Constellations ?

[Frances B]

So right now we have 8 pigs. We can’t keep all our pups. I would love some input on groups/pairs. Here is some info about our situation/wishes:

• Our neutered boar and adult female (just had pups) were together before pups came
• Unneutered boar - 7-8 months
• 5 pups - all boars (3 almost ready to be separated from mum, 2 still being hand fed, staying with mum a little longer)
• We’re planning on keeping 2 pups (our little one with reduced sight and one more)
• Our biggest pup is very keen on exerting his dominance over his dad when they meet (mounting him non-stop and dad gets really fed up, so that’s a no-go I feel, the other pups get on great with him)
• I would like to have the neutered boar and sow together as soon as they can (waiting the six weeks after castration - 4 left to go) and then Bruno (adult boar) with our “special needs” pup and one more pup.
• We will find homes for the other 3 pups.
• I’ve read the info on boar pairs/groups and it sounds like my hopes for Bruno + 2 sons is a no-go… what do you think? The plan is to keep the calmest pup to have with Bruno and the special needs pup if there’s any hope.
• If we decide to keep 2 boar pups as a pair can they be on their own from 6 weeks or would you not recommend it?

 

[Piggies&buns]

Trying to keep three boars together is most likely to fail. Boars need to be in pairs to be functioning.
So, thinking forward, if you keep two pups and put them together as a trio with a Bruno and it fails then, having an odd number of boars means you will end up with a single boar needing to be in a cage on his own. Not necessarily a problem - fallen out boars can live as neighbours.

It would perhaps be more sensible to prevent the risk of any single boars, in terms of living arrangements to keep either one pup or keep three pups as this enables you to make either one or two pairs - one pup to live with Bruno, and then if you choose to, two of the other pups together as a pair.

If you want to keep two boar pups together as a pair then that is fine as soon as they need to be separated as they will have each other for company.
Provided all is ok and they are getting on ok, the pups can stay with Bruno any time up until they get to their teens - it enables you to see which piggies get on best to make your pairs.

 

[Wiebke]

So right now we have 8 pigs. We can’t keep all our pups. I would love some input on groups/pairs. Here is some info about our situation/wishes:

• Our neutered boar and adult female (just had pups) were together before pups came
• Unneutered boar - 7-8 months
• 5 pups - all boars (3 almost ready to be separated from mum, 2 still being hand fed, staying with mum a little longer)
• We’re planning on keeping 2 pups (our little one with reduced sight and one more)
• Our biggest pup is very keen on exerting his dominance over his dad when they meet (mounting him non-stop and dad gets really fed up, so that’s a no-go I feel, the other pups get on great with him)
• I would like to have the neutered boar and sow together as soon as they can (waiting the six weeks after castration - 4 left to go) and then Bruno (adult boar) with our “special needs” pup and one more pup.
• We will find homes for the other 3 pups.
• I’ve read the info on boar pairs/groups and it sounds like my hopes for Bruno + 2 sons is a no-go… what do you think? The plan is to keep the calmest pup to have with Bruno and the special needs pup if there’s any hope.
• If we decide to keep 2 boar pups as a pair can they be on their own from 6 weeks or would you not recommend it?

Hi

Your two boys can be together from 6 weeks or you can decide to wait and see whether they work as a trio even through teenage. Groups with a disabled piggy/carer companion have different dynamics. It all depends on the personality mix and the developing dynamics, so you will have to have a plan B at hand in case it doesn't work out some months down the line once the boys turn teenagers. Ideally you opt for all submissive/laid-back personalities for a better success rate. But you will have the risk of ending up with one outsider boar.

The fail rate in boar trios is generally the higher the more sub-adults in the mix; adding a third to a pair can also be a destabiling decision but we can never make any predictions; we can only reflect trends. From about 4-5 years onwards the testosterone production is running out and boars mellow markedly and become a lot more companionable - hence why pensioner trios have a much higher success rate.
What we are dealing with on the forum is usually the results from the purchase of three or four unmatched babies hitting teenage with rather predictable results, so our advice is mainly geared towards avoiding that scenario.

PS: If you want to keep your older boar with the disabled youngster, then you can start with them living alongside or having short meetings on neutral ground outside their cages so acceptance and the move across will be much easier.

 

[Frances B]

Trying to keep three boars together is most likely to fail. Boars need to be in pairs to be functioning.
So, thinking forward, if you keep two pups and put them together as a trio with a Bruno and it fails then, having an odd number of boars means you will end up with a single boar needing to be in a cage on his own. Not necessarily a problem - fallen out boars can live as neighbours.

It would perhaps be more sensible to prevent the risk of any single boars, in terms of living arrangements to keep either one pup or keep three pups as this enables you to make either one or two pairs - one pup to live with Bruno, and then if you choose to, two of the other pups together as a pair.

If you want to keep two boar pups together as a pair then that is fine as soon as they need to be separated as they will have each other for company.
Provided all is ok and they are getting on ok, the pups can stay with Bruno any time up until they get to their teens - it enables you to see which piggies get on best to make your pairs.

Yes we are thinking about maybe keeping 3 but 2 pairs of boats would require a lot of cage/pen space and that’s my only concern. It’s not impossible but needs a lot of thinking about.