peeing with attitude?

Question
QUESTION: I have a 5 month old pbp.  She has potty trained and will let us know when she wants to go outside with a deep guttural grunt...it's been great.  At Christmas time we had to baby-gate off our living room to keep her out of the tree.  She is allowed in the room when we are in there but if we are out we keep her out (we have continued to baby gate since then because it helps keep her off the furniture).  She now goes to the gate, turns around and pees on it and the surrounding floor!  We have used odor remover, no-mark sprays, etc...she still does it.  Sometimes right in front of us.  She doesn't grunt like she has to potty and sometimes will do it right after going potty outside.  We believe she is upset over being kept out....is this so?  And how do we stop it??  Please help!!

ANSWER: Is she spayed? Unspayed females go into heat about every 3 to 4 weeks, beginning at 5 or 6 months of age. Forgetting potty training is a common symptom of being in heat. If that's the case, she'll stop when her heat ends, but will do it again during her next heat.

Each pig is different. Some pigs get quite aggressive during heat. Other pigs will pick one family member to "love". They will follow that person around, jump on them and rub up against them. Some get very noisy during heat. Others become silent escape artists, slipping through doors and fences to roam looking for a mate.

The only way to fix the problem is to get her spayed. Spaying her will also prevent uterine tumors and eliminate the risk of reproductive cancer. There's a list of vets that see pot-bellied pigs here http://www.potbellypigpets.com/vetus.htm


---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: actually, we are unsure about the spayed part.  When we got her we were told her brothers were neutered but they were unsure if she was spayed (they believed not). She has a 2" scar in the center of her belly right between the nipples but we were unsure if this was a scar or "belly button"??? Is that where a spay scar would be or the right size? As far as the peeing issue....it isn't every few weeks-it is EVERY time we block the living room, EVERY day.  Usually when we are not looking. Sometimes more than once a day.  It's getting quite ffrustrating-especially when we clean it up to have her turn around and do it again as soon as we are not looking!!

Answer
Most pot-bellied pigs are spayed on the belly, between the rear nipples. But some vets spay from a side incision. If she reaches 1 year of age without any signs of going into heat, then she is probably spayed (but that isn't a 100% guarantee). If she starts going into heats before then, you'll know for sure that she isn't spayed.

It sounds like the gate has become a territorial issue for your pig, or it may be a deeply ingrained habit. Tiny piglets don't pee much, they often have "accidents" that are so small people don't find them right away. By the time people realize piggie is peeing in a trouble spot, piggie has been peeing there so long the habit is entrenched. It's possible that she might have been having small "accidents" there for awhile.

If you can, change things around so she can not go anywhere near the problem gate, for example, make her take a different path as she walks through the house. Or put a large potted plant to block her. Pigs are sometimes hesitant to walk on unfamiliar surfaces, so a brightly colored throw rug might discourage her from walking there. She can walk past the spot, but not pause or hesitate. Don't take your eyes off her when she's anywhere near the trouble spot. Don't let her linger near it, push her away. Distract her with a toy, or make her do a trick.

When you have to leave her alone, confine her to the room where her litter box is, and give her some toys to play with. A five month old pig can't "hold it" very long. If she doesn't have a litter box already, giving her a place where she can pee if she needs to go and no one is home to let her out might solve the problem.