Prolonged hormonal piggie?

[Josie_lg]

Hiya I have four girls who have just turned one! They are all in and out of heat very often. But one seems to have been in heat for a long time now. Maybe 2 weeks? Very on and off. She will be fine and then all of a sudden just starts rumbling only lasts a few seconds and then acts fine again. So she can’t be fully in heat as my girls chase and proper rumble when in heat. She just sort of struts rumbles and that’s it. Could this maybe be a dominance thing instead ? Our group has a distinguished hierarchy, but I’m sure it’s not uncommon for the lower ranking pigs to challenge the higher ones? She’s the quietest piggie but has ALOT of sass. Me being me is worrying about ovarian cysts. But she has no other symptoms. She’s not acting any differant other than the odd rumble, no inappetance, no balding, no discomfort when handling etc-no other symptoms. Just seems like this season has been very prolonged.
just wondering if anyone can offer any advice please as I’m worrying away as usual aha x

 

[Wiebke]

Hiya I have four girls who have just turned one! They are all in and out of heat very often. But one seems to have been in heat for a long time now. Maybe 2 weeks? Very on and off. She will be fine and then all of a sudden just starts rumbling only lasts a few seconds and then acts fine again. So she can’t be fully in heat as my girls chase and proper rumble when in heat. She just sort of struts rumbles and that’s it. Could this maybe be a dominance thing instead ? Our group has a distinguished hierarchy, but I’m sure it’s not uncommon for the lower ranking pigs to challenge the higher ones? She’s the quietest piggie but has ALOT of sass. Me being me is worrying about ovarian cysts. But she has no other symptoms. She’s not acting any differant other than the odd rumble, no inappetance, no balding, no discomfort when handling etc-no other symptoms. Just seems like this season has been very prolonged.
just wondering if anyone can offer any advice please as I’m worrying away as usual aha x

Hi

Ovarian cysts usually kick in around 18 months but occasionally they can start sooner. It may be worth having her and her reproductive system checked through a by good vet.

 

[Josie_lg]

Okey thank you. I’ve seen you have a lot of knowledge on piggie behaviour. I was wondering if it’s normal for the lower ranking pig to start rumble strutting at the high rankers to challenge the hierarchy? We are also in the process of purchasing a larger c and c cage as my girls have started to grow out of this one and I would like to give them the most space possible. Could she maybe be fed up of being at the bottom? None of the other pigs react to her rumble she just struts at them then walks away.

 

[Wiebke]

Okey thank you. I’ve seen you have a lot of knowledge on piggie behaviour. I was wondering if it’s normal for the lower ranking pig to start rumble strutting at the high rankers to challenge the hierarchy? We are also in the process of purchasing a larger c and c cage as my girls have started to grow out of this one and I would like to give them the most space possible. Could she maybe be fed up of being at the bottom? None of the other pigs react to her rumble she just struts at them then walks away.

Some sows can do that, either if they are not really happy with how the hierarchy is settled or because they are suffering from hormones. It can be difficult to tell which is which, especially without diract access to your piggies. The others ignoring her rumbling is totally normal behaviour for higher ranked sows. If they are getting fed up, they will just nip (which is NOT biting).
Sows: Behaviour and female health problems (including ovarian cysts)

 

[Merab]

Having just had a sow spayed I am glad I had her checked when she started getting rather hormonal.
She did have ovarian cysts and is now fully recovered.
It’s worth a vet check just for peace of mind.
Let us know how things go.

 

[Josie_lg]

Some sows can do that, either if they are not really happy with how the hierarchy is settled or because they are suffering from hormones. It can be difficult to tell which is which, especially without diract access to your piggies. The others ignoring her rumbling is totally normal behaviour for higher ranked sows. If they are getting fed up, they will just nip (which is NOT biting).
Sows: Behaviour and female health problems (including ovarian cysts)

Thank you xx
In regards to the cysts how do the vets know which are caused by hormones and which are fluid filled? Can some go away on their own. Or is it normally the fluid filled we usually spay for ? x