Introducing An Immature Boar To A Sow With Ovarian Cysts

[Countrylass]

Marley was neutered 7 weeks ago and is around 12 months old. When we introduced him to the girls at the rescue yesterday, he looked terrified but allowed Holly to clean his face. Half an hour after getting home, he and Holly had a set to and he then was stroppy with the other girls to the point of trying to start a fight with Autumn who was sleeping.

We think time will help him but as Holly is face cleaning the other sows and rumbling like mad on a normal basis is there anything we can do to help them?

 

[Wiebke]

Marley was neutered 7 weeks ago and is around 12 months old. When we introduced him to the girls at the rescue yesterday, he looked terrified but allowed Holly to clean his face. Half an hour after getting home, he and Holly had a set to and he then was stroppy with the other girls to the point of trying to start a fight with Autumn who was sleeping.

We think time will help him but as Holly is face cleaning the other sows and rumbling like mad on a normal basis is there anything we can do to help them?

What you are witnessing is the hierarchy sort-out where you guinea pigs establish where they come in the hierarchy after acceptance has happened. Marley is obviously trying to punch as high as he can get. Give it time and as much space as you have. Please make sure that there are no hideys, nooks and crannies that a pigy can get cornered in while things are on the wild side.

Some teenage/young boys go overboard the first time they meet sows; they kind of are hormone, but no longer brain-driven. You will have to wait until he is finding the on-switch for his brain again. If necessary, separate shortly to allow him to calm down. Make sure that you air your home - even a neutered boar can still produce an amazing amount of testosterone laden pee (never as much as now though)to mark "his" girls with whereas the sows target-pee to (literally!) tell him to p*** off.
I am always glad when this stage is over with a testosterone driven boy. It will flare up occasionally, and you will notice that the first few seasons are on the lively side as the sows' hormones react to his presence, but the shared shenanigans also act as glue to bind them together. Things will settle down; they older boars get, the less hormone output there is.

 

[Countrylass]

Thanks @Wiebke I think I'm over protective this time around as the last time we tried to introduce Holly to an inexperienced boar she ended up with a split lip and I had Hank hanging off my hand (I made sure I had oven gloves handy this time!)

 

[Countrylass]

Marley has been living next door to George and his ladies for a month. He can see and smell them through the C&C divider. I feel like we have made some progress as he no longer chatters his teeth at the sight of another pig by the mesh (and George has reduced the number of border patrols) but introducing a sow still results in him chattering his teeth and looking absolutely terrified. He pulled hair out of Tish and he went for Freya yesterday - they are 12 weeks and 10 weeks old respectively despite having lived next door to them for a month.

I haven't given up hope of introducing him to a sow or 4 but I'm wondering why both of his ears are split in two places almost like they have been cut and whether they are influencing his actions (previous fight perhaps)

You can't really see the splits on the photos: