Difficulty introducing 4th male pig.. please help!

Post Reply
Beefyness

Post   » Tue Feb 06, 2018 4:00 am


Does anyone have experience keeping 4 male pigs together?

I was going to go with just 3, but the lady I bought them from advises they be in pairs to stop the original pigs ganging up on the new one.

I now have four pigs (koala pig, beep, truffle pig and piggy sawdust), and two of them are having trouble.

Koala pig is relentlessly chasing truffle pig around the cage/run but not seeming to be hurting him, it just looks like truffle pig is really upset by it... and when truffle pig stops running (stuck in a corner or something), koala pig just stands there like he doesn’t know what to try next.

To give a bit of background...
Beep came first to keep my older silver pig company (who unfortunately was put down just a week later), it was really easy, a few rumblestruts but that’s all.

We then got koala pig... it took a few attempts to get them calm, but then they bonded really well... there was loud chattering from both pigs, but not much humping/ rumbling.

We have now got 2 more, piggy sawdust and truffle pig. Koala pig is very dominant with piggy sawdust, lots of humping and rubbing his neck, but piggy is super submissive and now seems to be in love.

Unfortunately it is not working so well with truffle pig.. koala chases him so fast the truffle pig runs up and around the corners of the (open top) enclosure and they both power slide and bash into the sides... it’s very stressful, but as far as I can see there is no biting.

Also, they are all very young, around 14-18 weeks.
Is the cage/run large enough? It’s just over 22 square feet... or just over 1.2 x 1.7 metres.

And advice you have would be fantastic!!

Beefyness

Post   » Tue Feb 06, 2018 5:10 am


We currently have beep and koala pig shut in the cage and truffle pig and piggy sawdust in the run. They are still right next to each other so they can smell one another and chat, but we’d like them to live with the cage open and all get along :(

User avatar
Lynx
Celebrate!!!

Post   » Tue Feb 06, 2018 8:03 am


That is a nice big cage. They are young and might have some difficulty getting along while they are adolescents. Read all the links referred to on this page, especially the live journal link:

www.guinealynx.info/companionship.html

Consider visually breaking up the cage by hanging fringed fleece dividers. Make sure all "houses" have at least two exits/entrances.

bpatters
And got the T-shirt

Post   » Tue Feb 06, 2018 10:24 am


A herd of boars is a dicey proposition -- it fails far more often than it works.

The cage is big enough, but you've got adolescent pigs. There's undoubtedly going to be drama for months to come. However, if there's no bloodshed, the main thing you have to worry about is whether Truffle Pig is being harmed by the stress. Weigh him daily, preferably in the morning after breakfast, and record his weights. It would be a good idea to do the same to another pig for comparison. They both should be gaining at roughly the same rate. If Truffle isn't gaining, or is losing, you may have to divide the cage and keep them in pairs.

Ditto Lynx's solution about breaking up the lines of sight and putting two doors in every hidey. Truffle needs some place to get out of Koala's way.

If you do try putting them together again, do full introductions in a neutral area, give them a buddy bath (all together), then put them in a thoroughly cleaned cage that smells nothing like any pig. A teeny drop of vanilla on each nose wouldn't hurt -- they they'd all smell just alike for a few hours.

Beefyness

Post   » Tue Feb 06, 2018 4:16 pm


Thank you so much for all the advice and ideas.

We are just going to suck it up and let them work it out on their own. So far so good, they seem to be calm at the moment with the occasional lap around the cage and many squeaks. They’ll certainly be separated into their pairs if blood is shed.

We’re nervous about leaving them over night and while we are at work, but I have read that if I keep separating them it can cause more stress and fights, so I’m a bit stuck for ideas there,

I’ll let you know what we try and keep you posted... vanilla sounds like a great idea though! :)

Thanks again for your advice

Post Reply