Hi I'm new here and could really use some help please. Having a very stressful and worrying time right now. My boy Tony 2.5 years old lost his cage mate very suddenly in June. We quickly got him another friend Gary who was 10 weeks old and introductions went swimmingly and have lived happily together until a week and a half ago. Suddenly the younger Gary is trying to be dominant with rumble strutting, teeth chattering and lunging at Tony the older one. He also tries to mount Tony but hes too quick swings round and loudly teeth chatters at him. The lunging at each other is scarying me the most and has resulted in a fur ball fight of a few seconds but no blood has been drawn yet. I just really dont know what to do, do I let them get on with it or seperate them. The cage is 9.5 square feet and i dont have space to go bigger. This is my third set of boys and have never had anything this extream before. They seemed to calm down a bit for a few days but then had another fight, I'm so scared they are going to hurt each other. How long does this go on for? Should they be seperated? I'm so scared and sad about this because i suffer with anxiety and constantly think the worst
Gary is now a teenager and is hormonal. While it is just mild dominance, you let them get on with it but if they both want to be dominant, tensions are high enough that a furball fight has occurred then sadly it could be time to separate. You don’t need to wait for an injury to happen if things are sufficiently bad between them
9.5ft is just below minimum for a boar pair and space really does matter to them - we recommend 12 square feet for a boar pair - and while some pairs will be ok with minimum others really won’t be.
The issue you face if space is a problem is If they need to be separated then they both need their own cage which needs to be side by side with each other each measuring a minimum of 120x60cm (8 square feet). You can’t split a 9.5sq ft cage in half as it is just too small.
1 Causes for bonds to fall apart 2 Bonds in Crisis - What are the signs of a dysfunctional bond? - Bullying
- How can I test whether a bond is no longer working? 3 Failed bonds and what next? - What to do if my piggies have had a major fight? - When rebonding doesn't work out
1 The hormonal teenage months - What are the most difficult times? - What are your boars' chances of making it together?
- What can help to boost your boys' chances?
- What does NOT work? 2 Fighting, bullying and when to separate - What are the signs of a dysfunctional bond? - How can I test whether a bond is no longer working?
- What to do if your boars had a bloody fight? 3 Life after...
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