Farrowing due soon
9 12 2007
Daisy, the most recent addition to our herd of pedigree Berkshire pigs, has come inside to the farrowing pen to be fed up for a week or two before farrowing. I brought her in with the help of the Wee ‘Un, although he doesn’t get to herd her as he does with the sows that have been with us since they were weaners. He’s very adept at getting gates lined up to settle on their hinges, at walking along one side of a fence with a feed bucket while the sow follows on the other side, and at opening or closing gates exactly when needed.
As with all our sows, Daisy quickly settled in. The trick is to bring sows in when they’re ready to go off on their own and prepare to farrow. If the sow is brought in too soon, she paces and frets in the pen; if you leave it too late you may find her making a nest in the mud or turfing the other pigs out of the arc. If the timing is right, the sow readily comes inside, creates a nest and spends the following week or two doing little more than eat, sleep and grow. Daisy quickly decided this was indeed the life for her!
How lovely - she looks very comfy !
‘Farrowing is the term for a pig giving birth’. I’ve learnt something today & now your entry makes sense. Did you know that the term ‘confinement’ came from the years of Henry VIII when there was a superstition that women in their last weeks of pregnancy should be kept away from all things male. This included only feeding them meat from female animals.