This is my first time going to an auction.. I have a pig someone had given my... Now i want a piglet.. The big one is going to market..i have never given any shots to the one i have... The people who gave it to us said not to worry everything was taken care of.. She was 3 months at the time... Thanks for the info.. JAMES

-- JAMES (onemaur@yahoo.com), August 06, 2001

Answers

find out if it had its shots.

-- stan (sopal@net-port.com), August 06, 2001.

I have never given any pigs shots .Newborns sometimes need iron .Auction pigs will be weiners 30-40 and should be fine.

-- Patty {NY State} (fodfarms@slic.com), August 06, 2001.

James, If you are going to a Commercial Livestock Auction you may find that the Feeder Hogs will be sold in lots of 10 - 20. If their is a lot of individual buyers the smaller lots will bring more money per pound than the larger lots.

If you have never been to the Auction before it may be a good idea to visit the Auction a few times before buying to see how things work, to familier yourself with the prices. Watch the hogs and find what common look the higher price pigs bring and when your ready to buy try to pick out hogs that look similar.

Try to get to the Auction Barn early and watch the hogs as they are unloaded this way you can get a closer look at the hogs. Look at the truck and trailer that delivers the hogs, is the trailer clean or filled with old crap, does the truck look clean and maintained? Some times this can give you an idea as how he cares for his livestock. Look at the hogs and see if their eyes are clear, noses not runny.

For your question about shots, I would not worry much about them if the hogs appear healthy. When I raised hogs the only shot I ever gave the piglets was an iron shot shortly after they were born. Some folks when they buy Livestock at an Auction they automaticly give them an antibiotic shot in case they picked something up in the sale barn. When you get them home just keep them seperated from other animals for a week or 10 days and keep  your eye on them to see if anything developes. This is also a good time to worm them.

A couple times a year I go to the Auction and buy myself 15 - 20 feeder hogs, put an ad in the paper and sell what I don't need and make myself a small profit. If I don't sell them all I will return what I have left to the Auction in a couple of weeks after they have gained a few pounds and get my money back plus a few extra $$$.

Good Luck and I hope this Info you find helpfull!

-- Mark in N.C. Fla. (deadgoatman@webtv.net), August 06, 2001.

I don't vaccinate a lot, but we still get some atrophic rhinitis in Oklahoma and although not fatal, it's kind of ugly and can be vaccinated against. I'd definately quarantine anything I brought home from the sale barn for a week or so.

-- Lynne (boodad@us.inter.net), August 07, 2001.

Be aware of pseudorabies. If you are unfamilier with the disease just type the name into your search program. This is a serious concern in the Midwest.

-- Nancy Bakke-McGonigle MN. Sunset (dmcgonig@smig.net), August 07, 2001.

Most of my problems with going to auction for pigs is finding a small enough group. Where I live, the usual sale batch has at least ten pigs. I have gotten lucky, but it took sitting through quite a few sales, and many of the animals looked pretty rough. (sunburn, chewed up ears, raw patches of skin, etc.) You may have better luck finding a local pig farmer, and buying straight from their farm. Also, I would recommend getting two, one pig gets lonely, and a bored pig is a pig looking for a way to escape. Besides, I never get enough chops and loin out of just one critter. = )

-- Connie (Connie@lunehaven.com), August 12, 2001.