[SallyintNorth]

I know we've talked about this before - more than once - but I remain a little confused.

I weaned the piglets at 50 days.  5 days after, there was a bit of whiteish slime but no other symptoms of her being in heat and she certainly didn't stand to back pressure.

The following week (61 days after farrowing) she had a bit of swelling of the vulva, she stood to back pressure and she did her other soppy nuzzly things that usually accompany her being on heat. 

Great, I thought, we're on, and emailed Deerpark to ask when I should order semen for it to be with me in three weeks' time (given Christmas post, etc.)

The next day - nothing.  No swelling or reddening of the vulva, no slime, no soppiness and no standing to back pressure. 

So, most things that you read say they'll cycle 5 days after weaning, so pick your weaning date to suit when you want to get them served.  Other things (and people!) say the sow has a natural 3-week cycle that is with her for her whole life, and the 5-days-after-weaning thing only works if you wean at 5 weeks or 8 weeks, because that ties in with her natural cycle.

Given Christmas post, I will need to order the semen a few days' ahead of when I need it... Do I go for 55+21 days (three weeks from 5-days-after-weaning, when we had some slime but no other symptoms), or 61+21 days being three weeks after that single instance of a slight swelling, soppiness and standing to back pressure? 

(Of course if I aim for the latter and she comes on at 76 days after weaning, I will be too late to get the semen for that heat - but would at least know not to order it for 82 days, I suppose.  Unless Deerpark say it's best to order it 6 or more days ahead of needing it, in which case it's already on its way...  )

If I get it wrong or miss the next heat, the following one will be either immediately before Christmas or between Christmas and the New Year - again, a tricky time to predict when post will arrive!  So I really want to catch her on the next one.

Help please! 

[robert waddell]

pigs eh who would have them   more bother than a woman
we have seen the pics of the piglets  is mother as well at herself as them
if so she could be to fat and disgising the cycle    it can happen
everything you say about the cycle is correct
go back to when you ai d her and cout your 3 weeks from there to give a better pin point of the cycle
short of getting a boar you are doing all you can

[SallyintNorth]

Thanks robert.  Meg is not fat now, no.  She looks the best she ever has; lost any fat she did carry with feeding the wee ones.  She's just about back up to condition 2.5 now after having them off her for 2 weeks - you can feel her spine but it's not sticking up as a ridge.

[Fowgill Farm]

Sally
Especially at this time of year seasons can be hard to detecton any pig, seasons can last just a couple of days and are not as obvious as in summer, i believe its something to do with shorter days and daylight. Like Robert says all you can do is count back, i would start at when she gave birth, i wean bang on seven weeks (doing days is a tad too commercial thinking for me!and by the sounds of it you've been reading a commercial based book, our pigs aren't like them) and generally by the end of the following week shes in season. I then count 20 days from the first sign of that season and aim to have the boar ready for her to go to for the next. 
HTH
mandy 

[robert waddell]

just stick with it and check those dates     hopefully she will have more than 5 next time    with her being handled it is a bit more difficult to tell