Introductions Death of one half of bonded pair of boars

[Bellatrix]

I had to have one of my old boars (Dougal) put to sleep on Tuesday evening. This has left his brother (and me :weepy very upset. They’d never been separated, and even when one was taken out of their room for a toe nail trimming session (or simply to be carried outside to the run) they’d be calling for each other.
Dougal was the dominant one in the pairing, whilst Zeb was the more active and more cautious.
Dare I try and get a companion for Zeb in a couple of weeks once he’s got over his loss? Is there any way of knowing if he’ll accept a youngster? Also after my husband had an encounter with a rex pig at a friend’s house that caused a massive asthma attack – is there any safe way of knowing if bringing another pig into the house with upset him medically? He's never had a problem with my pair (as was:weepy as long as I found dust free hay.

 

[Res Judicata]

The rex pig most likely did not cause your husband's asthma attack; it was probably dusty hay. I am allergic to hay myself, but not guinea pigs. I have kept several different types of guinea pigs and never had a problem with one type giving me problems while another type did not. I bet he would be fine with another pig in the house as long as you kept getting dust-free hay.

I'm so sorry to hear about Dougal.

 

[Tessa Bea]

So sorry about Dougal! All my sympathies.

I recommend taking Zeb and your husband to meet the potential new coming pigs first, and let Zeb (and your husband's sneezes) choose one that they find compatable. That way you'll have more of an idea of how they'll get along. Look for a local rescue, a lot of times they have pigs that have come from similar situations (one half of a bonded pair) and would probably love to meet Zeb.

However, I agree with Res- your hubby's allergies were probably caused by dusty hay.

 

[trump_cinnamon]

I recommend taking Zeb and your husband to meet the potential new coming pigs first, and let Zeb (and your husband's sneezes) choose one that they find compatable. That way you'll have more of an idea of how they'll get along. Look for a local rescue, a lot of times they have pigs that have come from similar situations (one half of a bonded pair) and would probably love to meet Zeb.

That wouldn't be a good idea, as she wouldn't be observing the quarantine period.

 

[Tessa Bea]

That wouldn't be a good idea, as she wouldn't be observing the quarantine period.

Quarantine period? I thought that only applied to pigs coming from unfit homes, not rescues?

 

[JD In Van]

Quarantine period? I thought that only applied to pigs coming from unfit homes, not rescues?

That depends hugely on where the rescue pig has been. Some foster where they're the only pig in the foster home and have no contact with other pigs. In these cases you can use your discression a bit more. The rescue I fostered my boys for before I adopted them does this and I would happily take one of thier pigs with out worry cause I know the other foster family's standards and that they would pick up on anything troubling.

If they're coming from a shelter type situation you have to be more careful given the opportunity to pick things up is ever present.

 

[Bellatrix]

Thanks for the replies. Zeb is still pottering about calling for his brother – although he’s currently at his worst when he’s somewhere he’d expect his brother to turn up before or after him. Floor time downstairs for example, or out in the run. Does that make sense, or am I now projecting human emotions onto him?:sad:

Have had the offer of a piggie that a colleague at work has living with a rabbit. The rabbit is harrassing the pig (no surprises there) and she'd like to keep the rabbit. Unfortunatly it turns out that the pig is female. Zeb isn't neutered and at his age I don't think the anasthetic would do him much good, so it's back to the drawing board for now.

 

[akstrohm]

I'm very sorry for your loss.

Do you have a rescue in your area? They will be in an ideal position to find a buddy for your pig. If not, try to find a young pig, do intros properly, given them enough space, and they will most likely be just fine. If you're not dealing with a reputable rescue that wants to help with intros, then be sure to do a full three week quarantine behind closed doors.

 

[MapleOwl18]

No offense if your friend is silly enough to have the pig live with a rabbit, she probably believed whoever at the petstore told her the guinea pigs sex. We walked out of the pet store being very convinced Linus was a girl, and got a surprise when we took him to the vet for sneezing and she's like he's definitely a boy.

See if the determination was made by a vet, or from any reference material. The pig might not be a girl, and you might want to double check. However then you will have to do a quarantine. As I remember they can get an infection from being housed with a rabbit. Basically a bacteria that rabbits have naturally and guinea pigs don't.

Also check out petfinder in your area.

Pet adoption: Want a dog or cat? Adopt a pet on Petfinder

Linus really perked up when we put Robin in with him after Bumblebee passed on, but that was after a two week quarantine. He finally stopped looking for him. How old is your male guinea pig?

 

[MapleOwl18]

Ahhh I found the link why guinea pigs shouldn't be housed with rabbits.

Its for a lot of reasons.
rabbits

Also reiterated here.
https://www.guineapigcages.com/foru...conceptions-about-guinea-pigs-their-care.html

 

[Bellatrix]

Zeb is now nearly 5.

No offense taken - she's really a work colleague rather than a close personal friend. She'd had a pig rabbit pair as a child and assumed she knew what she was doing. Anyway, at least they've been seperated now, although it does mean she needs to find a new home for the pig and a companion for the bunny.

Her pig is deffinitly female. She's had her checked by a vet.

In the UK there still seem to be a lot of basic pet care books/info published that say keeping pigs and rabbits together is ok, so a lot of people still do so. hmy: At least some of the animal welfare charities are starting to get the message out there. And people in the know are plugging away at passing the message on.

 

[Bellatrix]

Zeb is nearly 5.

The pig belonging to my colleague is deffinatley a female. She's been checked by the vet.