The Accidental Smallholder Forum
Livestock => Pigs => Topic started by: sausagesandcash on January 21, 2010, 11:27:13 pm
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Two of my sows are farrowing within the month. They are still running with the boar and a gilt. Now there's the usual bit of necking at feed time as each jostles to get the food, swap places etc. I really feel like separating them now.... a few years back my father in law (outlaw ;D) left a ram for too long with sheep in a barn (it was winter). The ram clearly hurt the ewes when getting his feed, and we ended up with a lot of still births, and even lost two ewes. I am anxious not to repeat his mistake. The pigs are out in pasture and have a huge arc, so they don't lie on top of each other or anything.... when should I move them to separate quarters? I think I recall Gavo saying a while back that he left the boar with the sows up to a certain point and then moved them. I just cant seem to find the post, and Richard Lutwyche's Rare Breed Pig Keeping doesn't make reference to it. Any advice?
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We always separate the sow from all other pigs and give her a place of her own with plenty of bedding
and no fighting for food, at least two weeks before due to farrow.
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Thanks Julie,
I have a window of about a three and a half weeks before farrowing, hope to get get the arcs moved into separate adjoining fields done this Saturday. All my arcs are galvanized so they weigh a fair bit! Thanks for the advice.
Morgan
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Oh Yeah, one more thing, I imagine it's a no no to have two sows farrowing in the same arc, even though it's colossal. I assume that one might look on these wee new arrivals as food.....but am I right in thinking this?
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If you have both sows farrowing in the same arc, one might end up feeding the majority of the piglets. It can work, depends on the sows. Never known a sow to eat another's babies.
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Hmmm, i'd have to mark them to make sure the bloodlines didn't get confused. Think I'll stick to one arc one sow. Thanks for the input though.
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Much easier that way.