Need to pick someones brain about pig care....

[wannabefarmer]

Hi there!!
Im here from BYC since I have decided to raise 2 feeder pigs. They will be delivered mid march once they are weaned. I am very excited about them and want to make sure that I have the proper knowledge of care. I have done research on here but I still am unsure of a few things.

1. Proper housing for 2 pigs. They will be ready for butcher at about 6-7 months.
2. Space requirement
3. Special instructions on piglets ex. heat lamps
4. Castrating. Step by step instructions if possible.

Thank you in advance for any advice or help you give.

 

[theawesomefowl]

Me tooo!!!

 

[freemotion]

They should come to you castrated....no?

Can't answer #2 and 3 as I pastured mine.

We built a small a-frame house for them and it worked out so great that I want to build another this spring for my goat kids. It cost very little to build and is quite sturdy. I'll link pics if you'd like.

 

[emilypaonia]

me too!

i want to get pigs and an opportunity has arisen in my town for me to buy a pig family - 2 pregnant females and their breeding male. i figure i could sell most of the piglets to make some money back from my purchase. however, i am currently clueless as to pig raising... i am beginning my research to see if this is right for me.

freemotion, do your pastured pigs graze? or do they dig around for roots? the pig family i am looking to buy are gloucestershire old spots... i want to put them in my orchard to keep the grass down - will they do this? will they dig too much and eat the tree roots? i have heard this breed referred to as "orchard pigs" because that is where they were traditionally kept, but in my limited understanding of the breed they were kept in the orchard to eat groundfall fruit. i want them to do that, but i only have ground fall fruit for 2 months out of the year. it seems that pigs can get quite expensive to keep - if they are pastured in my orchard will they need less grain?

i raise dairy goats, so i can feed them milk and whey. i also raise chickens, turkeys, and lambs, so i am not new to animal husbandry, just new to pigs! my orchard is 7 arces, so i was thinking this year to get more lambs to keep the grass down, that's when a friend told me about these pigs and i could keep the grass down with bacon!

thanks for the help!

 

[momdrinkstea]

Herd Master...I'd love to see pics of your A-frames!
How did you keep them from rooting underneath and getting out?
This would work great for my black mini potbelly! THANKS!

 

[freemotion]

Here is the thread with the pics of the a-frame house. If you don't read the entire thread, note that the electric fencing in the background had to be replaced in a hurry because they came to disrespect it. I used cattle panels (hog panels would do but I also wanted to keep my goats from jumping into their pasture, especially the kids.) Field fencing will do, too. You still need to run an electric wire a few inches off the ground to keep them from rooting underneath it.

These two pigs ended up tilling almost the entire field, some areas they dug over 2 feet deep. The only area untouched was the part in the middle that was always in full sun. So I imagine they would destroy an orchard and probably kill some of the trees. They will eat a lot of the green vegetation and if the area is big enough, they will eat all the worms and grubs and will need far less food. I started that thread to detail what I did and what I learned....they were my first pigs (besides what my family raised when I was a child.) So I am far from an expert. But I will be doing pretty much the same thing again this year.

This year, I will plant peas in their field as soon as the soil can be worked, before I get more piglets. I chose peas because they grow so early and are highly nutritious. I bought whole green peas (dried, in the bean section of the grocery store) and did a test sprouting, so I will be able to sew the field for only $6!

Check out the pics: http://www.sufficientself.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=4831&p=8