The tale of Nelly and Noodles

pig in the city

pig in the city

*Rescue Buddy*
Adult Guinea Pig
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So l was contacted by a distraught lady. She had bought a pair of boars online and despite being advised that they were good friends soon found out that they were sworn enemies!
The bigger piggy Noodles was terrorising the smaller piggy Rice.
Sadly Rice died not long after so to the owner took Noodles to a breeder to find him a friend. Apparently he fought with every boar she tried him with and the owner was told that Noodles 'killed' another pig.
By then the owner decided that she wanted to rehome him as she didn't want him to be alone but was frightened to try him with another pig.
So she rang me.
This lady is educated and had done a lot of research before buying her piggies, but wasn't aware of rescue pigs ( like many of us when we got our first pigs).
On discussion l asked if she would consider getting Noodles neutered and trying him with a sow. The owner agreed providing that l did the bonding as she was too frightened to do it.
So Noodles was neutered.
While we waited for his 6 weeks to pass the owner tracked down a single sow. This was in the adoption centre of pets at home. Apparently Nelly wouldn't go with any other pigs and had been in the store for several months. She was very very shy.
So after 6 weeks Nelly and Noodles came to me.
I put them in adjacent runs. Nelly was desperate to get to Noodles and was pop coming around her run at the presence of another pig.
So l tried them together. No humping, no chasing, no fighting. Love at first sight.

20180821_212929.webp

Two very happy pigs and one very happy and enlightened owner.

Note. I don't believe that Noodles killed a pig deliberately. This was a case of poorly supervised bonding.

Lessons to be learnt.
1. Don't buy pigs online.
2. Separate pigs that are in a bullying situation especially if one is not thriving.
3. Never give up on finding a piggy a friend.
 
pig in the city said:
So l was contacted by a distraught lady. She had bought a pair of boars online and despite being advised that they were good friends soon found out that they were sworn enemies!
The bigger piggy Noodles was terrorising the smaller piggy Rice.
Sadly Rice died not long after so to the owner took Noodles to a breeder to find him a friend. Apparently he fought with every boar she tried him with and the owner was told that Noodles 'killed' another pig.
By then the owner decided that she wanted to rehome him as she didn't want him to be alone but was frightened to try him with another pig.
So she rang me.
This lady is educated and had done a lot of research before buying her piggies, but wasn't aware of rescue pigs ( like many of us when we got our first pigs).
On discussion l asked if she would consider getting Noodles neutered and trying him with a sow. The owner agreed providing that l did the bonding as she was too frightened to do it.
So Noodles was neutered.
While we waited for his 6 weeks to pass the owner tracked down a single sow. This was in the adoption centre of pets at home. Apparently Nelly wouldn't go with any other pigs and had been in the store for several months. She was very very shy.
So after 6 weeks Nelly and Noodles came to me.
I put them in adjacent runs. Nelly was desperate to get to Noodles and was pop coming around her run at the presence of another pig.
So l tried them together. No humping, no chasing, no fighting. Love at first sight.

View attachment 93491

Two very happy pigs and one very happy and enlightened owner.

Note. I don't believe that Noodles killed a pig deliberately. This was a case of poorly supervised bonding.

Lessons to be learnt.
1. Don't buy pigs online.
2. Separate pigs that are in a bullying situation especially if one is not thriving.
3. Never give up on finding a piggy a friend.
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That is awesome. I have a boar and sow at the moment they are neighbours for now. But I'm getting my boar neutered when hes old enough. They get on very well with floor time together. But I'm having to supervise like crazy incase they mate.

My sow is 2 1/2 old , my boar is about 4 1/2 months old. He is the dominant one of the two
 
That is a great story B.
I think I might have given you more challenging bondings in the past eg Tea Cake 12 dates, from the sound of it!
Best wishes for the new pair and hope their story helps others persevere :)
 
Skypipdot said:
That is awesome. I have a boar and sow at the moment they are neighbours for now. But I'm getting my boar neutered when hes old enough. They get on very well with floor time together. But I'm having to supervise like crazy incase they mate.

My sow is 2 1/2 old , my boar is about 4 1/2 months old. He is the dominant one of the two
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I wouldn't risk floor time together! It can be very quick. Most vets will neuter at 4 months
 
lauraboara said:
That is a great story B.
I think I might have given you more challenging bondings in the past eg Tea Cake 12 dates, from the sound of it!
Best wishes for the new pair and hope their story helps others persevere :)
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Ha ha. Yes dear Teacake. But we got there in the end!
 
Skypipdot said:
If not is my sow in danger?
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It's not ideal an older sow being pregnant for the first time as the pelvic ligaments are stiff and as a result she might struggle to give birth naturally. If you know the date when they were last together you can work out how long you need to wait before you can be sure she isn't pregnant. We call this pregnancy watch.
Read the pregnancy sections as to what signs to look out for and how to feed a potentially pregnant sow. If you think she is pregnant get her checked by your vet to confirm. Post a thread in the pregnancy section and we will support you.
Hopefully she is not pregnant but crack on and get your boar neutered as it's 6 weeks before he can go with her safely. Keep us posted
 
pig in the city said:
It's not ideal an older sow being pregnant for the first time as the pelvic ligaments are stiff and as a result she might struggle to give birth naturally. If you know the date when they were last together you can work out how long you need to wait before you can be sure she isn't pregnant. We call this pregnancy watch.
Read the pregnancy sections as to what signs to look out for and how to feed a potentially pregnant sow. If you think she is pregnant get her checked by your vet to confirm. Post a thread in the pregnancy section and we will support you.
Hopefully she is not pregnant but crack on and get your boar neutered as it's 6 weeks before he can go with her safely. Keep us posted
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what are the chances of complications with my boar after or during neutering and do i have to take massive care of him afterwards, i know your not a vet but your experiences. If i need to be syringe feeding after or making sure he doesnt chew any stitches, il need to plan a time when i can book some time off work.

Lol actually il jjst read the pregnancy section haha. What an idiot i am
 
Skypipdot said:
what are the chances of complications with my boar after or during neutering and do i have to take massive care of him afterwards, i know your not a vet but your experiences. If i need to be syringe feeding after or making sure he doesnt chew any stitches, il need to plan a time when i can book some time off work.

Lol actually il jjst read the pregnancy section haha. What an idiot i am
Click to expand...
With a good vet doing the op the risks of surgery are minimal. Usually they are a bit subdued the night of the op but usually they eat for themselves. The vets glue the wound and put internal stitches so they don't tend to chew at it, good pain relief is essential. The commonest complication is infection of the wound but this is rare with an experienced vet like Simon Maddocks doing the op.
I will tag Debbie who can tell you more about Simon's practice @furryfriends (TEAS)
 
pig in the city said:
With a good vet doing the op the risks of surgery are minimal. Usually they are a bit subdued the night of the op but usually they eat for themselves. The vets glue the wound and put internal stitches so they don't tend to chew at it, good pain relief is essential. The commonest complication is infection of the wound but this is rare with an experienced vet like Simon Maddocks doing the op.
I will tag Debbie who can tell you more about Simon's practice @furryfriends (TEAS)
Click to expand...
Thanks for this. My wife has finally agreed to get him done soonish. Id just feel so bad if we lost him. But it sounds like we wont. And also il be glad not to deal with impaction again
 
We get all boars neutered before rehoming. Simon does all the ops and we’ve never had a post op issue. In fact they seem totally normal when they come home and not at all unwell. Simon or Kim will examine them prior to going ahead with surgery, to be sure there’s nothing that could cause an issue.
 
Skypipdot said:
Thanks for this. My wife has finally agreed to get him done soonish. Id just feel so bad if we lost him. But it sounds like we wont. And also il be glad not to deal with impaction again
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He will be a happy boy. Impaction is much less common in neutered boars but occasionally we see it, but it doesn't tend to be severe. Let us know how he goes on!
 
furryfriends (TEAS) said:
We get all boars neutered before rehoming. Simon does all the ops and we’ve never had a post op issue. In fact they seem totally normal when they come home and not at all unwell. Simon or Kim will examine them prior to going ahead with surgery, to be sure there’s nothing that could cause an issue.
Click to expand...
So do literally just phone for an appointment, tell them what i want then take him in in the morning?
 
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