Bullying and fighting

[EmilyRose]

I've had my 2 boars for about 6 weeks now. The woman I got them from told me she had already paired them up and they got on fine. When I first got them they of course were scared of me and didn't come out untill I had gone.

Now they are fine with me. But the problem I'm having is when I feed them or clean them out they get over excited/frightened and one of them attacks the other pulling his hair, so now I have got them their own everything, feed bowls ect but they are still fighting.

After cleaning their home last week I had a proper look at them and I noticed one of them had dried blood on his ear and the other had a split in his ear and what looked like a bite mark on his lip (it was kind of swollen on one side).

Apart from splitting them up I don't know what else to do

 

[lauralucy]

how big is the cage?

it sounds like they dont want to be friends.

do you have a rough idea of how old they are?

 

[EmilyRose]

I think their home is 4x5ft and they are just over 3 months old.

 

[lauralucy]

sounds to me as if they are hitting the teenage/hormonal stage.

you can either wait it out and see if there are any bloody fights etc. or seperate them now.

they may go back together once they are past the teenage years.

 

[gogoguineas]

As advised, you can keep a close eye on them and see if it get worse or seperate now. Sometimes you can be surprised at how bonded they actually are. I would say if the spats are genuinely sporadic then stick it out. Mine were like that, we had the odd nip and one did suffer a cut lip but it has eased off over time and now the younger one will whine for the elder if i pick him up. Some boars come through their teenage phase quicker than others but some take the full 12-15 months!

If there's severe bullying, such as one not letting the other eat or drink despite having their own bowl/bottle then it might be worth putting a grid/divider in the cage. If you get into the habit of weighing them weekly you'll soon spot any weight loss that could indicate this. It is also a good idea as the first sign of illness is often weight loss.
I would also reccomend using a divider if the fights develop and/or cause a more serious injury. Some boars like to live next to one another, just not in the same space. Hopefully yours are hormonal and will work through this. I have another pair who hump and chase as soon as I get their food out lol rolleyes