New here and a cage question

[g-piglet's mom]

Hi, I am new here... finally found a place where other GP owners are! I have one GP. A boar. I got him in January of 200 . I got a cage for him that was about $40 from the petstore. Well, I am wanting to upgrade him to a larger home. I want him to be able to run around his cage. What I am wondering is how big should I make his cage? It is probably on this site somewhere... just did not look hard enough. Oh, by the way, I never really could find a name for him, so I just call him G-pig or G-piglet (sounds like a rapper to me . Any info would be great. Thanks!

[oceansoul41]

Just go to the home page and it will tell you the specifics with links.

Welcome, and oh are you thinking about getting a friend for your piggy?

~angela

[g-piglet's mom]

Ok , well i waited too long to edit so I just wanted to say that I got him in Jan, 2005....didn't get to add the 5 before! Also, I put plexi-glass around the sides of his cage to keep the shavings in and let him see out.

[g-piglet's mom]

Well, I have heard that a boar can't get along with any other pigs and I don't want to breed. IS that wrong or?? Let me know. Thanks!

[Percy's Mom]

Not wanting to breed is excellent, but most boars can get along with other guinea pigs. Cavies are herd animals and most love having a buddy. How old is your pig? He's obviously over a year old since you've had him since January 2005. Check animal shelters and rescues for a young (under 6 month) boar or a spayed female. Either would be a good friend for your guy. Alternately, you could check with your vet about getting him neutered, and you could get any female piggy. It's probably best not to use the plexiglass depending on how high up you have it. There is no ventilation through a solid material like that. Check the directions when you click Home at the top of the page, and you can make him a huge cage to play in pretty cheaply. There is also a chart with the recommended sizes for multiple pigs, so you might want to build a bit larger than you were thinking to have room for a buddy when you find one.

[g-piglet's mom]

Hi, the plexi-glass is only about an extra 3 inches. He has plenty of open air above. Also, How high are the sides on your cage? 6in. ? Does that keep the bedding in? I will look into a spayed female at a shelter... did not even think of that! Thanks

[kittnkarr]

I have 2 unneutered boars here and they are great together. The trick is to have their ages spread out and knowing their personalities. I got Stryder at 1 year of age so when I got him a buddy I got Callaway when he was a couple of months old. This way Cal was a baby and would respect Stryrder until the adolescent hormones kicked in. Cal tries to be dominant pig every so often but Stryder says no to that.

Pigs have to find their own pecking in ordering in their pack. There maybe some noise and small fights, but as long as it is not blood shed then you are alright.

[amfeider]

If you have an escaping bedding problem maby you should try fleece type it into the forum search if your interested.

[jdomans]

Don't limit yourself to a spayed female. You may not find one. It will be easier to find another young boar. Go to Petfinder and look.

[g-piglet's mom]

Well, I changed over to the fleece bedding. It sounds wierd to me but I have found that so many people on this forum like it. With pine shavings, he would fling them out of his cage and the cage would smell after two days. I hope to make a new cage soon. My husband and I are in a tiny apartment right now and do not have room for a larger cage. We will be moving at the end of June to a much larger apartment. Then G-pigg will get a bigger cage and a new friend! I am excited. I just hope they will get a along. I did look on petfinder and found that most of the younger pigs are already put into pairs. I contacted the rescue and asked if they have any single young boars but I am waiting for a reply. Thank you everyone.