Author Topic: delilah (Read 3682 times)

princesspiggy · « **on:** May 08, 2011, 10:28:37 pm »

wev finally made a decision with delilah. shes had 2 courses of antibiotics since jan due to uterus infection. since the last dose, shes never had a season again so shes off next week. theres gona be alot of tears, shes so sweet and so tame. but shes never looked 100% so shouldnt really be a breeding sow anyway. shes booked in so no going back now!
im dreading it cos she was supposed to be a keeper...arghh!!

dorothys litter should be due a week later so she wont be lonely for long.

SallyintNorth · « **Reply #1 on:** May 08, 2011, 10:58:12 pm »

Ah, sorry to hear about Delilah. I know it feels hard when she was supposed to be a keeper - we got Meg & Gaby with the intention of breeding from both but Gaby, though lovely with people, was quite aggressive with Meg and I felt it wouldn't work keeping the two of them together with piglets, so decided that Gaby had better take the one-way journey. It was hard, but Meg is so much happier not being bullied and beaten up all the time.

Poor Delilah and poor you. But you know you've made the right decision. And soon there will be Dorothy's lovely piglets to enjoy.

Tudful Tamworths · « **Reply #2 on:** May 09, 2011, 12:59:49 am »

I had to let my best sow (Barbara) go last year after a prolapse (worked to keep it in through farrowing - not easy - but was advised by the vet not to breed from her again). It was a really, really difficult thing taking her to slaughter, but I had to bite the bullet. She produced some of my best pedigree pigs and was a lovely, good-natured sow. Always difficult letting go, but you have to give in to reason.
All the best
Lis

gillsta · « **Reply #3 on:** May 09, 2011, 07:14:08 am »

Aww thats a shame. I think you have done the right thing though.

loosey · « **Reply #4 on:** May 09, 2011, 09:03:29 am »

Sad news

We had to send Tulip off last month who was meant to be a keeper. It's hard when you've allowed yourself to become attached because you thought they'd always be there. Good luck! I hope it's as painless as it can be for you. Well done for making the decision

Fowgill Farm · « **Reply #5 on:** May 09, 2011, 09:23:52 am »

Very brave we had to bite the bullet with Polly a couple of months ago we just couldn't get her in pig, i was heart broken as i'd lost her mum the previous year and wanted to keep her as she was a pot model of her mum.
Thinking of you.
best Mandy

HappyHippy · « **Reply #6 on:** May 09, 2011, 09:27:37 am »

I'm so very sorry to hear that Julia

Difficult decisions like this are never easy to make, I'm thinking about you

Karen x

princesspiggy · « **Reply #7 on:** May 09, 2011, 10:42:43 am »

Quote from: loosey on May 09, 2011, 09:03:29 am

It's hard when you've allowed yourself to become attached because you thought they'd always be there.

thats it exactly, i thought she'd be here for ages so i let myself love her, thinking about it brings a lump to my throat, i cud cry now just looking at her cos she so trusting...even dreamt about it last night!! such a shame cos bloodlines and conformation are great, just something not right with her tho.
it wont be the first time iv bin to the abattoir in tears, hope im not the only one!

Hilarysmum · « **Reply #8 on:** May 09, 2011, 11:08:33 am »

I still have to keep tissues in the car for that trip! It is really, really hard to take a beloved gilt/sow on. I dread to think how I will cope if I ever have to make that decision about Hilary

SallyintNorth · « **Reply #9 on:** May 09, 2011, 05:42:33 pm »

Quote from: princesspiggy on May 09, 2011, 10:42:43 am

it wont be the first time iv bin to the abattoir in tears, hope im not the only one!

Absolutely not. Even hardened lifetime commercial farmers (like the one I live with

) get affected by taking a favourite. I don't think I would ever want to be a person who did not feel anything when a trusting animal is being taken on its last journey. I want them to trust me and feel no anxiety and yet that very trust makes me feel I am betraying them.

Hilarysmum · « **Reply #10 on:** May 10, 2011, 07:51:10 am »

That was beautifully put SallyinN,

SallyintNorth · « **Reply #11 on:** May 10, 2011, 10:14:31 am »

Thank you very much HM. I must say that one of the (very many) things I love about this forum is the amount of positive feedback one gets. For that very reason thought I would post my thanks for your thanks so you would know how much it is appreciated! (I gave you karma too

)

Tudful Tamworths · « **Reply #12 on:** May 10, 2011, 12:05:42 pm »

It's never easy getting rid of a pig you're attached to, nor a really good pig which has great breeding potential but which you can't justify keeping. I've just rung the abattoir to book in a cracking pedigree Tamworth gilt (9 months) because a sale has fallen through. She's out of my 2010 Royal Welsh champion, and from a particularly good litter.
I'd like to keep her, but I've already decided to keep her two sisters as breeding gilts, so she has to go. She'll earn me lots more as bacon than if I sold her for breeding, so I have to make an economic decision in this case. But it won't be easy taking her off next week.