TotallyBoarsome
New Born Pup
After losing our beloved Douglas last month, we knew that we needed to get Paul a new friend as we didn't want him to get lonely. It was clear he was missing his brother - the cage was so quiet without the rumbles and squeaks of two piggies playing. We got in touch with a number of rescues in the area as we were keen to try and adopt a piggy in need if we could, but it was honestly so much harder than we thought it would be.
We were surprised to find that a number of rescues refused to let us adopt or try rescue bonding with our Paul as he is not neutered - some said that as he is a boar, he would not be able to live with another boar! As one of many owners of a happy boar pair know, this is not the case! We were aware that bonding boars can be difficult, but it was quite shocking to see so many rescues refuse to try and rehome a guinea pig in need with Paul.
Eventually, we found a local shelter with a single male piggy named Fudge. He was the perfect personality match for Paul - very shy, very sweet, very speedy! We bought Fudge home and gave him a few nights to get used to his new surroundings in a small cage away from the smells and sounds of Paul. They were then cage neighbours for a few days where they could get used to each other, before we put them in a big neutral bonding pen.
After about an hour of Paul chasing Fudge and humping him to show him who was the boss pig, everything settled down. We were expecting so much more drama than there was, it was a lovely surprise after all the trouble we had been told we were in for. The next day, we returned them to their proper cage, where they continue to be best friends 2 weeks on.
I know that things don't always work out this smoothly, but we wanted to show that bonding boars can be a beautiful success!
We were surprised to find that a number of rescues refused to let us adopt or try rescue bonding with our Paul as he is not neutered - some said that as he is a boar, he would not be able to live with another boar! As one of many owners of a happy boar pair know, this is not the case! We were aware that bonding boars can be difficult, but it was quite shocking to see so many rescues refuse to try and rehome a guinea pig in need with Paul.
Eventually, we found a local shelter with a single male piggy named Fudge. He was the perfect personality match for Paul - very shy, very sweet, very speedy! We bought Fudge home and gave him a few nights to get used to his new surroundings in a small cage away from the smells and sounds of Paul. They were then cage neighbours for a few days where they could get used to each other, before we put them in a big neutral bonding pen.
After about an hour of Paul chasing Fudge and humping him to show him who was the boss pig, everything settled down. We were expecting so much more drama than there was, it was a lovely surprise after all the trouble we had been told we were in for. The next day, we returned them to their proper cage, where they continue to be best friends 2 weeks on.
I know that things don't always work out this smoothly, but we wanted to show that bonding boars can be a beautiful success!
