Do PBPs prefer company/

Question
QUESTION: Hi I have a7 wk old recently neutered PBP. Will he prefer to have another pig for company? He right now lives inside,his 'room' is a bathroom. He has time to com eout and play. And in spring he'll go outside during the day. But I don't want him to be lonely/bored. Also he is litter box trained. But when he is out playing he has found a spot that he like sto go in. Should I put a litter box there also?

ANSWER: Most pigs enjoy the company and companionship of other pigs. But, when a new pig is introduced, pigs will fight. It's their way of establishing who is in charge. Younger pigs adapt to each other fairly quickly.
Pigs look at litter boxes in a unique way. People see the box and the litter. The pig sees a particular spot in the house. The pig learns to use the spot, box or no box. So, unless you want a litter box there forever, the best thing to do is teach him not to potty there.
First, take him outside to potty or make him potty in his litterbox BEFORE letting him out of his room to play. He's probably gone potty during the day. When his family comes home he's more interested in playing with them, pottying is NOT on his mind! But once he's out and running around, he realizes he has to go, and picks a spot. The idea is to keep reminding him where his box is, and keep him "empty" so he doesn't have the urge to go in the wrong spot. So, take him back to his box (or outside) to potty before and after he eats, and every two hours when he is not confined in his room.
The next step is to take care of the problem spot. Clean it thoroughly with a cleaner designed to remove pet potty odors. Then, keep him away from the spot or out of that room altogether (unless you are right there with him and ready to take him to his box if he starts to use the spot) or best of all, re arrange the room so a large, heavy object sits on the spot and he can't get to it. It will take about 3 months for him to "forget" about that potty spot.
He'll need plenty of toys to keep himself busy, and the older he gets, the more toys he'll need. Pigs enjoy rooting through large boxes filled with pebbles or hard rubber balls. Another good way to keep a pig busy during the day is to split breakfast in half. Half goes in the dish. Then half goes in a Busy Ball, or empty 2-liter soda bottle poked with holes, so the food spills out bit by bit as piggy rolls it around.

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QUESTION: thank you. I do make sure he has gone potty before I let him play. Unfortuantely my husband is not so good at it.He likes playing with "Hammie",but thats as far as it goes.So I just have to make sure I'm around when he lets him out of his room!!!! I have a rooting box (bottom of a plastic dog crate)filled with hay. Thats where he gets his meals.He has to dig thru the hay to find the pellets. And I hid some cheerios in a tissue box and then fill the box with wrapping paper. He enjoys shredding the paper and eating the cheerios. My next question is,how much should he be getting per meal. He is 7 wks old and weighs almost 8#. There are no guidelines on the food bag.(Mazuri youth PBP food) He always act like he's hungry. He also gets a little bit of applesauce at night.
he also grinds his teeth. My vet( who I work with,not an expert on PBP but does have some knowledge,and is always looking up info),thought maybe he has some kind of stomach problem,possibly an ulcer. He had to get an enema when I first got him,because he hadn't pooped in days. Since then he's been pooping fine. But if I don't give him the pepto bismul 3 times a day.He grinds. If he gets the pepto,hardly ever grinds. Any thoughts or ideas?
Thank you very much
Melanie

ANSWER: A general rule of thumb for pot-bellied piglets is to gain 1 lb of weight for each week of age, until they are about 6 or 9 months old. So his weight right now is fine. Each pig is different, so keeping his weight gain steady is really more important than exact measurements. Some people free feed pellets to piglets under 12 weeks, then begin restricting the pellets to 1-1/3 or 1-1/2 cups of pot-bellied pig food per day.
Pigs are very prone to ulcers, breaking his food up into more, smaller meals may help, like breakfast, early dinner, and bedtime snack. Eventually, as he grows, he should be able to handle fewer meals without an upset tummy. Increasing the amount of fiber in his diet may help. Fiber keeps pigs "regular" and fills their tummy. Good choices are lettuce, celery, broccoli, etc.
Pigs go through 2 sets of baby teeth before getting their final set of adult teeth. Tooth grinding can be a sign of upset tummy or teething.


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QUESTION: first I'd like to say Thank you for all your help. Trying to find info on PBP's hasn't been very easy. At least not the info I'm looking for.
He does get 3 meals a day. Morning, then like 3ish in the afternoon and then anywhere between 8 and 9 at night.( which is his cranky time,I guess he knows his meals coming and thats all he can think about!!!) I've tried broccoli and lettuce,he won't eat either. I'll try celery. He also eats some  of the hay from the rooting box,I imagine that won't hurt him.
I've read on a couple of sites,to give them a childs vitamin,is that really recommended? and if so,when should he start getting that?
Everything I've read says PBP are odorless,but mine is not. sometimes he is very stinky. Is this only with males?
Thanks again for all your help.It is much appreciated.
Melanie

Answer
A great source of PBP info is the Yahoo group PIGINFOANDCHAT The moderator is Priscilla Valentine. She is a professional pig trainer, and her star pig Nellie has been on TV dozens of times. So she really knows her pigs! The members are all pig lovers and love to talk about pigs.

Try warming the broccoli in the microwave. If that doesn't work, try other veggies like carrots, potatoes, peas, corn, etc. If he doesn't like broccoli, he probably won't like cabbage, either. He also might like bits of fresh fruit, that's a healthy training treat.

If he's getting a pbp food and some fresh veggies every day he probably doesn't need anything else. Back in the early 90s pot-bellied pig food wasn't available, so people fed their pigs whatever balanced food they could find, and supplemented it by giving each pig a chewable children's vitamin tablet every day.

Intact male pigs are VERY VERY smelly! There is a gland near urinary opening that secretes a smelly, smelly oil. Female pigs love the smell. Humans, not so much. Fortunately, when the pigs are neutered this gland gradually stops working and the smell goes away. Sometimes, when a neutered, adult male pig is really scared or really stressed out, the gland will still discharge a little.