Wiebke's Tribe: Sows and the City Boars

Wiebke said:
A reversal of sizes...

Teggy (who is now 6 years old) has rather shrunk in the wake of losing her two mates last autumn but has stabilised again on a lower weight level with medical and extra feeding support while Tudor is now a fully grown adult in his prime and happy to show off to all the other boars and sows during roaming time.

He has however learned quickly not to get between Teggy and any food, no matter how tiny she is! She's a lethal weapon around anything edible...

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Go Teggy! :gd::luv:
 
FlowerGirl said:
So lovely to see Tudur all grown up, what a handsome lad! 🥰 Holly was definitely the boss when he was with me so he learnt early that bossy girls are to be obeyed 😂
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He enjoys being The Boss but he has learned that girls are fickle beings and that he cannot necessarily get away with murder (or rather, unbridled sex and all the food).
 
I am still somewhat shocked having lost Teggy (Mrs Tiggywinkle) very suddenly and unexpectedly on Wednesday. We were coming home from the usual weekly hay pick up and I found her literally taking her last breath. :(

Despite starting life with severe scurvy and dental issues due to a rabbit pellets only diet and being the weight of a 6 weeks old when surrendered at a year old to (now defunct) Little Pip's Rehoming in Devon. She and her even smaller companion Nutkin, who sadly didn't make it, were then transferred to TEAS sanctuary in Northampton for appropriate medical and dental care. Teggy made a full recovery and joined the Tribe in summer 2017 after the death of her resident TEAS mate Benjy.

Teggy (officially Tegwen Draenog aka Mrs Tiggywinkle) had four happy years here with gentle Gareth and lively Meleri until her slightly younger friends passed away within a month of each other to unrelated health issues. It hit Teggy pretty hard and she aged noticeably in the months afterwards.
But she fell for another young TEAS boar, Tudur (Tudor), big time when I dated them last autumn and was coming up to her 5th Adoption Anniversary in summer. I've never seen a sow behaving like her - she basically plonked herself on the floor and lifted her bum... she most definitely wanted another boar in her life! :D

In October 2020, she needed a massive urethral stone removing but did recover well. Against all the odds, Teggy has lived to the age of 6 years.

We all miss her big and loud personality massively; Teggy was very much a survivor with a huge zest for life and a no holds barred attitude towards anything edible. It's gone very quiet in the piggy room.

I will post a full tribute in the Rainbow Bridge section next week when I have to troll through 6 years' worth of pictures.
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So sorry to read this sad news. Like all your piggies, Teggy has had a wonderful life with you and her friends.

Sleep tight beautiful girl.💕🌈🐾
 
I am so sorry you have had to say goodbye to your beautiful Teggy. What a wonderful life she had with you and her friends after a shaky start.
Sleep tight Teggy. Xx
 
I’m so sorry you have lost beautiful Teggy. Popcorn high over the bridge with Nutkin, Gareth and Meleri.
 
Sorry to hear you have lost Teggy, sleep tight over the rainbow 🌈❤️
 
So sorry to hear this. She sounded like a real character who will be very much missed in your house. Very striking looks too with that stripe and her lovely colours, gorgeous piggy. Well done for giving her such a happy and fulfilled life, she was lucky to have you.
 
Thank you. I still miss her greatly; it is just not the same without her complaining and begging for food well ahead of dinner time... Teggy was one of the more colourful pigsonalities of the Tribe. :(
 
She sounded like a huge presence and a massive personality. I really love an assertive vocal pig 😍
 
I am very relieved that everything has gone to plan and that Tudur has been accepted as their husboar by 6 year old lady Hapus 'Happy' and 3 year old Heilin 'Generous'.
The initial bonding attempt between the two pairs back in October failed over the two old ladies Teggy and Hapus not coming to an agreement over their group ranking but - crucially for Tudur's longer term future with the Tribe - he was accepted by both Hapus and Heilin, and Heilin was also OK with Tudur and Teggy in case things had fallen out this way. The two pairs have been living in adjoining pens for the last half year to keep the mutual interest and interaction alive.

Thankfully, Tudur - now an adult - kept control over his gonads. Heilin had the expected strong first season with a new boar yesterday; lots of vocal drama but it helps to cement their bond and the group cohesion as they settle together more firmly.

The bonding
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The morning after the first season...
(Hapus - Heilin - Tudur)
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Wiebke said:
I am still somewhat shocked having lost Teggy (Mrs Tiggywinkle) very suddenly and unexpectedly on Wednesday. We were coming home from the usual weekly hay pick up and I found her literally taking her last breath. :(

Despite starting life with severe scurvy and dental issues due to a rabbit pellets only diet and being the weight of a 6 weeks old when surrendered at a year old to (now defunct) Little Pip's Rehoming in Devon. She and her even smaller companion Nutkin, who sadly didn't make it, were then transferred to TEAS sanctuary in Northampton for appropriate medical and dental care. Teggy made a full recovery and joined the Tribe in summer 2017 after the death of her resident TEAS mate Benjy.

Teggy (officially Tegwen Draenog aka Mrs Tiggywinkle) had four happy years here with gentle Gareth and lively Meleri until her slightly younger friends passed away within a month of each other to unrelated health issues. It hit Teggy pretty hard and she aged noticeably in the months afterwards.
But she fell for another young TEAS boar, Tudur (Tudor), big time when I dated them last autumn and was coming up to her 5th Adoption Anniversary in summer. I've never seen a sow behaving like her - she basically plonked herself on the floor and lifted her bum... she most definitely wanted another boar in her life! :D

In October 2020, she needed a massive urethral stone removing but did recover well. Against all the odds, Teggy has lived to the age of 6 years.

We all miss her big and loud personality massively; Teggy was very much a survivor with a huge zest for life and a no holds barred attitude towards anything edible. It's gone very quiet in the piggy room.

I will post a full tribute in the Rainbow Bridge section next week when I have to troll through 6 years' worth of pictures.
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So sorry you lost Teggy, the ones who need the most care at the start leave the biggest paw prints on our hearts...
Glad her bereaved husboar has found new companshionship though x
 
More bonding happening at the Tribe!

I am delighted to announce that Melangell (Mella) and nearly blind Brathlys (Lissie) have given their paws in marriage to their long-standing neighbours Llelo and Miaren (Mimi) and that they are now a proper group.

Here is a little snap from the day after:
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Merging adult pairs is often a fraught affair as very often neither of the leaders wants to step down. In this case, outgoing and friendly Mella has taken over the leadership from Brathlys a little while ago despite still being a teenager.
She has met Llelo (who she has a crush on as they share the same coat colour) and Miaren on the roaming ground while still a youngster and submitted to them without any quibbles. Llelo has obligingly helped her out on occasion when a very strong season of Mella's became too much for poor Lissie. The big challenge was to get Lissie to accept Llelo; she really doesn't like being humped by newly introduced boars. Llelo has thankfully been a perfect paws-off gentleman. I have been slow bonding them during shared lawn run time to give Lissie the space and time she needs.

Brathlys 'Scarlet Pimpernel' (for her originally bright orange coat) has come here from Gertie's Lonely Guinea Pig Rescue in Newcastle in August 2019 still being badly traumatised after being abandoned in the family's winter garten to fend for herself for weeks and after what must have obviously been some pretty rough handling by children. She was too fear-aggressive for bonding and a biter of hands into the bargain for half a year of repeated bonding attempts at the rescue.

It has taken a savvy and patient neutered boar like Alan to slowly break down the barriers without dominating or humping her and putting up with lots of mixed signals without losing it. After Alan's unexpected young death a friendly youngster like Mella to sneak under Lissie's barriers after both dating boars from TEAS turned out to mountaineers and not rumble-singers when meeting.
That will explain why I haven't followed the standard bonding practice but the pattern that seems to be working best for Brathlys - plenty of time across the bars and taking it in small steps. It has gotten me much further than any of us could have ever dreamed! :tu:

There is thankfully very little dominance apart from the occasional nip from Miaren or Llelo, which is part of the normal group establishment process. Brathlys is age-wise somewhere between Miaren (born November 2017) and Llelo (born September 2018). Melangell is turning one year old this month.
 
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Not even three weeks after losing Teggy, I had to emergency pts my old lady Morwenna at the out-of-hours vets on Sunday. It's a miracle that she has lived for so long but it is also still hurting very badly after having shared over 8 years of my life with her (the longest so far of all my Tribe adoptees) - the chasm in my heart and my daily routine is a lot bigger than my feisty little lady's body size! :(

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On the day of her arrival at 8 weeks of age...
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... and on her 8th birthday
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With her two litter sisters, my very lively TEAS Triplets - life has never been the same...
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... and her whole piggy family, all of who have been waiting at the Bridge for her
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(from left to right: adopted orphaned 'sister' Angharad, Mererid, 'daddy' Bedo, 'mummy' Essylt and her daughter Crisiant - my then TEAS fosters -, Myfina and Morwenna)

We have laid Morwenna to rest in the same pot with her sister Mererid (who died in February just before her 8th birthday) with a bouquet of rose 'Ballerina' (the closest I could come to remembering my little 'Pocket Rocket') and mostly self-seeded dainty garden flowers (bellflowers, wallflowers, cranesbill, toadflax and masterwort) to symbolise the staying power of the tiny 40g baby in the face of all expectations.
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Yet another tribute I haven't yet found the strength and time to write and to compile, with yet more ill piggies demanding my attention and robbing my sleep. :(
 
I’m so sorry Morwenna has crossed the bridge. She was a wonderful piggy. She’s back with her piggy family forever. ❤️
 
What a stunning pig and what a wonderful age, especially after the start she had but I’m sure the great age doesn’t make it any easier to say goodbye. I’m so sorry for your loss. You work so hard for your piggies and you do so much for everyone else’s too (and all the humans), it must be hard. I’m sure Morwenna is getting a warm welcome from her friends over the bridge, and the flowers you chose seem very fitting. Take care and thanks again for all you do for the piggie world, you deserve a medal.
 
So sorry that you've lost Morwenna. You showed her your final act of love and sent her off to the Rainbow Bridge with love and that's all any owner can do. Big hugs!:hug::hug::hug::hug::hug::hug::hug::hug::hug::hug::hug::hug:
 
I am so sorry you are having such a hard time at the moment. You do so much for piggies all over the world as well as your own, please look after yourself. I hope your sick piggies get well very soon, looking after sick animals is exhausting.
 
:hug: :hug: I'm so sorry that you have lost your grande-dame Morwenna 😪😪 8 years is a great age, a testament to your love and care since she arrived with you. Sending hugs :hug::hug:

Sleep tight Morwenna xx 🌈
 
So sorry to hear about your loss! She had a wonderful life with you I am sure. :hug:
 
I'm so sorry for your loss and at such a difficult moment. Sometimes life is just a series of body-blows. Please look after yourself too x
 
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