Moving a Pig

[mylilchix]

My yorkshire X duroc is getting close to processing weight. What is the best way to move her from the pen to the trailer? I can't pull the trailer all the way over to the pig pen.

Thanks, Sonja

 

[drdoolittle]

How close can you get the trailer to the pen? Maybe you could use cattle panels or hog panels to create a type of chute leading from the pen to the trailer. You could also use boards if you have a way to secure them so the pig doesn't just knock them over. I think the hog/cattle panels would work better-----you can attach them to t-posts just as if you were putting up a pen and the pig won't notice them as much and feel like it's beiong trapped.

 

[Cornish Heritage]

Maybe you could use cattle panels or hog panels to create a type of chute leading from the pen to the trailer.

Good advice Is the pig trained to follow a bucket? If she is on free feed take that away at least 24 hours before loading into the trailer so that she is hungry. Whatever you do do not load her on the day you need her in the trailer! That is guaranteed to fail as pigs are smart. Load her the day before when you are all relaxed & not in a rush. Be PATIENT! She may load right in but if not just work with her getting her closer to the trailer all the time. Having some time in the trailer will not hurt her - she will in fact be less stressed.

Sometimes backing pigs into a trailer with a bucket of food over their heads work. You cannot push a pig anywhere he/she does not want to go. We train ours to follow the bucket from a very early age so when we want them to load they just jump in. OR at least most of them do - once in a while we get a hard headed/stubborn one!

Liz

 

[Blarneyeggs]

Our pigs will go anywhere for a marshmallow. We pop one on the end of a stick and lead them around. When market day comes, we use cattle panels and an extra board on the ground so the pigs don't need to step up at all to board the trailer.

 

[farmgirl01]

We use buckets on most of our pigs. They were trained to follow a food bucket at a young age. But I did have one that would move. The way we had to move her was drag her to the trailer by her back feet. It was a little loud but got the job done.