[flowerpotkitchen]

Hi, we are due to take delivery of our 2 gorgeous weaners in four weeks, I have a question about the manure that will be produced and really need advice on keeping odour to minium due to neighbours.

We are going for baconers so 6-7 months and we have given our weaners a 40ft x 30ft run.   We are going to poo pick twice day and clean out the ark weekly to monthly depending on dirt, I have defra approved powder disinfectant for the poo corner that the weaners will choose. 

We are desperate to minimise odour from our piggies as we are full urban and we are doing it in our front garden!  I have read all information from Defra, and direct gov, taken soo much fabulous and gratefull advice from other pig keepers, in order not to have controlled waste we are thinking we will have to compost, What other advice can anyone give please?  We have found wastecare.co.uk who will remove the pig waste 100kg, but I am worried about keeping odours down until we reach almost the 100kg load.  Thank you . :-)

[tizaala]

Your biggest problem will be one of containment, there will be escapes, and destruction , a lidded wheeliebin should contain more than 100kilo of pickings , that is going to be the least of your problems I fear.

[Dan]

We've kept a couple of weaners for the freezer about 8 times and never had an escape. And that's with Tamworths most times, so escapes aren't inevitable. I fear destruction is though 


Give it a go - if it gets too much, put them away quicker. But do make sure your fencing is top class.

[HappyHippy]

Hello 

Others might disagree, but I think your pen is too small 
Given that you're taking them to bacon weight and keeping them overwinter they are going to trash your ground  Since it's the front garden and you're in an urban area you might find your neighbours none too happy about the appearance of their pen. So it might be worth either halving the area so you can rotate them or looking at where you can house them if/when the garden turns into the somme.
Oh, and I've never noticed mine choosing a toilet corner - maybe yours will be more considerate though 

Good luck with them and keep us updated
Karen

[Bionic]

Flowerpotkitchen, are your neighbours aware of your plans?
If they aren't already aware they certainly will be with the smell and the noise. As young weaners they will snuffle a bit and squeal when you pick them up but I find that as they get older they make a lot of noise around feeding time and I don't see how you can avoid it.
It will be good to get the neighbours on side i.e. they can come and look at the little piggies and watch them grow, and maybe, if so inclined, help you to feed them. With the prospect of some home grown pork/sausages in it for them too I am sure it will make life easier all round.
Sally   

[Bionic]

Happyhippy posted just as I did. She is a very experienced pig keeper whilst I am just about to send off my first couple of weaners.
I agree about the toilet situation. The only place I have found that mine don't go is in their ark. 
There is also not a blade of grass left in their pen and with all the rain we have had it resembles something from the battle of the Somme.
Sally

[rispainfarm]

I agree with HH, although I am all for keeping a couple of pigs for the freezer in an urban setting, I normally advise that you keep them over the summer and usually raise them for pork rather than bacon, that way you are only really keeping them for a short while. Also the other thing I would worry about, having pigs in your front garden will invariably lead to people feeding them or throwing over rubbish which could cause injury. I don't know your situation at all so forgive me if I have got the picture wrong, but people feeding them as they look over the fence at them would be my concern, as would the state of the garden, with all the rain we are having it will only be a short while before your garden is a quigmire, and because of the pen size they will have no where dry to go. You will need a dry patch at least in which to feed them otherwise you will be battling with pulling troughs etc out of the mud, you should also have a dry standing for the ark. Its only my opinion but can't you wait until at least next spring, as once the winter sets in your pigs will be soon in glutinous mud and that will soon have the neighbours concerned, it also makes life easier for you if the weather is kinder to the land. Lets us know how you get on though.

[Moleskins]

Hello 

Others might disagree, but I think your pen is too small 
Given that you're taking them to bacon weight and keeping them overwinter they are going to trash your ground  Since it's the front garden and you're in an urban area you might find your neighbours none too happy about the appearance of their pen. So it might be worth either halving the area so you can rotate them or looking at where you can house them if/when the garden turns into the somme.
Oh, and I've never noticed mine choosing a toilet corner - maybe yours will be more considerate though 

Good luck with them and keep us updated
Karen

Sorry to disagree but I think that's enough space for 2 pigs, they'll destroy it in about 5 hours my first two did.
Then they stand back as if to admire their work, they're like miniature JCB's.
Sorry to disagree again but mine have always had a sleeping area, an eating area, and a toilet. Less so with the separated toilet the more space you give them.
I very much doubt I'd ever try keeping pigs in an urban area though. Serious neighbour problems, serious risk of vandalism I'd have thought.

[robert waddell]

in all honesty   and if you think this through   with all the pitfalls      don't do it        for all the reasons listed and a whole Lot more
 
no ifs or buts pigs do smell   even if you pick the crap up and that is if it is solid enough     the urine stinks as well so how are you going to collect that      stockproof fencing that is secure enough to prevent little angels letting them out on the street
 
better getting the farm you are getting the weaners from to rear them for you or better still buy one that is ready to go for meat and save yourself some money and a whole lot of grief

[Anke]

Don't do it - pigs in that kind of setting over winter to bacon weight  ... you are asking for BIG trouble, not just from neighbours, but from passers-by, people on their way home from the pub at night thinking it will be fun to play with the piggies... etc etc...
Also environmental health be there in 5 minutes.... pigs do smell and IMHO it is not fair on your neighbours to live with the smell, even if you don't mind it...
If you want to raise some of your own meat - get some day-old meatchicks or ducks or find a local (but rural) smallholder that would sell you a pig at the pint of slaughter!
Actually thinking about this - surely this must be a wind-up?
 

[rispainfarm]

Your right robert, I do think in this instance, keeping pigs in an urban area is not a good idea. I have customers that have successfully kept two pigs until they were six months old in a garden in the middle of Wilmslow in Cheshire, two tamworths and I have others that have successfully kept pigs in an urban setting, but I don't think on this occasion, keeping pigs is a good idea, better to do what others have suggested and get the farm to rear them.

[Beewyched]

Is this Mr Tigger at it again 

[Foobar]

You could bag the poo (use the empty feed bags), and find a local allotment group (or gardener) who will take it for composting.
You will still get a smell though, like everyone else has said.

[plt102]

One other point is that they won't just stop at digging the garden up. Ours ha?e undermined the foundations of their barn by digging around the base. They also love digging up fence posts. Ours are noisy and smelly and would escape if we didn't use leccy fence. Don't do it x

[flowerpotkitchen]

Thank you for the positive comments, very helpful.  The stock fenced pen is also with solar electric fencing, where the are weaners are coming from they are already being trained to electric fencing.  We are very lucky that you cannot see the house from the road due to fabulous large trees and everygreen bushes and the pig run is only one 6th of the garden.  Mud bath not a worry to us and we have indoor space and second run for pigs if the going gets to wet.  Our neighbours have been marvellous and are looking forward to meeting the weaners, and obviously they are excited for some sausages, it is the quality of life we are looking forward to giving to the pigs who in return will give us honest meat, is why we are doing this.  Defra recommend a powder disinfectant that you can sprinkle on the ground.