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RAISING PIGS

 

PIG BREEDING & FARROWING

 

BREEDING

It’s best if female pigs are at least 8 months old before breeding. A female goes into heat every 21 (or 18-24) days and lasts 2-5 days. A female ready to mate stands rigid. You can push on her lower back, and she will not move. She also is restless, mounts other sows and grunts loudly.

Some breeders increase feed to gilts and sows 10 days to 2 weeks before breeding to stimulate ovulation. Then after breeding they limit feed.

A sow is pregnant for 3 months, 3 weeks and 3 days= 115 days. After 80 days you should see signs of her being pregnant.

About 20% of all gilts (female pigs who have never given birth) never get pregnant.

Sows do not come into heat when they are lactating. She will come into heat a month or two after weaning.

BEFORE BIRTH

About 2-4 weeks before giving birth the sow should be treated for internal and external parasites. Some breeders wash sows several days before due date.

One week before farrowing add some molasses, wet bran and/or oil to the sow’s feed as a laxative. Continue until about 3 days after birth. If there is a serious constipation problem, you can put Epsom salt in the sow’s feed.

Move the sow to the farrowing stall about 4-7 days before expected birth. Sows build a mound of bedding material 2 days to a few hours before birth. Piglets need to be at a temperature of around 70-80, some say 90 degrees. So place a heat lamp or heater at a place where the sow can not reach.

The bedding for farrowing should be only a few inches thick and small pieces such as wood chips. Piglets can get stuck in long pieces of straw or hay. About 3-4 days after birth regular straw and hay can be used.

BIRTH (FARROWING)

Most sows farrow at night. If at all possible, stay with the sow during birth. Piglets are usually born about 15-60 minutes after sow lies down in her nest. There is usually about 20 minutes between the birth of each piglet. Farrowing can take from half an hour to 9 hours, average is 3 hours. Sows that get up and down a lot after they give birth are not good mothers.

Piglets can be born feet or head first. Clean mucus off mouth, nose and head. Dry off piglet. Stillborn piglets can sometimes be revived with mouth-to-mouth resuscitation or vigorous rubbing of sides. There is no hurry but at some point you can cut the umbilical cord about 1 inch from the body and dip in iodine. If umbilical cord is bleeding, clamp with navel clips. Make sure all afterbirths are passed.

If the sow is straining and is taking a long time to give birth, you may have to help internally. Thoroughly wash your hands and arm, and wash the sow’s vulva. Put on birthing gloves. Lubricate with J lube or similar. Enter womb carefully to check for problem. Give sow antibiotic afterwards.

Keep a light on so the sow can see the piglets to reduce odds of crushing them. Have a heat lamp near the rear of the sow so the piglets stay warm. Dry off piglets as they are born. Piglets that get chilled sometimes get scours.

Make sure all piglets suck on her teats. It is extremely important that every piglet gets colostrum. Colustrum declines 6 hours after farrowing. Make sure bigger, stronger piglets don’t push away smaller piglets. If needed, temporarily remove bigger piglets so small ones can nurse.

Castrate, cut needle teeth (optional) and ear notch piglets at one day old. Weigh piglets.

Piglets need iron. They get this from dirt or iron shots at 3-5 days old. You can put sod in the farrowing crate for the piglets. Piglets deplete their iron by 10-14 days of age.

Some say that most pig producers lose 25% of piglets usually in first 4 days. A sow should have at least 2 litters a year with at least 6 piglets living per litter. A first time mother (gilt) usually does not do as well as an experienced mother. A fat sow has a harder time giving birth.

For the first few weeks make sure all piglets are nursing well. The nipples towards the sows head usually give more milk. Bigger and more aggressive piglets will push smaller piglets away from nipples or away from good nipples. Smaller piglets can starve. If this problem, let weaker piglets nurse alone a few hours several times a day and/or bottle or syringe feed weaker piglets. You can also try nipples in a bucket feeding.

Syringe feeding formula: 1 quart (4 cups) goat or cow milk, 1/2 cup cream, 4 tablespoons white Karo syrup (corn syrup), 1 egg, and optional vitamins or antibiotics. Use 20 cc syringe with a foot of soft rubber tubing. Lubricate tube with oil. Guide tube into piglets throat and force milk into stomach. Feed full-size breeds of piglets 15-20 cc every 4 hours. For the first 24 hours feed once every hour or two.

Have liquid supplements such as goat milk available in a bowl for weak piglets.

Do not overfeed sow right after and for a few days after farrowing. After a few days increase feed. A lactating sow needs 3 times more food than usual. It is recommended to have either alfalfa hay, beet pulp, oats or wheat available at all times. Corn and soybean meal or the regular feed are good high energy foods given 3 times a day.

A FEW WEEKS AFTER BIRTH

At 7-10 days piglets need starter feed in a place that the mother can not reach. Starter feed is milk based. If you don’t have starter feed, add milk to regular pig feed. Comfrey is very good for piglets. They also need their own water bowl or nipple drinker.

If the weather is nice, piglets can be let outside 1-2 weeks after birth.

Add bedding on top of old bedding as the piglets get older. Do not remove old bedding unless it is extremely dirty. The disruption of removing bedding may make the sow abandon or kill her piglets. Others say to clean stall every few days.

Keep piglets away from all pigs except the mother. Other pigs may kill them. Separation panels should be at least 2 feet tall.

Weaning is done at 4-8 weeks. Weaning is best done by leaving the piglets where they are and taking the mother away. The piglets should be eating well before weaning. Piglets should get milk in their feed but not much soybean meal as they may be allergic to it. You can wean bigger piglets before smaller piglets to let the small piglets gain more weight.

A few days before weaning decrease the sow’s calories but increase the fiber. Continue this until the udder has dried up. It’s best if sow and piglets can’t see or hear each other.