Question about housing size

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MrCrunchy

New Born Pup
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Hi all,

Bit if advice needed regarding space needed for happy piggies.

We have had our 2 pigs for a few months now, we originally got them with a large cage thing from PAH then got a 2 level hutch for outside. I soon converted the hutch/cage thing so the hutch is outside and the cage is inside the kids play house with a doorway so they can go in and out as they please. Now the weather is bad they are living inside with us so I got another PAH cage and modified the two into a 2 floor house. They are very happy at the moment.

My question is would this setup be big enough to introduce a third piggie? They are males and get on pretty well.

I have attached pictures of the current indoor setup and the outside setup. When they go back out when the weather improves they will have 2 floors inside and 2 floors outside. We also have a run that goes on the grass for them to play in when the weather is decent.

Thanks for any advice
 

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Introducing a third pig to a boar pair is a bad idea no matter the space. It's very, very unlikely to work.
 
I agree with Lorcan, generally more than two boars will not work. Also I'm assuming that they are still in the teenage phase which may already test their bond. As you got them from p&h, have you double checked that they are both boys?
 
Thanks for the replies. They are definitely boys, if it's not a good idea then we will stick with just the two!
Thanks for the help, just want them to be happy and have fun so thought the more the merrier but I guess that's not the case with the guys
 
I agree - do not add a third boar, it is not a good idea. Only sows can live in herds successfully. A boar herd only stands a chance if there are at least 10 boars and the space covers at least 10 square metres.
(But in answer of your question as it stands - should anybody be brave enough to try a boar trio - then no, the cage as it is is nowhere near big enough for three).

The thing with boars is that even a bonded pair need a lot of space - they need a permanent cage which measures 180x60cm on a single level (upper levels don’t count towards the cage size). Do double check the cage measurements as lack of space can cause teen boars to fight. The grey two level cage in the first picture doesn’t look big enough for two boys.
Make sure there are no hides which only have one door - so to that end I would remove the grey shelf and add in two hides with two exits.
Also make sure there is two of every item on the cage - again you don’t want them to battle for resources as that is a possible way boars can fall out. So, add another water bottle.
I would also stop using bowls and instead scatter feed their veg and one tablespoon of pellets each per day into the hay. Not only can that help eliminate teenage bickering, it is also enrichment and helps keep them occupied.

The hutch you have would be considered just minimum size for two boars (it’s a bluebell so measures 150x60cm) and for teen pairs can be too small.
 
I know how you feel. Mine were a random gift and if I had been given a choice I would have liked ladies so I could have more. My beastie boys are allowed to free roam during the day and now I wouldn't swap them. Just think that you can devote more time to develop a strong bond with them individually, especially when they are indoors. Such individual personalities and quirks make them so delightful to be slaves to 😍. George and Boris say hi and do you have pigtures?IMG_20231030_204527.webpIMG_20231030_204612.webp
 
Thanks again for all the advice.

We have another couple of bottles and will have one on each floor. The dry food goes in the bowl and we put fresh veg all around on both levels for them.
The grey thing is only temporary to keep them inside while weather is real bad, I made it the other day as we don't have much space for anything wider/deeper inside so another floor seemed a good idea. Once they go out again they will have that two level grey thing inside the playhouse linked to the bluebell hutch outside. When its dry and decent I have some twin wall pipe i got from a building site to link the fold out play pen thing we have on the lawn with the bluebell hutch via tunnel and I've made a ramp for them to get out into the playhouse too so they have plenty of room when we are around.

They seem happy and get on well, was just thinking that another friend would mean more fun for them but I guess it doesn't work like that!
 
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