Precious Piglet Videos

Here are a couple of videos of the little cuties.  Enjoy!

First a photo:

Then videos:

Ooops. Sex Change.

When the piglets were born, I didn't want to mess with them too much because it was sooooo cold and I didn't want mama pig to get upset and get up and leave them chilled.  So, what I thought, on cursory inspection, were two boars, I found upon closer inspection, (meaning I scratched their backs and they rolled over for their bellies to be rubbed) to be a boar and a gilt.  

The boar is mostly black and white with some orange splashes.  The gilt is mostly orange with some black spots.  Either one of these will be available for sale in six weeks.  

Photos to follow!  

I'm trying to get the links (in red) above working.  My computer skills are fair at best and I hope to have them linking to the proper pages before too long!

Brrrrr. Again, Piglets Are Doing Well And Growing Fast!

The warm-er temperatures I was promised by the five day forecast didn't come as promised.  Darn it.  But the little piggies are doing fine.  The spent most of their time under the heat lamp and next to they're momma - only running around when she gets up at feeding time.  

I know this picture is pretty crappy.  It was taken through a chicken wire fence and while the piggies were under the heat lamp.  You can see the nursing piglets if you look just left to the center of the picture.  

Cold, Cold Weather, But The Piglets Are Doing Fine!

Sometimes I don't hear from people and I think, "Is anyone even reading my blog?  Am I wasting my time?  Should I give it up?"  Then something happens like it did today.  Running into the grocery store to pick up a couple of gallons of milk (I still wonder if I should get a cow or milking goats!) I ran into a dear gentleman and he asked me about my two piglets and how they're doing.  And I realize that, yes, there are people out there reading this!  It sure does make me feel good!

The piglets grow quickly!  These two little boys are at least a third bigger than they were when they were born.  They are absolutely adorable!  

This nighttime picture of them checking out mom makes their eyes glow. 

This strangely colored picture is under the heat lamps.  After the piglets run around for awhile and get chilled they snuggle down in the hay under the lights.  

I'm not pleased with the quality of these pictures.  I have to pull out my real camera - not my phone camera - and take some decent photos!

I'm happy with the very short noses these boys seem to have.  It seems, that the pigs with a shorter nose tend to not root as much as ones with a longer nose.  

Fortunately, it looks like our temperatures are going to go up for a little while.  Temperatures in the 20s and 30s feel almost balmy!

Flower Has Her Piglets

Hauling buckets of hot water

On January 6, 2015

Flower, our pig, surprised us and had her litter last night. We weren't expecting them for two weeks. Of course it had to be the coldest night of the winter! She had five, but we only have two living. She laid on one and crushed it, one crawled away from her and froze, and one was a runt and had breathing issues. We brought it in and tried to help it, but it didn't make it. So far the other two are doing well and we've put two heat lamps over them and Flower. They help a bit, but it is so very, very cold. I'm happy I threw a giant pile of hay in the stall yesterday and Flower was able to build herself and her babies a nice nest.  We're crossing our fingers. So far the piglets are thriving. I just went out to check them and they're nursing away. Its 10-degrees and feels like - 2 degrees. I'll keep you updated.

January 8, 2015

10:00 a.m.  The temperature is 3-degrees with a windchill of -13 degrees.  The barn is buttoned up as tight as we can make it with hay stuffed under every doorway.  The piglets are doing well.  I tried to take pictures, but the heat lamps make them "weird".  I found one more piglet buried in the hay.  I think it may have been laid upon and suffocated.  So Flower had a total of six piglets.  She won't be bred again until next November so that next time she farrows her piglets in March when it is hopefully warmer.  I'm really happy we put tarpaper around the beehives out back on Sunday when the temperature was in the 50s.  I can see the horses are wearing their blankets.  Tex must have put them on late last night.  The chickens and goats are tucked up and safe indoors today.  

Get More Goats

Since I already have my two sweeties, Rosie and Violet, 

I've thought I would like to breed them. Rosie is a mini boer and Violet is a mini boer-alpine mix.  I think I would like to move into a more milk-producing breed, so I'm looking for a very small, high milk-producing breed of buck.  

I would love any and all suggestions!