everyone just needs to accept that their animal friends smell of themselves... or maybe I've just befriended too many goats and badgers :)
My most recent house guest not used to pets thinks my house just smells of hay though even on stinky cage clean day... claims he cant smell the wee at all!
 
Thanks for the info everyone. If bad, I'll separate. Really worse case and it's one that won't tolerate anyone else, maybe I can put a divider in (with top cover) so they can at least be close w/o physically being an issue.

Makes sense the odor is an intro type of odor or he's marking. Wasn't sure if that persisted into a daily thing though with more boars and no sows in the area. It's funny, but I'll hold him in one hand (barely, he ends up on my wrist too) facing my finger tips, and would let him see my sow through the bars on her cage or put him on a small box platform, while saying "do you want to go see her?" More recently, if I say that while opening his cage door, he immediately starts rumbling in his cage :) Kinda funny being able to get a gp to rumble on command.

What age is considered to be most problematic or is considered a teenage-phase? Once/if a falling out occurs, is that for life? Or a couple weeks apart, they forget and start over?

Was referring to 6 feet by 3 feet. I can go 7 feet to maybe 10 feet in length if need be, by 3 feet wide. 4 feet wide might be a stretch but I can do it. I have a small, spare bedroom that could be used in it's entirety, but would prefer them to be in my living room and area vs. a random bedroom I never go in as it is, but the option is there.
 
With boars the teenage phase is from around 4-14 months. If they have a bad fall out, it's pretty much game over for life. You can try again when they're a bit older, but if they've decided they don't like each other, that's usually the end.
I didn't realize you have a sow. This changes the dynamic, and makes the chance of a successful boar trio less likely. Often just having a female in the room can upset even a pair of boars. Could I suggest a better option would be to neuter one of the boars and pair him with the sow, and have a separate pair of boars. Where you locate the cages is purely a matter of personal choice. My boys have their own room, although I would love to have them in the living room, but I have too many visitors with dogs.
 
Please keep your boars away from the sow(s). Unless you are planning to put him/them with sows then are simply tormenting him with sow scent. If you are planning to put them together without having neutered him that would be classed as intentional breeding.
You will need to keep any boars out of the sight and scent of sow(s) as the scent can cause fighting. Always handle the boars and deal with their cages first before dealing with sow cages so that you do not smell of sows when dealing with the boars.
 
Males/females (however many there ends up being as I'm not 100% certain with the litter atm though I see dots on several of them) will be separated for life. Not going to neuter anyone unless they get cancer or something as I personally find that cruel, especially on a rodent that'll have to deal with post op pain (w/o pain meds) + whatever scar tissue is present, which depending on location, can be as painful as an actual spinal disc injury (ask me how I know this), especially if it sticks then tears.

I've been thinking of turning the spare room into an extra TV room, so maybe the guys will just end up there to put more distance between them. If I need to split them up, I will.

Thanks everyone for the advice!
 
@Little Piglets in the right hands Boar neutering is safe and relatively free of complications. In the UK piggies do get pain relief post op and tend to bounce right back. The rescue that I’m associated with has a boar neutering programme and only 3 piggies in 6 years have had complications. One died from anaesthesia, and one had problems post op that led to discovery of a previously unidentified abdominal tumour not related to the surgery.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top