15/05/2024

Pigs flew

Highly social animals, pigs live in small, matriarchal groups, known as sounders usually comprised of 1-6 sows and their young. Several generations of offspring may be present in one sounder. The structure of the group may change as young males leave, as females farrow (give birth) and return with new litters, as subadults disperse, or with the arrival of adult males during the breeding season or in conjunction with an abundant
food source. Sub-adults may establish home ranges next to or within that of their mother forming loose
associations with up to 30 members. Feral and wild pigs are not territorial, and their home ranges often overlap. In one study, large herds of nearly 100 animals were observed when several family groups converged on irrigated pastures in California. The size of the core group may be limited by the availability of food.
Juvenile males usually stay with their family groups until the dominant males in the area force the younger males to leave, at around 7-18 months of age, when the sows come into estrus. They may form groups of their own, consisting of one to three animals; however adult males are usually solitary. Males show aggression during the breeding season as they compete for females, but otherwise tolerate the presence of other males. Pigs belong to relatively stable social hierarchies, which play an important role in maintaining group harmony. Whereas unfamiliar pigs who are intensively confined and crowded in industrial operations will engage in aggressive, agonistic behavior, in the wild, pigs are naturally gregarious animals and group members maintain close contact, often synchronizing their behavior. The dominance order is maintained by subordinate animals who simply avoid provoking aggressive interactions. Social recognition, or the ability to identify familiar individuals, is a key to forming these stable relationships. Within a sounder, two sows may become foraging and sleeping partners, and siblings often maintain social ties into adulthood.

Today I woke up sick and very low energy. I needed to go to Waregem to get my temporary drivers lisence but it turned out that I have to call the examn center because i lost the papers needed to apply for a drivers lisence, not the lisence itself. anyway. Shino and me were checking if marrying could make her/our life in Europe easier. I asked around in Waregem but you need to have a stable income and I dont have that, now Shino is checking for Rotterdam. So who knows maybe we will get married. I still think about my fuckup from last week pretty often.