Panda Is Coming Home Soon...

[Panda and Me]

So it started with Panda, a baby sow about 3+ weeks old now. A friends pigs had a litter and we were offered one. I don't take on pets lightly....so the research started. I agree that it is better to keep piggies in pairs, at the very least. We have 2 cages, 1 is 2ft x 4ft, the other is smaller and for quarantine purposes only. Shortly after I began my research, Gypsy and her family were turned over to animal humane. Gypsy, her 2 sisters, and her mother and father had been housed in a cage the size of our quarantine cage. Anyway, I have read a bit on introducing new pigs to each other, neutral territory and all, what I am wondering is, is it okay to house the piggies directly next to each other, sharing an adjoining wall before the formal introduction on neutral territory or should they be in separate areas completely? Could the introduction be helped by interacting with a divider between them first? We have had Gypsy for 2+ weeks now, and Panda is coming from a known environment and is and has been healthy her whole life, should we still do a 2 week quarantine before introduction?

Thanks

 

[Wiebke]

So it started with Panda, a baby sow about 3+ weeks old now. A friends pigs had a litter and we were offered one. I don't take on pets lightly....so the research started. I agree that it is better to keep piggies in pairs, at the very least. We have 2 cages, 1 is 2ft x 4ft, the other is smaller and for quarantine purposes only. Shortly after I began my research, Gypsy and her family were turned over to animal humane. Gypsy, her 2 sisters, and her mother and father had been housed in a cage the size of our quarantine cage. Anyway, I have read a bit on introducing new pigs to each other, neutral territory and all, what I am wondering is, is it okay to house the piggies directly next to each other, sharing an adjoining wall before the formal introduction on neutral territory or should they be in separate areas completely? Could the introduction be helped by interacting with a divider between them first? We have had Gypsy for 2+ weeks now, and Panda is coming from a known environment and is and has been healthy her whole life, should we still do a 2 week quarantine before introduction?

Thanks

Hi! Gypsy has now passed her quarantine period, so your two piggies should be fine. it helps to push the two cages together for at least a night or another day, so the girls suss each other out thorugh the bars before any formal intros; that takes some of the extra stress out of a formal intro.You can start with a divider in the bonding pen if you wish to, but at some point you need to commit fully and let them get on with it. Make sure that you have ideally got a full day or at least half a day so the girls can work through as much of the dominance as possible.

Only separate if they are really not getting on and if tension remains persistently high for any length of time (hours, not minutes!). In that case, you can usually see very quickly whether they will go together or not on the second day - if things are a lot more relaxed, then they will bond and you can transfer them to their shared cage; if they pick up trouble again straight away and if tension is no less than they day before, then they will likely never make a very happy couple.

We have got lots of information and tips on how to best stage intros and understand what is happening; please take your time to read through it before you introduce:
Introducing And Re-introducing Guinea Pigs
Illustrated Bonding Behaviours And Dynamics
Dominance Behaviours In Guinea Pigs
Sow Behaviour