Loss Should I Get Him A Friend?

[ThePiggiePlace]

Hello! I'm SUPER New Here (Joined Today )

Anyways, I Adopted 2 Brothers (Twix&Snickers) About 2 Years Ago. They Got Along Just Fine. A Couple Fights But Hey, Brothers. Twix Was Always Pretty Shy, He Liked To Be Held. Snickers Was Basically The Exact Opposite! They Were Both Very Nice Pigs Though. Were. Twix Unfortunately Passed Away 2 Weeks Ago . I Did Think Snickers Might Be Depressed, Knowing The 2 Had Been Together Their Whole Lives, But I Haven't Seen Any Signs Of It So Far, So I Think He's OK? My Real Question Is... Should I Get Him A Friend? I'm Sort Of Worried Since He's Always Been Kinda Aggressive. Please Help! I Don't Know What To Do :l

Thanks!​

 

[RodneyLuv30]

Welcome! Im pretty new as well, but from what I've read you should definitely get snickers a new buddy. As for his personality, maybe a rescue or shelter could help you select a good match for him. They will surely squabble a bit until dominance is established. If you do get another piggy there is tons of info here on introductions and how to handle them. Good luck!

 

[ThePiggiePlace]

Thanks! I Am Leaning Towards Getting Him A Buddy, But I'd Be In About A Month, So I'll Have The Summer To Watch Them! Do You Know If It Should Be A Certain Age? Or If I Should Adopt A Pair? Boars Or Sows? Ah, I'm Sorry, I Just Wanna Make Sure I Have The Best Chance Of Them Bonding!

 

[RodneyLuv30]

If he's fixed you can go either way. If not you could look for a spayed female but I'm not sure if that would still bother him ya know, lol. I think people mostly keep them in same sex pairs/groups. As for the age, im not totally sure what's best. I've been trying to ask around about that as well. My boar, Rodney, needs a buddy too. He's about 2 and was living alone in foster care before I adopted him. Plus Im not sure if he's ever had a buddy : ( . So if anyone reads this could you please offer us some advice as to wether age matters or not. Thanks in advance.

 

[grace&piggies]

Age doesn't matter. When Winifred was five we looked around for a new buddy for her and found Moss (desexed male) who was no more than a couple of months old at the time. When we got Winifred she was only 6 weeks old and she was to be the friend of a fully grown desexed male. They got along famously.
I've had very happy pairs of sows and pairing a sow with a desexed male. So long as no one's breeding and they like each other, it doesn't really matter.

 

[ThePiggiePlace]

Awesome! I WAS Planning On Getting A Boar, But I Heard Of People Having Herds Of Around 5 Pigs And I Really Like That Idea. In The Herd There Is 1 Dominant Male If I'm Correct, So.. That Would Be Snickers. That Would Mean My Next Pig(s) Would Be Female. I'm Also Planning On Expanding My Cage (Like Big Time) So I'd Have Room. Is It Not A Good Idea To Start Building A Herd? Should I Have Started With A Sow? If This Is Not A Good Idea, I'll Just Probably Get 1 Boar To Go With Snickers.

 

[jaycriae]

Herds of pigs are usually made up of all sows or a neutered boar and a bunch of sows, so if Snickers isn't fixed you're best off either getting him fixed if you're really into the herd idea, or scrapping the herd idea and getting him a boar buddy.


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[bpatters]

We don't recommend herds of boars, particularly for inexperienced guinea pig owners. If you want more than two pigs, then plan on multiple cages.

 

[ThePiggiePlace]

Would It Be OK To Get Sows Along With Snickers? He'd Be The Only Boar In The Herd. (And Yes, He's Fixed) I'd Just Introduce Him To 1 Female At A Time. I'm Still Fine With Getting Just 1 Other Male For Him, I Just Really Do Like The Idea Of Having A Small Community Of Piggies.

 

[bpatters]

Sure, one male in a herd of females usually works very well. Although, surprisingly, it's often a sow who's the dominant pig.

But I wouldn't do single introductions, I don't think. If you could find young females and introduce them all at once, it should work very well.

 

[Tam Piggy love]

I wouldn't recommend trying to keep a herd of boars, they are tricky, and they will fight! You can successfully keep 2 boars if you get a well matched pair, and give them enough room, and have 2 of everything for them. I currently have 3 boars. 2 brothers that are almost 5 months old, and their dad who is about a year old. They have been together their whole lives. They always got along fine, until the little guys started going through puberty at about 4 months old. Then they really started fighting for dominance. The little guys seemed to be working it out, fighting but not bad enough to separate them. One was ok to back down to his brother, but daddy wouldn't back down to either of them, he was really fighting with the dominant brother to the point that I had to put up a partition in the pen, so he could still see them and socialize with them, but no one could get hurt. So, it doesn't matter how long they have known each other, it all comes down to personality and compatibility. I wouldn't recommend planning to keep him by himself long term though, he will need companionship. And unless you neuter him you don't want to add a female unless you want lots of babies. And I really don't think age matters a lot, but I think you would be better trying a boar who has already been through puberty. Maybe about 2 years old? Make sure you have plenty of cage space and a food bowl, hidey, hay rack, water bottle for each of them. Then try to get a boar from a rescue that is familiar with the personalities of their piggies, and let them help you choose one that could be compatable with your boy.

 

[ThePiggiePlace]

Thank You! I Didn't Know The Sows Could Be Dominant! So Like Introducing 2 Females At Once? On Most Rescue Sites Iv'e Visited In My Area, There's 2 Females Being Sold Together So.. Could I Adopt Them And Introduce Them To Snickers At Once? I've Heard Of People Having Already Bonded Pigs, But Then Introducing Another One And Having The Pair Split Up. Could That Possibly Reverse And Split My Sows Apart? Thanks Again, Everybodys Been Very Helpful!

 

[ThePiggiePlace]

@Tam Piggy love That Makes Since, I Could Not Manage A Herd Of Boars! And I Do Agree With You On The Age Thing, Actually. Iv'e Heard Boars Going Through Puberty Can Get Moody! And I'll Make Sure My Pigs Are Spayed/Neutered Also, Did Your Pigs End Up Getting Along?

 

[Tam Piggy love]

Yes, my boys get along good now. Of course there are some territorial scuffles, but nothing bad, they have worked out which is the dominant pig between them and scuffles are over quickly. I still have their dad in the same pen on the other side of the divider, but they can all still socialize. And yes, you are right they are quite grouchy during puberty! I have 2 going through it now, and I would never try to introduce them to a new friend right now! 2 boars living together happily is absolutely doable!

 

[ThePiggiePlace]

@Tam Piggy love Awesome!