Lately, I have been trying my best to keep extra weight on our pigs with borderline results. I can see a difference in a few of my pigs but not all. There are some that I just can’t seem to get out of skinny mode. The cold weather definitely does not help. I don’t think it’s a good idea to separate them because of the cold, as It’s nice to have others to cuddle with when the temperatures really drop, but I may end up having to. I have multiple feed bins scattered so they are not hogging up the feed and can all eat without being interrupted by each other. They have all been treated for parasites and have larger than normal pens. I’m wondering if room to run is my problem? I doubt that though. They do get a lot of exercise as they can run around and chase each other, but I don’t think that should make an impact in difference. I feed them twice a day, a scoop for each (a scoop=3 quarts) on both feeding times. Now, they did come from a hotter climate than what we have here, maybe they are still not used to it?

We gave our neighbors a pig and theirs is massive. She would be ready for butcher now and would yield a great amount of meat. For them, that would suffice for a very long time. I’m just baffled at my inability to get some extra weight on our pigs.

We make a slop that consists of, cracked corn, whole corn, sweet feed and hog feed that is soaked in water. We’ve tried adding dried beet pulp and they did not like it. I soaked those as well and they would always eat everything else and leave that behind.

Why do I want them to gain some weight? We are for now not using any for butcher, except a male that’s going to be roasted on Christmas Eve. I am keeping this bunch for breeding purposes. I’d like to make some extra money selling some piglets and keeping some for future butcher. The main reasoning for me wanting them to bulk up is the winter. I don’t want them struggling to keep warm. It makes it harder for them to maintain their weight. Precious has no problem with the cold. She is constantly in her water wallowing in it. It doesn’t bother her one bit, while the others don’t even dare to take a dip.

This post is meant to share my frustrations and concerns with getting some of the pigs to a comfortable weight. I can’t seem to find that sweet spot. It’s a goal I’ve set out for the pigs. This is a new experience for me, even though I have dealt with pigs all of my life, but rationing feed and knowing how much to feed each pig is all new to me. I think I’m doing ok but not where I would like them to be.

The two females I have separate seem to be the only ones that are gaining weight. like I said, I may need to consider separating the others into couples. This will definitely complicate things for me.

The chickens, goats and ducks are all doing great. They’ve been so much easier to up keep for me! I think I’m on the right track, and time will tell if I’m feeding correctly. I’ll keep you all posted! Remember, we are new to a lot of things. Right now, this is a learning experience with the pigs. We are on our first year with pigs, second year with goats, third year with ducks and fourth year with chickens. We’ve learned so much and continue to gain experiences and knowledge with time.

Until next time folks, God Bless!

-Cristina