So many rescues are full of boars, because boars can be harder to rehome. One reason for this is that as a rule, boars should only live in pairs whereas sows can live in larger groups.
Another reason is that people can be worried about boars fighting. I’m not going to lie, it happens! But also, boars can form really close friendships with their cage mates.
A lot of it is down to personalities, just because two piggies are the same age or from the same litter, doesn’t mean they’ll necessarily be friends as they get older. But there are things you can do to help:
Most fall outs happen when the boars hit the “teenage” period from around 6 to 14 months, so this is where you need to be mindful. (Note, a lot of people recommend pairing a lone boar with a baby because the older boar will usually accept straight away, but problems can arise when the baby hits this stage)
Boars need to establish dominance, one piggy will need to be top pig. Behaviours such as rumbling, chattering, some mild chasing and mounting are all normal. Sometimes, people can be tempted to separate when these behaviours occur because they feel like one piggy is being mean to the other, but this will only disrupt their process.
However, if this ends in serious fighting and biting, they will need to be separated. A serious fight will look like a piggy tornado of rapid circling and lunging. Do not stick your hand in the middle! Use a dustpan or oven glove.
Boars are territorial, and their territories are marked by smell. When they are introduced, it should be in a neutral space that smells like neither. So, once their bond is established, and they go into another neutral space ie. A fresh clean cage, they think “woo hoo! A new territory, let’s see who’s boss of this one?!” So it can really help when doing a full cage clean to put back in a small amount of soiled bedding. It can also be helpful if you put them in an outside run, to include items from their cage that smell like the pair of them.
Conflict can happen over shared resources. For a pair of boars, make sure you have at least two water bottles. It can be helpful to scatter feed vegetables and pellets so nobody can hog the bowl.
Similarly, avoid hides/houses with only one exit, so nobody can get trapped or cornered. Tunnels are great! So are big mounds of hay.
コメント