Wheeking at… birds?

[Hunt76]

My senior boar, Piglet (currently a solo boar after we sadly lost his young adult cagemate on July 28, but he’ll be getting a baby companion in the next few weeks!) is a totally content and chill guy. I’ve had him for months and he’s been happy to hang out and nap on my chest for most of that time, but he just recently really found his voice - whenever he hears anything he suspects is food, he starts squeaking up a storm and occasionally wheeking.

His 6x2 C&C enclosure is up against a window, and I typically leave the window open during the summer months. Recently, I’ve noticed that when Piglet hears birds crowing outside, he runs over towards the window, looks up at it, and begins wheeking. He doesn’t seem distressed, angry, or even really otherwise excited - one would think that if a piggy heard birds, he’d be running for cover! What could this behavior be? Is this just a boar who’s confident and, dare I say, arrogant enough to scoff at what would be a predator in nature?

It’s absolutely ridiculous and I love it, but I’m super interested as to why he feels the need to give the birds a piece of his mind!

 

[Zorro1]

Maybe he's teasing the birds that they can't get him! He's safe inside.
I don't really know why he's exhibiting that behavior, but as long as he doesn't seem stressed, or unhappy in any way I'd let him do it and he might grow out of that behavior.

 

[Free Ranger]

Mine do their loudest wheeks to communicate with the other two. It's mainly at grass time in the morning (hubs goes out to forage for meadow grass). When one hears the rustle of the bag as he returns they wheek as loud as they can while running to the mat where he dumps it. I guess it might just be general excitement but when one starts to wheek the others join in no matter where they are and they only stop when they're all together.

They associate plastic bag rustles with treats - every piggy owner knows that! But mine also associate a man's voice with getting treats because he's the bringer-of-grass and also a soft-touch at the fridge so if a strange man comes into the house, like a workman or one of hub's friends, they will often set off wheeking again until something in the voice makes them realise this is different - then everyone stops quite abruptly. It sometimes happens too when the front door is opened as the kids get home from school - it's that noise in the morning that precedes the grass arriving! So I reckon there's something in the tone of the 'caw' that makes him think he's going to get a treat for some reason. Whether they caw more in the morning when/if he gets veggies then and in his head he's made a link for some reason I don't know. Or - dare I suggest - that the piggie slave in your house might have kind of a guttural voice?!