Our first pig, Peaches, had her second litter on May 17th. My mom and dad were here for this delivery just as John's parent's were here for Rosie's delivery. Wow, our pigs might be nearing the grandchild category, earning a visit from the grandparents for the big day! How nice... maybe we should work out a deal and have a visit every 3 months, 3 weeks and 3 days on the calendar. Yes, that works for me!
Peaches was such a trooper and so considerate to deliver in the daytime. This is not the norm for most pigs that deliver in a non-commercial setting. I think I accidentally tricked her into thinking it was daytime the night before by using a regular heat lamp instead of the red bulb heat lamp. I decided to use the lower wattage heat lamp since it was almost summer and didn't want to roast the big mama, but the smaller wattage lamp was only available that day in the bright white bulb instead of the red tinted bulb that animals supposedly cannot see. So while she nested during the day and labored all night, it was shining brightly inside the farrowing hut. Then, when morning came, I turned off the light and thought, "Oh well, she's just not ready." Within a couple of hours, as I retired to my bed, piglet number one arrived in the dark shadows of the farrowing hut. Luckily, I decided to get up and check on her one more time before I got some shut eye.
It was my first solo delivery as John had meetings at work that day and could not assist me. Not that Peaches needed my help, but being the gentle giant that she is, she allows our participation. We would like to save every piglet that she has but unfortunately it is common for piglets to be stillborn. This time she delivered 10 piglets and 3 were stillborn. She had a long delivery, but she remained calm, attentive and strong throughout. I can't imagine.... Go girl!
(thanks mom for all the pictures!)
No comments:
Post a Comment