The Accidental Smallholder Forum
Livestock => Pigs => Topic started by: Buffy the eggs layer on August 13, 2015, 08:13:29 am
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I recently visited a Kune keeper who told me that his gilts tottered off to bed in the early evening and got up "late"
As we have been out working on the farm til after dark with building lights on for the past few nights I have noticed that my recently acquired weaners are falling asleep by the gate. Each evening I have minced my way through their pasture (avoiding the pig poo) like the pied piper and lead them to their shelter. Once inside they have settled down to sleep and remained till morning.
Are my pigs sleeping by the gate because we are out and about or do other peoples pigs sleep outside their shelter?
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Mine like their bed. They are GOS. They aren't early risers but wait until they hear someone arrive with their food, usually around 8am. They go to bed often during the day too. If the weather is bad they will be found in bed as well. After their evening meal they have a potter around and then its back to bed :)
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My guys sleep outside more often than not in the summer. The big guys each have a round bale of hay that they nest in and the little ones seem to like to dig themselves a hole to sleep in!
They are probably just warm and comfortable outside, remember their ideal temperature is a lot lower than ours when they get past babies!
:pig:
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Our school pigs get up when the cleaners come in at 6 then realise they aren't getting brekkie so go back to bed. Then get up again when I feed them at 7.30, back to bed til break time then out to look at the kids, repeat at lunchtime, then up at dinner time at 4pm. Oh and they get up whenever anyone goes to sort the chickens out during lesson time. Bit of a snuffle round and a sunbathe as the mood takes them!
I think they go to bed properly at about 7pm, certainly they go to bed before the end of our yr6 open evening and no amount of carrots can get them to come out and show themselves to the prospective students!
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we've got a few breeds and mostly some of them can be seen out quite late, when i come back to shut chickens in.
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Ours never sleep. They just stand at the gate asking for food. At least that's how it seems - let's say they go to bed later than me and get up earlier ;)
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How recent is recent? Have they ever put themselves to bed since you got them? How big an area are they on? Do you think they known where bed is?
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Heyhey,
I love how self absorbed and uncooperative your pigs are! They remind me of the school hampster at my Primary school. 4years and I never saw it once. It was always asleep.
Harmony,
recent as in less than a week but I did show them it when they arrived and kept them in a small pen of hurdles which I made a bit bigger each day. So it hasnt gone unnoticed. The good news is that although OH was fixing the tractor again this evening they did take themselves to bed. Its a bit cooler this evening though and we did have a passing shower so that might also be a factor.
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My Gos herd don't seem to have any set sleeping pattern, they basically get up when they want and sleep when they want. That said rattle a bucket and they're surprisingly awake except for one sow who sleeps so deeply she has to be woken up by bashing the side of the sty even then she has never rushed for anything . We can hear her snoring sometimes from the house!! I think it depends on their individual characters personally.
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"recent as in less than a week but I did show them it when they arrived and kept them in a small pen of hurdles which I made a bit bigger each day. So it hasnt gone unnoticed. The good news is that although OH was fixing the tractor again this evening they did take themselves to bed. Its a bit cooler this evening though and we did have a passing shower so that might also be a factor."
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[/size]Ah well put it down to weather. Been very hot last two days here but rain tonight.
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With ours it depends on what time they get tucked in and read their evening piggies related story!
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Very weather dependant! Recently my adult sows have decamped to a nice damp(er) area under a tree to sleep at night.
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We haven't got pigs this year but I discovered that pigs are 'crepuscular' (great word!) basically meaning they are active at dawn and dusk. Certainly we would often hear our pigs rootling around pretty late at night in the darkening gloom - though not sure they kept up with the dawn activity, ours were always fast asleep in the ark until they heard us coming with breakfast :eyelashes:
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Oow excellent application of crepuscular Sudan!
I guess they pretty much do as they please? My little guts seem quite happy dosing in the rain but then it's not cold rain so guess they are happy enough. :pig: :pig: :pig:
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I feed mine split feeds (to evenly space main feeds - they get some grazing and I give them some vegetables at 1500hrs - they then usually have a snooze outside if the weathers ok ) at 0800hrs and 2000hrs, they get up and come out for the morning feed, they are waiting for the evening feed by their trough and after consuming that they toddle off to bed.....Zzzzzzzzz!
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The only time I can guarantee all of ours will be asleep is in the middle of the afternoon. Any other time their sleeping seems to be completely random.
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Well my babies do go to bed in their shelter now as the sun sets. Perhaps its just a little cooler or perhaps me taking them off there a couple of nights has got them used to the idea. I think its pretty tough for babies to be parted from their family and have to get the hang of a new place. Even though there are 3 of them which makes a mini herd they do love it if I join them in their pasture. They particularly like it if I sit down and then they can all lay down around me and have a stroke.
Through the day they doze in the long grass or under the trees but dont go back to bed.
I feed them twice a day with concentrates and veg and give them some brasica leaves etc through the day just incase they fancy a change from grass and clover.