The boar conundrum?

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So long story short...

when Odin was poorly, he and his brother Stark had a fall out and never went back together. It’s like they hate each other but are fine seeing each other through bars (though Odin does occasionally chatter at him through the bars).


Thor and Loki were well bonded, but unfortunately Loki passed away about a month ago.


We managed to get Odin and Thor living together well. But they have now had a huge fall out (I think Odin is feeling better as he’s gone from submissive to aggressively attacking Thor).
so now I have 3 boars... that see each other through the bars but live alone in their C&C sections.
They are all happy, popcorning and eating but I do worry that they dont get enough social interaction on their own sides of the bars? 😔

I asked some rescue centres who recommended baby boars to pair, but there are none available.
I didn’t particularly want more guinea pigs or more fall outs as I have so much going on financially (and stressfully) with Odin and his veterinary care at the moment.

has anyone any thoughts?
 
Interaction with a piggy in the same cage is of course the better choice. But interaction is more than sharing a space. It’s about smell and body language as well. So that is still provided through the bars.

Yes baby boars could work because they wouldn’t be seen as threatening. But what about when they reach their teenage months and older pig won’t accept being dominated? I’m not saying this happens all the time, but it’s something to consider.

Gievn the above, I would strongly suggest you stick to rescues that can offer boar dating. Picking a friend themselves is the best way to bond because they choose one they get on with, and vice versa.

While you make a decision, your three boys are fine if they can interact with each other. Out of curiosity, have you tried Thor with Stark?
 
Siikibam said:
Interaction with a piggy in the same cage is of course the better choice. But interaction is more than sharing a space. It’s about smell and body language as well. So that is still provided through the bars.

Yes baby boars could work because they wouldn’t be seen as threatening. But what about when they reach their teenage months and older pig won’t accept being dominated? I’m not saying this happens all the time, but it’s something to consider.

Gievn the above, I would strongly suggest you stick to rescues that can offer boar dating. Picking a friend themselves is the best way to bond because they choose one they get on with, and vice versa.

While you make a decision, your three boys are fine if they can interact with each other. Out of curiosity, have you tried Thor with Stark?
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Thank you.
Sorry yes, I should have mentioned that I have tried Thor and Stark. They also clash. But both are strong personalities. There is lots of chattering and lunging at each other, so I don’t think that works either.
The problem is if I did get more piggies and they fall out in the future, I don’t have much more space to offer them. These guys have large spaces and I wouldn’t want to take away from that
 
Marvel_piggie_squad said:
So long story short...

when Odin was poorly, he and his brother Stark had a fall out and never went back together. It’s like they hate each other but are fine seeing each other through bars (though Odin does occasionally chatter at him through the bars).


Thor and Loki were well bonded, but unfortunately Loki passed away about a month ago.


We managed to get Odin and Thor living together well. But they have now had a huge fall out (I think Odin is feeling better as he’s gone from submissive to aggressively attacking Thor).
so now I have 3 boars... that see each other through the bars but live alone in their C&C sections.
They are all happy, popcorning and eating but I do worry that they dont get enough social interaction on their own sides of the bars? 😔

I asked some rescue centres who recommended baby boars to pair, but there are none available.
I didn’t particularly want more guinea pigs or more fall outs as I have so much going on financially (and stressfully) with Odin and his veterinary care at the moment.

has anyone any thoughts?
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I would stop worrying if your boys are happy and popcorning! They are getting enough interaction and stimulation from each other but have each their own patch.

The problem with baby boys is that they grow up and turn into teenagers - and then you can quickly end up with yet more single boars. :(
 
Wiebke said:
I would stop worrying if your boys are happy and popcorning! They are getting enough interaction and stimulation from each other but have each their own patch.

The problem with baby boys is that they grow up and turn into teenagers - and then you can quickly end up with yet more single boars. :(
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Thank you. Are there signs of loneliness I should watch out for?
 
Marvel_piggie_squad said:
Thank you. Are there signs of loneliness I should watch out for?
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No; because they are not lonely.

I adopted an old depressed bereaved sow (the last of a very long-lived trio); she stopped being depressed the moment she came into this room even though it took ten months for her to be ready to move in with another widow and live on to celebrate her 9th birthday. Yes, having a live-in companion would be great but unless they are character compatible and ideally past teenage, I would leave be.

We have got quite a number of members with 'can't live together and can't live apart' boar pairs that stay bonded through the bars and sincerely grieve when their ex-mate dies.
 
Wiebke said:
No; because they are not lonely.

I adopted an old depressed bereaved sow (the last of a very long-lived trio); she stopped being depressed the moment she came into this room even though it took ten months for her to be ready to move in with another widow and live on to celebrate her 9th birthday. Yes, having a live-in companion would be great but unless they are character compatible and ideally past teenage, I would leave be.

We have got quite a number of members with 'can't live together and can't live apart' boar pairs that stay bonded through the bars and sincerely grieve when their ex-mate dies.
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Thank you, that’s really helpful and really puts my mind at ease! 😊
 
I have recently decided to separate my two boars @Marvel_piggie_squad . I was getting increasingly anxious and stressed about their behaviour, so much so that I was anxious the whole time I was out/working etc. as I was terrified they were going to hurt each other. I eventually decided to separate them when they both went to the vets for Dougal’s lump to be looked at and Diego was relentless when we got home and it was the final straw as I knew he couldn’t have been chased like that after his op. I was so pleased with the decision, although you feel guilty at first but I had to remind myself to look at it through their eyes and not my own!

They can still see each other through the bars and interact but have the best of both worlds as they don’t have to worry about claiming their belongings and get to eat as much bath as they want without being chased off and chattered at! Even my nervous pig Diego is quite happy living separately. They occasionally have a chew on the bars, rumble and lie down near them but that’s them marking their territory and not ‘missing’ each other like we would look at it as! It now means they can have lots of different enrichment and ‘toys’ to chew in their cages and regular floor time as this would set them off before.

Hope Odin is ok!
 
DougalandDiego said:
I have recently decided to separate my two boars @Marvel_piggie_squad . I was getting increasingly anxious and stressed about their behaviour, so much so that I was anxious the whole time I was out/working etc. as I was terrified they were going to hurt each other. I eventually decided to separate them when they both went to the vets for Dougal’s lump to be looked at and Diego was relentless when we got home and it was the final straw as I knew he couldn’t have been chased like that after his op. I was so pleased with the decision, although you feel guilty at first but I had to remind myself to look at it through their eyes and not my own!

They can still see each other through the bars and interact but have the best of both worlds as they don’t have to worry about claiming their belongings and get to eat as much bath as they want without being chased off and chattered at! Even my nervous pig Diego is quite happy living separately. They occasionally have a chew on the bars, rumble and lie down near them but that’s them marking their territory and not ‘missing’ each other like we would look at it as! It now means they can have lots of different enrichment and ‘toys’ to chew in their cages and regular floor time as this would set them off before.

Hope Odin is ok!
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Ah thank you so much!
makes me feel better that it isn’t just me who feels guilty sometimes! Thor and Stark tend to lie near each other through the bars, only Stark can be bothered to chew them though 🙈
I initially separated Stark and Odin because of Stark being relentless when Odin was poorly.
Odin is happy in his own section, nibbling all of his own food and not getting chased :)

Hope Dougal is doing well!
 
Marvel_piggie_squad said:
Ah thank you so much!
makes me feel better that it isn’t just me who feels guilty sometimes! Thor and Stark tend to lie near each other through the bars, only Stark can be bothered to chew them though 🙈
I initially separated Stark and Odin because of Stark being relentless when Odin was poorly.
Odin is happy in his own section, nibbling all of his own food and not getting chased :)

Hope Dougal is doing well!
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Thank you! Better today hopefully still at 1272g even though we reduced feeds which is good! 👍🏻
 
So after a night apart, this morning Thor and Odin seem to have gotten over their argument and are getting along as though nothing happened...... can this be the case?
 
That’s good news. 🥰 Maybe they just had a funny hormal flare up and they’ve calmed down with a separation over night. Just keep an eye on them and that Odin is getting enough rest/food/water if he hasn’t been feeling well! :tu:
 
DougalandDiego said:
That’s good news. 🥰 Maybe they just had a funny hormal flare up and they’ve calmed down with a separation over night. Just keep an eye on them and that Odin is getting enough rest/food/water if he hasn’t been feeling well! :tu:
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Thank you :) will do! It was Odin who was being the pain and hounding Thor 🙈(he is a year younger than Thor and might have been feeling hormonal and obviously better in himself) but now they are very settled. I spread lots of food and hay out around their large space so there seems to be no issue with food. They’ve eaten together and they are napping now 🥰
 
That’s great to hear glad they’ve sorted out their issues!
Yeah once one piggy has been ill/starts to feel better there will normally be a dominance flare up as the dominant pig ‘challenges’ for his place in the hierarchy back. It used to happen with mine - When Diego the dominant pig had a mild uri Dougal took it as his opportunity to try and claim top pig but Diego was having none of it so they were bickering on and off for a while after that :doh::))
 
DougalandDiego said:
That’s great to hear glad they’ve sorted out their issues!
Yeah once one piggy has been ill/starts to feel better there will normally be a dominance flare up as the dominant pig ‘challenges’ for his place in the hierarchy back. It used to happen with mine - When Diego the dominant pig had a mild uri Dougal took it as his opportunity to try and claim top pig but Diego was having none of it so they were bickering on and off for a while after that :doh::))
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Sounds exactly like these two! 🙈🙈🙈
 
Our first 2 (some years back now) were 3-ish year old rescue boars Casper and Harvey. I didn't know about dominance at that time and indeed we never saw any behaviours other than gentle, respectable sharing until Harvey started to show signs of illness - then overnight Casper turned into an absolute tyrant and we had to separate straight away! I really looked at that pig with new eyes I can tell you. Harvey got progressively worse (they think it was some sort of growth in the brain) but he was cheerful talking to Casper through the bars and Casper liked to be near him too. They got back the companionship and affection they had always shared once they had their own spaces but they could never be in the same enclosure again. That's piggy life I guess.
 
Free Ranger said:
Our first 2 (some years back now) were 3-ish year old rescue boars Casper and Harvey. I didn't know about dominance at that time and indeed we never saw any behaviours other than gentle, respectable sharing until Harvey started to show signs of illness - then overnight Casper turned into an absolute tyrant and we had to separate straight away! I really looked at that pig with new eyes I can tell you. Harvey got progressively worse (they think it was some sort of growth in the brain) but he was cheerful talking to Casper through the bars and Casper liked to be near him too. They got back the companionship and affection they had always shared once they had their own spaces but they could never be in the same enclosure again. That's piggy life I guess.
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That’s exactly how Stark was. Completely turned on Odin when Odin got poorly!
 
They used to eat at the same time so we put the pellet bowls at the fence and they would eat together. Harvey's had to go against the wall as when he put his head into the bowl he fell over (his balance went) but he quickly figured out how to lean against the wall first! His full name was "Hungry Harvey" and he looked really cheerful at dinner time (which was nearly all the time!) I don't think he could have co-habited with any pig in the end as his needs were unique in that way.

Even if your boys can't tolerate the same space on occasion I'm sure they would still be lost without each other 💕
 
Free Ranger said:
They used to eat at the same time so we put the pellet bowls at the fence and they would eat together. Harvey's had to go against the wall as when he put his head into the bowl he fell over (his balance went) but he quickly figured out how to lean against the wall first! His full name was "Hungry Harvey" and he looked really cheerful at dinner time (which was nearly all the time!) I don't think he could have co-habited with any pig in the end as his needs were unique in that way.

Even if your boys can't tolerate the same space on occasion I'm sure they would still be lost without each other 💕
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Bless him! But sounds like your boys were very happy! 😊💕
 
They had been through a lot together I think. They had belonged to a young man who surrendered them for adoption when he realised he couldn't provide what they needed. They had apparently spent a lot of time 'living on concrete' and I suspect outside as they both had thick coats at first. I will always feel grateful to him for giving them up as I think he must have actually loved them a great deal, because they were so responsive and easy to handle. These first pigs were the only ones we re-named as we were told the original names but the lady didn't know which was which anyway!
 
Free Ranger said:
They had been through a lot together I think. They had belonged to a young man who surrendered them for adoption when he realised he couldn't provide what they needed. They had apparently spent a lot of time 'living on concrete' and I suspect outside as they both had thick coats at first. I will always feel grateful to him for giving them up as I think he must have actually loved them a great deal, because they were so responsive and easy to handle. These first pigs were the only ones we re-named as we were told the original names but the lady didn't know which was which anyway!
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Wow. It’s so good that they found you too. It’s awful to think about how some piggies live. I wish I could save them all!
 
Some days I'm just like, "Well, animals make the best of things whatever the circumstances because that's evolution" but then other days I'm the guinea-pig version of the "Can't Hug Every Cat" e-harmony lady (
if you've not seen her, but watch out - it's catchy!) 🎶
 
Ooooh I thought that link would just be text and it's done that automatically - sorry if that breaks any rules here!
 
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