Hmmm, when the close to 400 pd expecting and I am pretty sure in labour pig breaks out, and decides that she is going to dig her own ditch to be in, no amount of bribes, cookies, water or feed means the slightess thing to her.. so what heck can I do.. I built a panel pen around her chosen spot, hauled her fresh water,picked up the rocks that she had flung out of the dug bed and wait for J to come home and hope to heck that with two of us, we can have better luck then I did..
At least watching her was interesting, the dug bed had to be two full bodies long, a body and half wide, and half a body deep, with flattened and packed slooped sides.
Having said that, I really want her to birth in the just cleaned, fluffy bedding in her pen..
Pigs can be quite dangerous, and new mothers can be awesome or they can turn on a dime and become the most stubborn, protective homorone filled bear of a momma, and the idea of trying to move the piglets crying is just bad news all the way around, I like birthing to be calm and relaxed as it can be..
Update two: I would love to tell you that Dh coming home made the differance but I would be telling a tall tale, I would like to tell you that I figure it out, but again.. not so.. Miss Piggy just stood up, walked to the gate that I had not closed, gave a push, and went around the barn, into the barn, down to her stall and walked in and had a drink, at which time I close the gate which I had already fixed and which is currently being re-enforced by DH right now..
Two hours of work in part of the hottest part of the day, and in the end, she just say.. naa, I will head back to my pen, thanks for the visit.. Update to follow..
Just another Day on the Farm 
Well, I guess she tried it the old fashioned way and decided home comforts was the way to go LOL. Bless her, I hope she feels she’s done her duty by digging herself a trough, even if she chose not to use it! Looking forward to little piggy pictures ( Yes, I know they’re food, but they’re still cute as buttons )
O I hear you Queen, I am going to enjoy them as much as possable, I loved my house time with miss piggy, they sold her to me so young, and as a single piglet, I just could not put her out till she grew a little, so it would honestly not break my heart 🙂 if I had a little bottle piglet for x amount of weeks.. but I won’t wish for it, ideally all on mom and all doing well! Cute as buttons is right and so sweet and smart, pigs are very hard one for me, but I do like my pork..
Do post pics. I have fond memories of bottle feeding piglets:)
Lots of photos to be sure, I adore baby piglets and want to raise up calm and easy going little ones, just like their momma is, Angelo seems a little lost these days, but at least they can talk back and forth and I will move him out to a outside area I want him digging in and once he gets busy enough, he won’t care so much 🙂
Well – that was an interesting day and I think you came up with a very good temporary solution. Thankfully Miss Piggy had the sense to come on home!
Its been a good day, had 3200 hundred gallons of water delivered this morning, spent a good part of my afternoon watching a pig dig LOL She is currently moving bedding around the pen and I don’t think she thought we had enough so we have added in another two full wheelbarrels full, and now its just a wait and see game..
Likely she just is ‘nesting’ like all mothers-to-be: that urge to just clean, clean, just before going into labour! And home in her pen sounds comforting…….
Ah pregnant females… (What can you say?; )
Good luck you all!
Well, after a number of checks, I have a still what looks like a bigger, milked up grunting but calm large black sow who looks at us out of the middle of a big old pile of bedding..hmmm, no little ones to report yet but we both agree that she has more “teat” then yesterday.. It has to be just a matter of time.. If she is not stressed, I’m not stressed..