I'm considering ringing my 2 sows and 1 boar to keep them from rooting up their new pens so badly. Does anyone else do this? Any advice?

-- Lynne (boodad@us.inter.net), August 09, 2001

Answers

I have an opinion... Pigs get great mental/emotional satisfaction from rooting in the dirt. Also, they get important minerals this way. Yes, it messes up the yard, but hey, considering what the pigs are going to give YOU before too long, allowing them the luxury of satisfying this instinct is not much to ask, is it? Just change your expectation of what the pig area should look like...if you know how much contentment the piggies get from rooting, the churned earth can be looked at as a sign of how happy your pigs are!

-- Shannon at Grateful Acres Animal Sanctuary (gratacres@aol.com), August 10, 2001.

I have a sow thats now 11 mnths old.. When it was 2 1/2 months old i put 3 tiny rings in it nose.. now it roams freely with the dogs and sleeps in a stall.. I just received my second piglet wed. and I'm going to wait until she's 2 1/2 months also.. I was going to try a large one through the center of nostrils but i'll have to ask more on that one... The 11 mnth old one is doing just fine.. it gets enough of everything in it's mud hole.. She's now 275 pds easy and my yard looks fine.. good luck..

-- maureen (onemaur@yahoo.com), August 10, 2001.

We used to raise pigs and ringed every nose at 2 1/2 - 3 months old ... hurt the pigs and the pig pen still looked like a pig pen.

One of the things we're going to do is put 2-4 pigs in a movable pen (like a chicken tractor ... same concept) and let them work up our one-acre garden space :-). When we get more pigs we have plenty of pasture earmarked for them to run on. They're gonna root, but they'll be happy and healthy that way, and to me that's most important.

-- Phil in KS (pemccoy@yahoo.com), August 10, 2001.

I like the moveable pen idea, but I have to admit I'm a little afraid to try to move these hogs. That's just it, they're H-O-G-S hogs, 300 to 500 lbs. If they ever figure out that they can get past me I'm done for. I don't mind the pig pen look, but we're talking major excavation. Do rings have to be replaced periodically?

-- Lynne (boodad@us.inter.net), August 10, 2001.

At 300-500lbs its freezer time .Is there a reason you are keeping them ?

-- Patty {NY State} (fodfarms@slic.com), August 10, 2001.

Lynne, I also have two sows and a boar ( VERY LARGE ANIMALS! ) I don't ring them, I use them every fall to dig up my garden. I have raised mine from birth so they are real gentle. I am lucky enough to be able to coax them around the farm with a potato chip or cookie trail! I don't think you have to replace the rings unless they get hooked on something and come out. Mine do LOVE to root up their pen, but the fresh organic pork I raise is worth the trouble! Good luck!

-- cowgirlone (cowgirlone47@hotmail.com), August 10, 2001.

Just a note.... another great way to coax pigs around is with eggs. They LOVE 'em! And you'll get a good laugh if you've never seen a pig pucker to suck up an egg! It's hilarious!

-- Cheryl in KS (cherylmccoy@rocketmail.com), August 10, 2001.

My piglet was to be a pet, so I asked the breeder about the ring in the nose. He doesn't do it until the pigs are 6 months old.

For the next 5 months, the pig didn't do much rooting, perhaps due to his needs being met....his swimming pool, free feeding, coming into the house and leaving on his own whenever he wished, etc. His laying spot is the only area he worked, like a horse does for his laying spot.

The ring was put in at 6 months and recently fell out ~ 3 years and 700 pounds later. He still only works his laying spot.

-- ~Rogo (rogo2020@yahoo.com), August 11, 2001.

rogo, ....a 700 lb hog in the house??? Wow. Totally awesome, man!

Hope you have strong floors.

-- daffodyllady (daffodyllady@yahoo.com), August 11, 2001.

Patty, these are breeding animals.

-- Lynne (boodad@us.inter.net), August 12, 2001.

=== rogo, ....a 700 lb hog in the house??? Wow. Totally awesome, man! Hope you have strong floors. ===

Actually, daffodyllady, the hog quit coming in the house when he was about one year old. Even with central air conditioning, I guess it's too warm for him. You'd think with 100º temperatures outside that he'd prefer the house, but he prefers his pool (8 foot round tank, one foot high.) And he spends a good amount of time grazing the 30 acres of Coastal grass.

If you think about it, 4 two hundred pound men would weigh more than the hog. So having a few folks in your house is no different! I'd rather have the hog in the house! -LOL-

-- ~Rogo (rogo2020@yahoo.com), August 13, 2001.