Collapsed Boar Bonds

[catcrunchies]

One of our boar pairs had a horrible fall out about a week ago - bloody bites and the whole nine yards. We split them up immediately and decided to chance introductions with two of our other boars, both of whom are more submissive and generally calmer than the two who fought.What ended up happening is that Quill, one of the quieter two, ended up having his ear torn in half by the boy we tried pairing him with. Obviously that pairing got split up immediately and we've put him back with his buddy. It doesn't look like there are any issues between them, but I'm just worried about how he'll get on. This is the second time that Quill has been badly hurt by one of the others - he's by far the smallest and terrible at standing up for himself.

My question is whether I should risk leaving him with Nico or look into neutering and finding him a girlfriend? Their bond seems pretty solid, despite a short separation when we tried them with the other two and Nico just hitting his teenage hormones, but given poor Quill's history of having holes bitten in him, I'm really nervous about it. What would you guys do?

 

[Wiebke]

Hi!

Adding a third boar to a well bonded pair is unfortunately in most cases a recipe for disaster unless the boars choose each other on their own volition.

You can try and see whether Nico and Quill will go together in a formal intro on neutral ground once tempers have settled. As the injury has not come from Nico, that would be your first option.
Bonding: Illustrated Dominance Behaviours And Dynamics

Your further options (rescue dating and/or neutering) for Quill and your dominant boy depend on your access to a good standard bonding rescue and/or a good neutering vet. There is no one size fits all solution; it depends on what you can do and what you feel is best for your boy. The pros and cons for the various options are listed in the fall-out guide. UK rescue and vet locators are on the top bar.

Adding More Guinea Pigs Or Merging Pairs – What Works And What Not?
Boars: Teenage, Bullying, Fighting, Fall-outs And What Next?
Neutered / De-sexed Boars And Neutering Operations: Myths And Facts

 

[catcrunchies]

Hi!

Adding a third boar to a well bonded pair is unfortunately in most cases a recipe for disaster unless the boars choose each other on their own volition.

You can try and see whether Nico and Quill will go together in a formal intro on neutral ground once tempers have settled. As the injury has not come from Nico, that would be your first option.
Bonding: Illustrated Dominance Behaviours And Dynamics

Your further options (rescue dating and/or neutering) for Quill and your dominant boy depend on your access to a good standard bonding rescue and/or a good neutering vet. There is no one size fits all solution; it depends on what you can do and what you feel is best for your boy. The pros and cons for the various options are listed in the fall-out guide. UK rescue and vet locators are on the top bar.

Adding More Guinea Pigs Or Merging Pairs – What Works And What Not?
Boars: Teenage, Bullying, Fighting, Fall-outs And What Next?
Neutered / De-sexed Boars And Neutering Operations: Myths And Facts

I'd double checked the bonding threads before the whole mess went down - we've made sure to keep them in pairs and tried swapping partners in those pairs rather than trying bigger groups! We'll stick with the re-introduction with Nico and hope that they keep getting on - thank you for the advice!

 

[Wiebke]

All the best!