Pig farrowing (From Smallholder)

Pig farrowing

3:20pm Sunday 17th January 2010

• Print
• Email
• Share
• Comments(0)

Many people farrow their pigs outdoors in pig arcs and offer no assistance at all. This is fine if you are prepared to accept losses; you may be lucky and wake up to find a healthy sow and litter but there is no harm in being extra careful. Personally, I look forward to every farrowing as much now as I did with my first and I have saved many piglets’ lives by being on hand at the birth.

Set yourself up for an easy and successful farrowing and you will have no regrets.

You will need plenty of space; always farrow your pig where there is room and light for you to see what is going on. Remember that a vet may have to attend in the event of an emergency and he will need space and lighting to work. If you intend to use a heat lamp which I strongly recommend then you will need electricity too.

When birth is imminent, nesting will begin. Just before the birth wash the udder down with a mid disinfectant. Dirt on the udder can cause infection in the sow and the piglets.

The sow will ‘talk’ gently to herself while she is nesting and will often stop to lie down and rest before beginning to rearrange the bed once more.

Don’t be tempted to give mountains of straw as newborn piglets can get tangled or buried in piles of straw. You can increase the bedding later. Never use sawdust or shavings for farrowing as these can be inhaled by the piglets and cause respiratory problems.

Personally, I think nesting is a lovely time to be with your pig; you, and she will be full of anticipation, it is a wonderful natural behaviour to observe and you will see a marked change in character, from juvenile piggy to maternal introvert.

For the full story, see February's Smallholder magazine.

• Print
• Email
• Share
• Comments(0)