TanksHill...Roll on!!

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Blackbird

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What is a T-post? I am refering to regular steel fence posts.

Kind of hard to explain, pretend this is your pen;

_
|_|

Now, just add the other three panels to the right like;
_ _
|_|_|

then you can take the three panels on the left off, and repeat again and again once mr. or mrs. pig eats all the roots, etc.

We have two fence posts per panel, otherwise they won't be sturdy enough.

They're gonna be making a nice pit for you wherever the pen is though. I'd say this is a perfect set up for turning lawn into a garden though :lol:
 

freemotion

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Any danger of them digging under and getting out? And are coyotes a problem with piggies? We have coyotes here. I like the rotating pen thing. I would use them to reclaim some parts of my pasture that need better topsoil....pigify them, then plant them with desirable plants. Or maybe I would use them to clean up the wooded areas.
 

Farmfresh

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Everything I have ever read about pigs refers to their need to be social. All the books seem to indicate you really need TWO pigs to thrive. I have never had any so I am pignorant too. (by the way we need to add that one to the dictionary as well! :p)

I would also consider electric netting for the pen. I have used it with my turkeys and chickens and it is CHEAP, very easy to move and it works! http://www.premier1supplies.com/fencing.php?species_id=2 :thumbsup
 

Blackbird

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Ours never did, and it sat there all summer!

They have they U shaped bolts that can be used to attach panels at the corners, and that would be great alone, but unless there are posts holding the panels down the pigs will be able to nudge their snouts under and get themselves out.

We never had any problems with coyotes going after pigs, and we have lots.. When Izzy was a puppy she went in and they almost killed her, scared her enough that she never went in again.

Although, my distant-somehow-related-cousin Becky had two pot belly pigs, well they got HUGELY ginormous, for a pot belly. One day one somehow got out and then never seen it for many months, the entire summer it sounded like, this was last year. When the pig returned it had a huge chunk missing from its back and a nasty scab. I don't know if she had those two still or not.

On the other hand, my brother-in-laws-uncle, Somethingorother, raised several pigs - when he went to butcher one he shot it in the head with a shotgun. The only thing he managed to do what tick it off and almost get himself killed.

:idunno
 

TanksHill

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Hang on there Bee... Don't get too excited. I got the Storeys guide to raising pigs like 4 years ago. Still no pigs. My husband is not ready for the commitment that comes with milking goats. He made a comment that sounded something like. "Why don't you just get a pig it will only take a few months and then we can put it in the freezer."

Just exploring the possibilities. If I am not mistaken, Storey's says to put the pig near the garden so yo can give it all the scraps. Then the following year switch the pig and garden sites. So the garden is fertilized and ready to roll. Would work great except my gardens are in raised beds.

Second, what do I do about my hill? Can a pig live on a slope? I have a couple areas that are not that bad. But still sloped. I don't think dh will let me put him in the yard where the garden is.

I think what sparked the whole thing is I came across that pen on Craigslist. It just looks really sturdy and ready to go. But from what BB says it would need to be anchored so the big pig does not get out. And maybe it's not big enough? I guess two pigs would be better maybe I could sell some of the meat.

Now I am really getting ahead of myself. :smack
 

ohiofarmgirl

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get pigs! get pigs! get pigs!

the best advice i got was not to over think it and just do it. we probably wont ever NOT have them - honestly i think they are easier than chickens. and if you grow your own stuff - or know people who own farm stands etc they can be wildly easy and cheap to feed.

your hubby is actually right ... a couple months.. bing bang boom and its bacon for all your friends.

a couple things we learned:
* they are hard to move around so pick a spot and keep them there. we have ours in the extreme lower end of the chicken yard - separated by electric which is wildly easier that hog panels
* i wouldnt put them near the garden - if they get out it would be devastated in a hot second... its easy enough just to put stuff in a bucket and walk it down to them
* wow if you already have milk goats you are in the money - ours have exploded with the milk + corn + a bit of calf manna.. throw in some hard boiled eggs and we are on a fast path for butchering the first week of nov
* yes you can put them on a hill - just make sure they have somewhere dry to sleep. we put together the "hog hut 2008" with found materials (some of which i dug out of the ground) and it works like a charm
* one pig would be fine, i mean what's the worst thing? it will need therapy? ;-) just kiddin but we have never regretted having 2. we trade - not sell for all kinds of stuff. and wow do we have a lot of friends now because of it! between the 2 of us we have finished off both of the feeder pigs we butchered last year.

last...

unlike everything i heard (anecdotally) i did NOT fall in love with them. in fact i kinda hated them...but love the bacon enough to put up with their piggy badness. they are not dogs nor like dogs but they do have personality.

a word of warning - we butchered ours at about 280lbs..which is pretty big compared to the smaller livestock that we've had. i never go near them without my big dogs and a stick. be careful if you have kids. the neighbor 4H kids show hogs so they are socialized, but ours are not snuggled...and wow they are strong.

so my advice is - dont over think it, girl. go and get yer pigs!
 

Quail_Antwerp

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I WANT PIGS! :hit

<<<<<<<< Quail, who's fighting some serious piggy jealousy.......


We'd hoped to get a couple this fall, it just didn't work out yet.
Maybe next year?
 

freemotion

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If you get babies in the spring, say May, how big should they be by the end of October? I know it depends on breed, but give me an idea, if you can. And how much meat/fat will come from that pig? 280 lbs of live pig = ____lbs of meat and ____lbs of fat???
 
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