Implant for Boars

[nicola1989]

Hi

My precious baby Spike left us for the rainbow bridge over night I am absolutely heartbroken, but more importantly, so is his brother Trusty.

These two weren't actually that old - but they had a very bad start to life which accelerated Spike's ageing process, which is why we lost him. Now I am worried that the same will happen to Trusty so it doesn't seem fair to bond him with a baby. Trusty also hates other boars - we had a third member we bonded in as a baby who had to be removed as Trusty hated him.

So without waffling on too much here, my only option really is to put him with my group of girls. Of course this means I have to make sure there aren't any babies! I'm not confident about putting him through a neuter because of his age and possible ill health - but a friend showed me an article about the implant for boars in Guinea Pig Magazine and this seems like the perfect solution.

It's impossible to find info about this on Google! Does anybody have any info on the implant, any good links or anything like that? It would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you xx

 

[flintstones]

I was under the impression, the implant only blocks testerone which means he would still be able to breed it may help in making him more docile when it came to bonding him with another male.

 

[Wiebke]

If I were you, I would speak to Layla at North East Guinea Pig Rescue about dating Trusty with other boars. She runs the best guinea pig rescue in your area and is very knowledgeable and experienced.
http://www.northeastguineapigrescue.co.uk/

You may find that now that Trusty is an adult with more settled hormones, his attitude has changed somewhat and he will be happy with a boar whose character compliments his own.

There have been quite a few success stories with notably "difficult" boars. It may take a bit more time and more potential mates to go through, but most have actually found a friend they are happy with eventually!
Suzy has been very kind to keep a blog about her boar dating activity, so you can see for yourself: http://www.theguineapigforum.co.uk/showthread.php?t=59233

 

[nicola1989]

thank you very much - I should mention Trusty was an adult when we introduced another pig

 

[doglovinpiggylover]

sorry you lost spike xx

 

[Wiebke]

Another option is to contact RNGP Welfare in Rugby; they are the only rescue that I know of spay their sows as a matter of policy. They rehome further afield, provided you pass a home check. However, that is not a quick fix, as they often have a waiting list and won't operate any incoming girls until April.
http://www.rngp.org/

Thirdly, you could think about getting a couple of unspayed girls to live next door to Trusty, with interaction through the bars. Not ideal, but a setup that has is working for some members who have ended up with single boars.

 

[nicola1989]

Thank you - I am reluctant to put him in with another single pig just in case he also suffers as Spike did.

I think I'm probably too upset and it's too soon to make a decision - will talk options with my vet and possibly with Layla in a couple of weeks - the implant seemed just like the best option.

 

[Wiebke]

Most guinea pigs go through a period of deep mourning for a few days. It is very distressing for us humans because they often withdraw at time we would love to cuddle and reassure them. The majority will come out of it after about 3-4 days and will start to pick up their life again, although often a bit more subdued.

Take your time investigating all the options. I often have found that doing that helped me over feeling so bad, as I was doing something constructive to help the surviving piggy. It didn't touch my grief in any way, but that is something that you simply can't hurry up.

Sadly, no perfect quick fixes!