Can Hay/hair Make My Boars Bits Sore?

[sue.]

Hello. Was wondering if you could offer me some advice. I have a 10 month old long haired boar called Bob. The past few weeks I noticed that he was squeaking when peeing /pooping. After checking him over I found that he had a small amount of hair that had got trapped inside his boar parts. I gently removed the hair and hoped that this would be the end to his problem. Unfortunately the squeaking (more of a guinea pig grumble than painful squeaking) continued. He was eating drinking, peeing (clear), pooping (normal shape and texture), and acting absolutely fine, except for the grumbles he was making when going to the toilet. but I was worried about stones or a uti so I took him to the vets. The vet pressed his tummy and checked his bits. She said all seemed fine but he was a tad red and said she would treat him with antibiotics and pain relief incase it was a uti. The noises when he went to the toilet settled down a lot after a few days and again I thought we'd solved the problem, until 6 days into the course he makes the noise again, this time it was a definite squeal in pain. I got him out of his cage and checked him to see that a very large amount of hair hair had found it's way inside his bits and was pulling very tight on his Penis, I had to cut the hair to release the tension and then gently remove it again with a cotton bud and small amount of vasaline. I then trimmed his entire bottom half to prevent this happening again. This was approx 4 days ago. He has a days worth of antibiotics left and although he is still making the noises they are dramatically reduced compared to what they were. I have just checked him again and have now had to remove a piece of hay approx 1" long!
My question really is, can the foreign objects such as hair and hay cause his bits to become sore and sting when peeing? And if so how long would this normally last? I suppose I'm just hoping upon hope that this is the cause and not stones that I'm dreading it could be.
Has anyone had any similar issues with boars? Any advise would be gratefully received.
Thanks.

 

[Wiebke]

Long hair that can loop around the penis can be a real issue for some boars that really love to drag their bottoms on the ground. You may also want to look out for semen rods.
You can find out more in our Boar Care guide: Boar Care: Bits, Bums & Baths

 

[sue.]

Thank you. I've had a read of the link you suggested earier. I've managed to press his tummy gently to check his Penis and it all looks okay, no obvious inflammation or hairs there.
Just wonder if the past few episodes are enough to have made it sore when he wees.

 

[Wiebke]

Thank you. I've had a read of the link you suggested earier. I've managed to press his tummy gently to check his Penis and it all looks okay, no obvious inflammation or hairs there.
Just wonder if the past few episodes are enough to have made it sore when he wees.

There is always the chance that there could be a UTI; they can be persistent and not go away with just a few days of antibiotic. Did the vet test the urine for signs of blood and higher levels of protein (the sign of an infection)?

 

[sue.]

No she didn't. She just squeezed his tummy and said she couldn't feel any signs of stones. And also prodded his bits a bit. He's almost had two weeks of antibiotics now. She said if it's the same after the antibiotics then she would have to do an ultrasound scan to check for stones. He's only 10 months old so I'm preying it's not stone's. Just can't work out if the hair issue is what's made him sore or not before I pay out a hefty sum for an ultrasound