The Accidental Smallholder Forum
Livestock => Pigs => Topic started by: pikilily on November 10, 2010, 09:22:02 am
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the abattoir....
well they are now booked in, but i am stressing about getting them loaded and getting them there.
So we have two 24 week old Berkshire boys, up to weight, responding to the bucket for feeds, fairly couthy and calm. The thing us that the access gate for the field that their section is in is too narrow for me to drive in off our lane with the (horse) trailer. i am thinking that I could make a coral with electric fencing from their pen to the gate area and then use sheep hurdles to block/guide them into the back of the trailer which would be parked at the gate in the lane.
We have to leave before light on monday morning so i am planning to load them on sunday evening. i know this is not correct, but i feel that two pigs well bedded down in the trailer are going to be perfectly comfy overnight. the certainly would have plenty of space, and they can have a good feed sunday evening and then be 'empty' for mondays slaughter. It also means that i can take my time on the sunday and not get too stressed out!
Any comments or advice/tricks that may help?
Emma T
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Give yourself loads of time. Dont stress (oh how easy that is to say and how hard to follow) , if anything should go wrong and they dont go in be sure to phone the abattoir asap. Start planning which bits of pig you will use for what.
Make sure you have loads of room in the freezer. Enjoy
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Just a thought, put all your paperwork on the passenger seat before you load them.
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Movement papers, food chain info, ...ah, now the transport papers, I will fill it all out but, from what i can work out, because this is purely for personal use and the journey is only 40 miles i dont technically need them.....am i right? oh this is in scotland btw
Emma T
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We are in France where it even differs between one abattoir and another (even though they are both part of a chain).
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They'll follow the bucket, don't worry, and it's no big deal to leave them in a large trailer overnight, just make sure they have a bucket of water (or a few -they'll knock them over!). There are lots more tales about loading pigs on this forum, have a trawl for ideas, plus some of them make for very funny reading! :D
Eve :wave:
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I think, if you use the bucket of food to lure them into the trailer they'll go without a hitch ;)
Just leave it half an hour or an hour past their normal time so they're REALLY hungry and put a bit of straw on the trailer ramp so they don't get spooked by the different surface.
Good luck
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In Scotland you will need the Pig movement form, can be downloaded from the web, our abttoir insists on FCI in advance and you will not need your transport licence if it is for private use and under 40 miles. make sure your pigs have their tags and or slap marks, and also put that info on the paper work.
Ours quite often will NOT cross the line where the electric fence used to be, and we have found that putting their feeding platform (= old sturdy door) onto the ramp makes sure they will cross and load wihtin 5 minutes. But we always manage to have the trailer right there on their boundary. Don't try and push them from behind, they will just stop dead and get nervous.
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Yes, pushing is the one thing not to do, they need to be lured - with a foodbucket that's easy!
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For those who will not cross the line even at the gate we have an old rug. I put this down across the "line" and put a little feed on just where the fence would be. Then gradually move the rug. Can be quite a task with two pigs standing on it. Very gradually keep moving until they are out ..... once they realise they are "free" is when the fun begins.
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LOL i am getting a bit wired about this....will need some of my raspberry gin for the loading...another reason for not doing it in the dark first thing on monday morning ;D
Emma T
.....dont worry i am normally very cool, calm and chilled when I am handling any animals...I' ll not wind them up! x
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Hi,
We have a similar setup to you, and use a similar system to get them loaded. I also found that blocking off any visually open spaces, helped too, as the brighter ones may get excited by the newness of it all & want to explore. Planning ahead is good and practise makes perfect.
We load the day before too, we have a trial run in the morning & if this doesn't work we still have the afternoon and time for us all to destress a bit if needed. If we have time before the day we may have a few practise runs with them so it becomes a familiar game to them. We don't feed them until their loaded, other then what they get from the bucket lure.
I recently used a similar method to load a Highland Bullock - well just a relay of bucket lures - it took four hours, but I did it - calm, perserverance & positive thinking are essential, I had to send my OH away!
Another trick with the electric fence, is to put a little feed close to the edge of it & then ( prepared for this earlier of course!) lift it over the top of them - you may need two of you to do it so you can do it quickly so that they don't get spooked.
It will be fine, :pig: ,
Violet
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If you have any options, put your trailer going down on a slope to make the ramp shallower, and make the trailer as light as possible (inspection lamp can help!)
Pigs generally flee Downhill and into open, so uphil into enclosed dark is totally alien to them!
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Put the water bucket into a rubber tyre, saves them knocking it over.
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Three of us had the dickens of a job loading three pigs, hours going by, us getting stressed, pigs getting more and more stubborn. Along came my son, picked up a black plastic dustbin, said "Get ready to steer by the tail, Mother" put the bin over the pig's head, I steered by the tail and he had them all loaded in five minutes, backwards up the ramp of the trailer.
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I like your idea Sylvia, we are due to load 2 saddlebacks tomorrow afternoon ready for Monday morning. Will definately be looking to test out your idea for loading, we have got to walk our 2 through a small wooded area before we get to the trailer so that should be fun.
;D :pig:
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Pigby's just remember to keep the dustbin firmly over the pig's head. Any chink of daylight and it will make for it. Hope your loading goes easily! :pig: :pig:
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All loaded and settled ready to go!!! I really am Ssssssssoooooooo silly. i got myself all wound up worrying about if they escaped. had the coral set up and the fencing blanked off with tarpauline. It was probably overkill but as a first timer i didnt want to take chances.
Bless them they followed me almost in 'Babe' formation. Into the trailer and noses into the buckets of feed soaked with cider. ... they are now snoring happily and seem cosy...and content. It couldnt have been easier....i suppose preperation was the key.
Now I feel guilty.....Why do our animals trust us so easily.
Ha, i suppose it could all go pear shaped at the other end!!
I'll just have to toast them at the first pork meal.
Emma T
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I'm glad they loaded well for you Emma (you're comment about them being couthy had me suspecting they were just a tiny bit pampered and would go exactly where you did ;))
Don't for one minute feel guilty - your animals trust you because you cared for them and looked after them well, they've had the freedom of living in a field with their trotters in the grass and snouts in the mud - so many other wee piggies don't get that chance :(
I'm sure everything will go just as smoothly for the unloading..........let me know how tasty the Berkshire pork is, won't you ? But don't make it too mouth watering sounding or my two 'breeders' might not make it that far ;) ;D ;D ;D
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Well done, so pleased it all went well. Enjoy your pork and dont forget to start looking for the next 2 soon. They really are so addictive, especially once you realise how versatile pork is.
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Done. :'( :'( :'( :'( :'( :'( :'(
Emma T