Author Topic: Is my pig pregnant?! (Read 2594 times)

allewellin · « **on:** July 30, 2018, 03:38:39 pm »

Hello,

Firstly I apologise if anything sounds silly, but we have no prior knowledge of pigs before rescuing two as below.

We have had two rescue pigs from 6 months old (both now 18 months), one male and one female.

We have recently started to suspect that the female may be pregnant due to increased size in both belly and teats!

On the weekend, we noticed that if you gently squeeze her teats a drop of milk comes out, which we were led to believe meant piglets within 24 hours! However, a few days has now passed and she has shown no signs of farrowing.

If milk is present, does this mean she is definitely pregnant, and if so should we have seen piglets by now?

Thanks for your help!

greenbeast · « **Reply #1 on:** August 01, 2018, 02:04:07 pm »

If he is not castrated, i would say almost certainly yes

fsmnutter · « **Reply #2 on:** August 01, 2018, 04:00:02 pm »

Last year I had a sow produce milk for 6 days before farrowing, so it can certainly happen. If he has not been castrated, she will likely be pregnant. A photo may help us to say yay or nay with even more certainty.

harmony · « **Reply #3 on:** August 01, 2018, 06:25:36 pm »

I would be surprised if she wasn't. Lots of questions spring to mind.

Did you want piglets?
Are the adults unrelated?
Are you set up for the farrowing?
Have you separated them?
What are you going to do with the piglets?

I hope the answer to the first four is yes and that you know the answer to the fifth.

It sounds as though you intended to attach a photo but we can't see one.

allewellin · « **Reply #4 on:** August 03, 2018, 05:25:20 pm »

Hello,

Sorry for the late reply - still no piglets!

When we originally got the two pigs we had the vet out to check them, they had a quick look at the male but as he was very nervous (due to where they came from) they couldn't check him properly. However, they said they were almost certain he had been castrated. We had the vet out again around a week and a half ago, and as he is very friendly now they were able to check, and although not obvious and in an awkward position he had definitly not been castrated as though! This is why this was so unplanned!

We have sorted out a farrowing area as best we can, with an area where the adult pigs cannot go with a heat lamp above. She also has plenty of straw. However, they are not separated at the moment as the vet said as they are both so close and have never been separated, this could do more harm than good by stressing her out. The vet said he is very unlikely to harm the piglets and they would be fine as long as they had the area to go where the adults can't.

I will do another post now and attach some photos, although the photos are now a few days old and she has got bigger since then!

I am just getting more worried as it is now 7 days since she started producing milk. Should I get the vet back out or just wait and see?

Thanks for all your help!

allewellin · « **Reply #5 on:** August 03, 2018, 05:35:42 pm »

Pictures of Apple

allewellin · « **Reply #6 on:** August 03, 2018, 05:36:10 pm »

Picture

allewellin · « **Reply #7 on:** August 03, 2018, 05:39:28 pm »

Picture

greenbeast · « **Reply #8 on:** August 03, 2018, 06:01:02 pm »

The boy is unlikely to deliberately hurt the piglets, just leave them together.

Try to diet her after they're weaned though, she is overweight

allewellin · « **Reply #9 on:** August 03, 2018, 06:52:05 pm »

Quote from: greenbeast on August 03, 2018, 06:01:02 pm

The boy is unlikely to deliberately hurt the piglets, just leave them together.

Try to diet her after they're weaned though, she is overweight

Hi, thanks, yes we will put her on a diet once all weaned! She has put a lot on in the last few weeks and we have been worried to do anything about it due to our suspicions!

Do you think I should be worried as there has been milk for 7 days now with no sign of piglets?

harmony · « **Reply #10 on:** August 04, 2018, 09:01:58 am »

She is very overweight. She has done well to get in pig being that overweight. Personally from the pictures I wouldn't say she was definitely in pig nor would I say she was. What would be useful would be a picture of her back end so we can see if there are changes to her vulva. You have however expressed milk so it rather tips the balance towards being pregnant so I would get prepared. They haven't read the book so don't worry about them doing things as you have read they should.

Boars are not generally aggressive towards new born piglets however you generally move him away so that the gilt/sow isn't stressed by having him there. You don't want to be moving him whilst she is farrowing. The most gentle of pigs can become a raging nightmare at farrowing. If she is unhappy and attacks the boar you will end up with squashed piglets.

Piglets aren't born then immediately head for guarded areas with lamps. Nor do they always pop straight out one after the other with no gaps. The first ones could be wandering around for sometime before the whole process is complete. Too much straw isn't a good idea. Piglets get lost in it and can get squashed.

The other thing you have to think about is what you are going to do at weaning and in fact some sows can come back into heat six weeks after farrowing and be served again whilst feeding a litter.

I would make a boar pen now. Can you make it so they can still see each other? The worst case scenario in my view is to have them still in together when she starts farrowing, you could have the stress of moving the boar with a pretty cross sow charging about with piglets on the ground. Better to move him now and get him settled too.