What We Have Learned So Far: PIGS 1

We got pigs two weeks ago - three gilts (intact females) from a man (Mr. Larsen) that I met around the corner from our butcher (Eagle Bridge Smokehouse). We had to wait longer than we wanted, but when we got them, 11 of the 12 goats had birthed. I guess that was a good time to start another set of animals!


We set up the pigs inside of temporary electric netting from Premier1. The rule-of-thumb is that pigs must be trained to electric fencing. Mr. Larsen had the pigs on a 12" single electric wire, so the girls knew about it. But to be sure we could train them to the white fencing, we put them inside of one of the goat paddocks for a week. They tilled the beejesus out of the ground under their shelter (the pigloo) and some of the fenced area (about 20% of their 40' by 40').


What We Have Learned

1. Pigs really, really do till very well. Make sure you have pasture seed mix to lay down after you move them.
2. They can be friendly enough that you can reach down and pick them up by their rear hoofs, one pig at a time.
   
3. They can scream a bloodcurdling shriek when scared. Amazingly loudly. Make sure the neighbors know you are not practicing vivisection on them.
   
4. Keep them a little hungry and they will do a little more tilling for you.
5. They don't eat oranges or orange peels.
   

References to Pigs

• Monty Python's "Holy Grail" on Youtube - "Camelot, good pig country that." (right at 3:20)
  
• All around the world we luuuvve us some pigmeat (WikiP on Pigs)
• Finally, how "pig in a poke" and "let the cat out of the bag" are related to each other. (WikiP on pig in a poke, in multiple languages!).