Author Topic: Scottish Winters (Read 2606 times)

stewarta13wsb · « **on:** August 20, 2016, 11:34:55 am »

Quick question... can saddleback pigs live outside over Winter?

Thanks,

Stewart

Marches Farmer · « **Reply #1 on:** August 21, 2016, 09:05:34 am »

Depends ... are you on top of a Scottish mountain with no shelter and the pig ark facing into the prevailing wind? Then, no. Given a sheltered spot out of the wind, somewhere dry and out of the wind to sleep, a water supply that won't freeze up and a concrete pad or similar to keep feed out of the mud, then yes. Native breeds are very hardy and can cope with most things. Whether they actually enjoy being up to their bellies in freezing mud in January is another matter ....

HappyHippy · « **Reply #2 on:** August 21, 2016, 05:58:30 pm »

I'm in Scotland (1000ft above sea level in Lanarkshire) and would say yes, in terms of hardiness they'll be fine. But as MF says you have to think water supply (and lugging water through deep snow isn't much fun when it does freeze) ground conditions for the pigs - and if it's breeding stock you really want to keep them out of cold mud (it can cause arthritis) plus you do have to consider yourself. Getting in and out a muddy, slippy field with a couple of bigger hungry pigs does present risks. An area of decent hard standing near their arc would be ok, but we always brought ours in to the big shed. It makes life easier for tending to them and they quite enjoy a break from the weather too

SallyintNorth · « **Reply #3 on:** August 21, 2016, 07:49:07 pm »

From my very limited experience with a very small number of pigs in north Cumbria, I would say do have somewhere you can bring them in to, even if you want to keep them outside. I had a most miserable winter one year, with nowhere I could bring them in and them all utterly miserable, getting rained on whenever they ventured out of the ark, plodging in thick cold claggy mud day in day out for months. I swore never again, and we have a spot assigned for them should they need it, now.

Of course, our winters have been less extreme ever since, and I never have had to bring them in. But the one time I did have some indoors, we gave them a large round hay bale and some straw, and they made a burrow in the hay and were totally blissfully happy. They loved seeing people when we came into the shed, too.

hughesy · « **Reply #4 on:** August 22, 2016, 11:54:33 am »

Our Saddlebacks have lived outside al year round with no problems here in North Wales. We don't have the bad weather as often as Scotland but we have had deep snow and long periods of frozen ground which they have got through without any drama. We do have very wet winters with persistent mud and while this is a pain in the behind for us the pigs seem to manage. We find it's very hot, very dry weather they struggle with most.

lintmill · « **Reply #5 on:** August 25, 2016, 09:04:44 pm »

we did saddlebacks over last winter, outdoors with ark. No problems and good weights at the end.

Tiva Diva · « **Reply #6 on:** September 12, 2016, 09:20:00 pm »

We're in the Scottish Borders, and our Oxford Sandy & Blacks live outside all year round. However, we're on pretty free-draining soils, and our pig arks are double-skinned i.e. insulated. We make sure they have plenty of dry straw, and that the arks face away from the prevailing wind, and they do fine. If we had somewhere. Suitable, we'd probably bring at least some of them in, but that would really be more for our benefit than theirs. The biggest problem we have is when it freezes very hard: not only is it a chore keeping their water unfrozen, but when the ground freezes all lumpy, they find it uncomfortable to walk on. Still, they've always been fine, even in the bad winters a few years ago when it got down to -20!