Too Senior Now?

[Mweek]

hi, i have 2 boars aged 4 and a half and 5 years old. the older one, who is blind (from birth) is the dominant one. the younger was bought as a friend for him through boar bonding. the blind one was actually originally bought as a friend for a now deceased guinea pig but they fell out too.

they used to get on really well but a few years ago we had a change around of hutches because a friend had an emergency and needed me to take their guinea pigs.this made my boars fall out. we tried introducing them intermittently but without success so we resigned to the idea they had to live separately. they have lived separately incredibly happy since. when say separate i mean in the same hutch but on different levels. i often put them in the run together and they squabble but it never gets very serious or concerning. but every time i put them back in the start the whole 'who are you I'm the boss' routine as they are alone in their hutch. i was considering getting them a friend each but the problem with that is they are both old already so in a few months i could end up with two baby boars alone. if they're eating well and not unhappy should i leave them as is? anybody's thoughts would be greatly appreciated

 

[Wiebke]

hi, i have 2 boars aged 4 and a half and 5 years old. the older one, who is blind (from birth) is the dominant one. the younger was bought as a friend for him through boar bonding. the blind one was actually originally bought as a friend for a now deceased guinea pig but they fell out too.

they used to get on really well but a few years ago we had a change around of hutches because a friend had an emergency and needed me to take their guinea pigs.this made my boars fall out. we tried introducing them intermittently but without success so we resigned to the idea they had to live separately. they have lived separately incredibly happy since. when say separate i mean in the same hutch but on different levels. i often put them in the run together and they squabble but it never gets very serious or concerning. but every time i put them back in the start the whole 'who are you I'm the boss' routine as they are alone in their hutch. i was considering getting them a friend each but the problem with that is they are both old already so in a few months i could end up with two baby boars alone. if they're eating well and not unhappy should i leave them as is? anybody's thoughts would be greatly appreciated

It sounds like they are happily bonded as they are; fallen-out separated boars generally prefer to have their own territory, even though they are bonded and enjoy the daily interaction with their mate. We call them "can't live with and can't live without boars". Just make sure that they have shared run and grass time daily for mutual stimulation. They are now older boars, so their testosterone levels have calmed down and they should no longer fight on neutral ground.