Howdy! I haven't been here for a LONG time, but mostly because things in my piggy world were fine. I had two males (Murray and Ajax -- one petstore, one
shelter) and they got along fairly well in their 30"x40" C&C enclosure here in my office. In January, Ajax took ill suddenly and passed away.
I was worried that Murray would be lonely, since I'd always read that piggies are happier with buddies (which is why we got Ajax in the first place). But I held off getting a new piggy because I wanted a shelter piggy this time -- and none were showing up (which is a good thing, I suppose).
Amazingly, though, Murray has flourished. It has been gratifying to watch him slow down his eating, to watch him stay out of his pigloo for very long periods of time, to even stretch out and lie down in the wide open spaces of his enclosure (he NEVER did this -- he was the skittish one of the pair) and use the piggy bed (and popcorn while in it). He's even established a real "come when I call" relationship with ME, something he NEVER did.
I think that when I had two piggies, they were more social with each other and had little regard for me. But now that Murray is alone, I am his sole source of social interaction. So, when I come into my office where his enclosure is (since I practically live in my home office!), he runs out to greet me, talks to me, popcorns when I get near (okay, to be fair, I'm sure it's mostly about the food, ha ha).
He talks to me throughout the day, gets my attention, and even sometimes seems to mimic things I do. (If I make chewing noises, he will too.)
So, my decision is now that, for ME anyway, one piggy at a time might be better for everyone. I think Ajax may have been a bit of a bully and now Murray is blossoming alone. And of course, it's great to have Murray be more interactive with me -- the primary reason I opted for piggies over other caged pets in the first place four years ago.
Anyone else have this situation and find this to be true? That one piggy works out very very well?
I was worried that Murray would be lonely, since I'd always read that piggies are happier with buddies (which is why we got Ajax in the first place). But I held off getting a new piggy because I wanted a shelter piggy this time -- and none were showing up (which is a good thing, I suppose).
Amazingly, though, Murray has flourished. It has been gratifying to watch him slow down his eating, to watch him stay out of his pigloo for very long periods of time, to even stretch out and lie down in the wide open spaces of his enclosure (he NEVER did this -- he was the skittish one of the pair) and use the piggy bed (and popcorn while in it). He's even established a real "come when I call" relationship with ME, something he NEVER did.
I think that when I had two piggies, they were more social with each other and had little regard for me. But now that Murray is alone, I am his sole source of social interaction. So, when I come into my office where his enclosure is (since I practically live in my home office!), he runs out to greet me, talks to me, popcorns when I get near (okay, to be fair, I'm sure it's mostly about the food, ha ha).
He talks to me throughout the day, gets my attention, and even sometimes seems to mimic things I do. (If I make chewing noises, he will too.)
So, my decision is now that, for ME anyway, one piggy at a time might be better for everyone. I think Ajax may have been a bit of a bully and now Murray is blossoming alone. And of course, it's great to have Murray be more interactive with me -- the primary reason I opted for piggies over other caged pets in the first place four years ago.
Anyone else have this situation and find this to be true? That one piggy works out very very well?
