Pig fence recommendations

[jjack010]

I'm preparing to get pigs soon so planning out fencing. I've thought about a pallet pen with hot wire on the bottom. Recently I've been thinking about electric only (after training) so I can rotate pastures easily. However, since we don't live on the farm I'm worried about them getting out. We go to the farm about 2-3 times a week. I do not have power at the farm so I would have to use a solar/battery energizer.

I will be getting 3-5 pigs this first go round for growers to finish out.

So, pallet pen with hot wire, netting or a few hot strands?

What do you all think will work best for my situation?

Thanks!

 

[Baymule]

Hot wire only will not work with pigs. They WILL run through it. A barrier fence plus hot wire will work. Pallets, strongly fastened together and T-posted in place would work along with a hot wire.

Pigs will immediately turn over any water tub, so place a barrel outside the pen, run a pipe nipple into the pen with a hog nipple on the end.

Feed can go in a bin feeder but it must be fastened securely to something or they will tear it loose and destroy it.

I built a Pig Palace at the farm I just sold. Let me go look for that thread and I’ll be back to post a link for you.

 

[Baymule]

https://www.backyardherds.com/threads/baymule’s-pigs-2018-herefords.37448/#post-539699

 

[jjack010]

@BaymuleThanks for the info. Those are definitely my plans on the water and food. My goal is to make it as low maintenance as possible.

 

[Baymule]

I could even feed them without having to go in the pen. Much safer that way!

 

[jjack010]

I could even feed them without having to go in the pen. Much safer that way!

I saw that. Good idea. Great job on the pig palace.

 

[Baymule]

Thanks! It sure made raising pigs much easier.

 

[rbruno]

I went with combo fence panels for fencing. They are more expensive but I was also worried about them getting out. I live in a rural area, but have neighbors right next door. They were all interested in me getting pigs but I that would change if they got loose and were eating up their gardens. The combo panels are tall like cattle panels but have the smaller size openings like pig panels. My pig pen boarders my horse field and didn't want he horses reaching over the shorter panels. I think my pig pen build is on her somewhere as well. I did steal some ideas from Baymule. Feeding and water from outside the pen is a nice thing to have.

 

[Hideaway Pines]

This is our first year with pigs as well. we picked them up a few weeks ago. They are in a smaller pen made of hog panels and T posts, then when we finished their pasture area (about 2.5 acres in all) which is made of stretched horse fencing with barbed wire up top with T posts with concreted corner wooden posts they will have three paddocks that they can be rotated through so we can start to grow some grass in each of them. We have not had any issues with them escaping but they sure gave it a good hard try for the first few weeks. Now they are happy to just enjoy their area. But the bigger they get the stronger they get, they could push over fencing that is not super strong. We took advice from @Baymule for some of our design, we have not got the nipple watering system in yet, but I put their water in an old tire, now they cannot dump it, so for now that works well. We made them a house (we call it Hog Heaven) and when they were small we locked them up at night, but we are not doing that now. We live in deep woods with lots of predator's, so just wanted to be sure they would be safe. We also built this with other animals in mind, incase we wanted to get something else in the future - it could be use for other critters. We added guttering to the roof and directed it to the wallow we made out of clay, so they have a cool place when it gets hot, something we have to think about here in Texas. We also learned that pigs love wet food, and fermented food goes further and is better for their digestive system, so we feed them twice a day with a fermented wet mash... I know you are not there full time, so this will not work for you this time, but it might be something to consider in the future, it makes the food go twice as far, so costs less.

 

[Baymule]

Thanks @rbruno !! Haha! I stole ideas from @Simpleterrier. He is my hog pen building hero!

@Hideaway Pines that is one SUPER NICE hog pen! Happy hogs = good meat! Fermenting the feed not only makes it go farther, it also makes the meat taste better. Y’all are doing great!