Piglets on the move

I hear the piglets are moving up here

Lets go, here we come

No one said about ear tags

I can't believe he put me in a bin

let us out we promise not to do a runner

Alright we will stay if you give us grass

 lets go

Oh your that side and we are this side

That's better now we are together again

Piglet moving day was yesterday after spending a while on their own getting use to life without mum and the electric fence the piglets were fed in the trailer ready to be caught and taken up the hill to new enclosures, three in one and four in another. We have found putting them in small groups makes for less fights over food and bullying not to mention as they get bigger a bit less intimidating for us, believe me you wouldn't want to fall over in a enclosure full of pigs, you must of heard about the American farmer who fed his pigs the poor ladies he killed.

So trained fooled into the trailer the gate was shut on them as farmer J put a ear tag in each, boy the noise just as well its only one ear these piglets do scream which alerts all the other pigs who in turn start grunting, getting concerned about fellow piggies in trouble.

Once tagged the issue of moving was next now in the past the trailer has been brought up the hill with the ramp let down over the electric fence, this wasn't going to work this time due to the layout of the enclosures they were going in. Next plan to carry them individually in crates up the hill, this has been done before in the crates we use for chickens, however the piglets were just a tad too big. Milo's old dog crate has also been tried however as dog crated are held together with clips they are not strong enough for 15kg pigs, crate folded in on itself - think again.

A plastic storage box was brought although after number three had to be ditched as it ended up with its lid being cracked by snouts trying to emerge from it. there comes in the bin used for storing feed in perfect as high sided they cant jump out and just big enough to fit in. Seven times poor farmer J mounted the hill.

It all went a bit pear shape with the first piglet running straight out through the electric fencing to the three in the first photo, luckily he wasn't hurt and was quickly manhandled back into the cabin where I kept a pallet over the entrance as each pig was put in. For them to calm down they were kept in the cabins for a couple of hours then let out, all well apart from after a few minutes the four shot through the electric fence to be with the three brothers.

So we are back to seven in one enclosure, they are happy so we are not separating them just yet we will leave it a while until the time has comes when they either no longer fit in the cabin or start fighting with each other. At least they are up in the top enclosure making room for the maternity suite to be cleaned and got ready for Sandy's next litter.

That's me Sandy although a bit muddy at the moment