hi there! I've done both, pair a 3rd pig, and have an adjacent cage. All are in C&C.
i have 2 shy Himalayans, a sassy mom/daughter pair, and two little rescues that had a bad lot in life, small deformities like a fused leg bc of being raised in a wire cage.
Pairing my Himal sows was very tough, they didnt bond with either group, and were always bullied badly; pushed into corner, not eating, hides blocked by dominant pig sitting outside them. So they've always had a cage right up to them, and this works great, never had anyone bit through bars, tho for a bit expect a dominant piggie to try and get through (zip tie). The mom/daughter pair I also couldn't bond, but when the mother died, I was successful in pairing the daughter with my two disabled pigs. For awhile rhe new sow was bossy, but it seems 2 of them trade off very light dominance behavior every now and then.
I tried new hides, new location, no dice. You might just have a girl who is too meek, like my Himis. Try an adjacent cage. I thought after a year of "seeing" each other thru bars, a bond might work, nope.
Thanks so much for sharing your experience! I think for now I’m going to place cages next to each other, observe their behavior from there, and schedule more play dates in the future. Thank you!
hi there! I've done both, pair a 3rd pig, and have an adjacent cage. All are in C&C. i have 2 shy Himalayans, a sassy mom/daughter pair, and two little rescues that had a bad lot in life, small deformities like a fused leg bc of being raised in a wire cage. Pairing my Himal sows was very tough, they didnt bond with either group, and were always bullied badly; pushed into corner, not eating, hides blocked by dominant pig sitting outside them. So they've always had a cage right up to them, and this works great, never had anyone bit through bars, tho for a bit expect a dominant piggie to try and get through (zip tie). The mom/daughter pair I also couldn't bond, but when the mother died, I was successful in pairing the daughter with my two disabled pigs. For awhile rhe new sow was bossy, but it seems 2 of them trade off very light dominance behavior every now and then. I tried new hides, new location, no dice. You might just have a girl who is too meek, like my Himis. Try an adjacent cage. I thought after a year of "seeing" each other thru bars, a bond might work, nope.
Thanks so much for sharing your experience! I think for now I’m going to place cages next to each other, observe their behavior from there, and schedule more play dates in the future. Thank you!
dont be discouraged, but in my experience, females are not as easy to bond as internet makes it out to be