Two To Three?

[Tewdric]

I've made the mistake of looking on a rescue website ..... it's one recommended on the forum.

On the site there is a lovely young girl available. She's gorgeous, and with a coat colour I have wanted since I was a child.

I currently have a 6ft hutch, and a 6ft run, so plenty of room. We are hopefully about to complete our house sale and purchase of a new property - just waiting for exchange and completion dates which should be at the end of August. Once we move we'll have a larger garden and I'll be getting a pig shed set up.

We were thinking about either getting another pair of pigs or expanding our two to possibly four when we moved. But after seeing this little girl on the rescue website I did fill in an online form expressing an interest in her; and stating that we would shortly be moving. The rescue I normally use often takes a while to get back in touch after an initial email so I wasn't expecting to hear anything back from this new rescue for a few weeks.... but about an hour after filling in the form I got a phone call back to talk about the girl.

The rescue in question doesn't offer pig dating. I currently have a neutered boar and his wife pig. They dated at my local rescue - but the initial bonding really didn't take long and after an hour or so I was sent home with them as a pair with instructions to keep an eye on them, but that they should be fine. I know the were dated by an expert.... and they were fine from the moment they got home.

Sorry for the ramble, but this brings me onto my question. The rescue I spoke to today said that the bonding process would take 6 weeks for this new girl. That I should have them living next to each other for some time, them introduce my boar to the new girl separately from his wife pig; then take the boar out and let the two girls meet before finally letting them all meet together.

Would that be correct? edit...(Having just re-read the sticky 'bonding' thread above probably not.)

Would I be better off long term just adopting a pair of girls and housing them separately as a pair?

Is there any way of telling if my current pair would accept anyone else joining them? My boar is pretty dominant (boar dating failed) and his wife pig lived as a loan pig until she was handed into rescue and met him.

 

[sport_billy]

I never look at websites now lol, they are addictive to say the least!

@Wiebke would be the best to advise on dynamics. I wouldn't be inclined to unsettled a bonded pair of husboar and wife but I am sure Wiebke will know better

 

[Wiebke]

Hi!

Introducing a single pig to a well established pair is in my own experience once of the trickiest bondings. If your new girl is dominant, it is not going to work out, whichever way you try, and if your pair is not happy about an addition, it doesn;t matter how nice the newbie is, she will remain an extra.
Living next door can help take any extraneous stress out of the equation, but in the end, it is all down to the character combination and the group dynamics, and that is not something you can steer when the chips are down. Introducing a girl singly to various group members can help, but it can also backfire quite badly in my own experience, especially when a happily married piggy is not at all keen on meeting somepig else, but wants to be back their mate!

As the rescue is not offering dating to see whether acceptance happens before you bring the new girl home, I would think twice about it unless you have the option to date the new girl at a different rescue for her own mate (nuetered boar or female) if things don't go to plan. When adopting on spec or over a large distance, it really pays to have a plan B at the ready before you commit!

If your main aim is to create a minigroup, then I would pass this up, as hard as it is (and I know just how hard it is!) and look for two sub-adult girls that will just go to the bottom of the new hierarchy without having the chance to upset the apple cart, as it keeps the existing bond and hierarchy in place.

 

[Tewdric]

I never look at websites now lol, they are addictive to say the least!

I try to stay away from them, but I do end up on some of the national charity websites for work to help our students with research. We run 'animal care and animal management' courses at the college I work in and they're often researching information for various animal care sheets/booklets they need to put together.

 

[Tewdric]

@Wiebke thanks for the reply.

Common sense has asserted itself and I have spoken to the rescue this morning to say that I wouldn't take the girl on her own to try and match her with my boar and his wife. Once we've moved, if she is still without a home I'll take her and a friend for her and establish them as another separate pair. If she finds a home in the meantime it'll be what's best for her and she'll be out of the rescue.

Whatever happens, it seems I now have two rescues who are both willing to re-home to me. I have the ability to look after a couple more pigs (no more than that though) so I'll see who needs me when the time comes.

One last question:- I assume I'd be correct in thinking that as I have Lilith (my sow) then I'd never be able to re-home a pair of boars to live in a pig shed due to her scent being in the air? Until I had to have Brunel neutered (after the loss of his male friend and 5 failed boar dating sessions) I've always kept pairs of boars and I know they can be more difficult to re-home. Now I have my girl, I assume boar pairs are a no no for me?

 

[Wiebke]

@Wiebke thanks for the reply.

Common sense has asserted itself and I have spoken to the rescue this morning to say that I wouldn't take the girl on her own to try and match her with my boar and his wife. Once we've moved, if she is still without a home I'll take her and a friend for her and establish them as another separate pair. If she finds a home in the meantime it'll be what's best for her and she'll be out of the rescue.

Whatever happens, it seems I now have two rescues who are both willing to re-home to me. I have the ability to look after a couple more pigs (no more than that though) so I'll see who needs me when the time comes.

One last question:- I assume I'd be correct in thinking that as I have Lilith (my sow) then I'd never be able to re-home a pair of boars to live in a pig shed due to her scent being in the air? Until I had to have Brunel neutered (after the loss of his male friend and 5 failed boar dating sessions) I've always kept pairs of boars and I know they can be more difficult to re-home. Now I have my girl, I assume boar pairs are a no no for me?

Generally it is easier if you either go the neutered boar/sow route or the full boars only one. Boars that grow up with sows in a room are also easier to have as they are used to it. Introducing full boars into a room with sows can be tricky. If you want to have full boars in a shed with sows, keep the boars well above the sows and/or at the other end, as pheromones don't rise.

 

[Tewdric]

Thought as much. Thanks for all the advice.