neutering/breeding

Question
7wk old male humping everything including me.....cant have him neutered until he is 12-15lbs per vet (yes a pot bellied pig specialist)....what can i do in the mean time?  he gets VERY snippy when u try 2 stop him from doing his thing...he is very tiny...he was obtained from horrible conditions and is very under weight....maybe 4lbs MAX..thats just an estimate.  any help would be appreciated....i have 6 other pigs....2 other indoor house piggies....so i have experience...just not sure what to do with this guy in the mean time...thanks!

Answer
A 7 week old piglet should weigh about 7 lb, so your baby is on the small side and underweight for his age. You mention horrible conditions, so I am guessing that your vet wants this baby to get healthy before undergoing the stress of surgery.

Unfortunately, living beings have only so much control over biology. Humping is what intact male pigs do, whenever they are not asleep (I've seen them humping while eating and pooping!). The behavior can't be stopped, but hopefully it can be redirected until he's healthy enough for surgery.

Give him some hump toys and let him have at it. Stuffed animals work well for most pigs, but you never know what might appeal to a pig. One male pig fell in love with a red plastic bucket! Let him do his thing all he wants with his toys. Stop him immediately when he starts humping people or other objects (unless you want to give him that object for his toy) by pushing him away gently and saying No. Then give him his toy and let him play with it.

Remember this behavior is really not his fault, and as soon as he is fixed it will stop and go away forever. You might be able to distract him by teaching him tricks and harness training. If he humps air during the training sessions, just try to ignore it as long as he is performing the tricks. The training sessions will take time and effort but the end result will be a very well trained pig and a wonderful pet.

Piglets under 12 weeks old should be allowed to eat as much as they want whenever they want. It's called "free feeding". So go ahead and let him eat. Intact male pigs tend to stay thin no matter how much they eat, because they expend so much energy humping. This is one of the very few occasions when it's ok to forget about calories and let the piggy eat like a piggy.