Rooster Herding Pigs

[wallace]

The pigs got out in the road this morning and Rooster set off the alarm. Then he helped round them up... in his own roundabout way.

[Mugwump]

...A for effort...

[LizStreithorst]

good looking pigs.  What breed are they?

[BillT]

I was hoping to see an actual rooster doing this!

[wallace]

good looking pigs.  What breed are they?

They have wattles Liz. Does that mean they must be Red Wattle pigs?

[wsantia1]

I was hoping to see an actual rooster doing this!

+1

[Mugwump]

I was hoping to see an actual rooster doing this!

+1

....the crossed my mind too, upon first reading that.....LOL

[wallace]

I was hoping to see an actual rooster doing this!

Next time the piggies get out I'll see if that can be arranged.

There probably will be another escape. Pigs get really strong as they reach maturity and they can lift just about any fence off the ground. We are better at this than we used to be. The first time we had pigs they were always out, tearing up the lawn and the garden... they are smart enough to learn that they don't have to go back in their pen just because you want them to. You don't want them to figure that out.

[LizStreithorst]

Try an electric fence wire close to the ground.

[wallace]

I've been tazed so many times by electric fences that I have come to hate them. Fixing the weak spot in the fence will do for now.. maybe.. sorta

[LizStreithorst]

I've been knocked for a loop many times myself.  I had goats.  I would like to know how you try to fix your problem. 

I like your pigs.  What breed are they?

[wallace]

It looks like the bottom of the gate was loose enough for them to get a snout into the crack and push. I added a second hook to the lower part of the gate.

They have wattles... not sure, maybe they are red wattle pigs.

[LizStreithorst]

They may be a cross.  The Red Wattles from back in my day were short and fat.  Yours are long and lean.  Nice pigs.

[wallace]

A strange thing happened with the pigs. They won't drink out of their water tube. The water supply for them is a 5 foot length of 6" PVC, capped on the bottom and sitting vertical, attached to the fence. About a foot above the ground is a metal spout tapped into the pipe, the kind they wiggle with their mouth to get water. Pigs are smart animals. I think they are afraid to touch it.

At first I thought the spout was frozen and their tongue stuck to it, like the kid in the movie. But now I think its something else. I have a heater inside, one of those made for horse troughs that comes on at 36F to keep the water thawed. It must have leaked some current. It would be like putting your tongue on a 9-volt battery. I can test for voltage, or replace the heater, but they will probably never touch it again. We have to use a bucket.

[LizStreithorst]

I think you're right.  They'll never trust it again.