Our first 24 hours with pigs

We brought home 2 two-month-old Idaho Pasture Pigs this weekend. Here’s how it went.

We’ve never owned pigs before. We’ve also never managed livestock that will be larger (or as large, with respect to my husband’s size) as us. We’ve never managed livestock with more than 2 legs, unless you count my honey bees. (Honey bees are considered livestock.) As novices in this area, I wanted to share what our first day with pigs was like in case you or someone you know wants to try raising them too. My earlier post all about why I chose Idaho Pasture Pigs goes into finer details about the many benefits of this breed and how they’re a good fit for our property and needs.

Getting them to our property, as with most livestock, required special transportation and consideration to the summer heat and the pigs’ routine. Chickens are best moved at night when they’re easier to manage. For the pigs, we wanted to make sure they were familiar with their new surroundings before dark. We also planned to transport them in the bed of our truck. We wanted to avoid exposing them to the harshest time of the day with direct summer sun for almost an hour drive home, so we coordinated with the farm to move them in early morning. Here’s how our day went:

The evening before the move, we ratchet-strapped a large dog crate to the bed of the truck. The truck bed door would be closed, but we wanted to limit the crate sliding around so that the pigs would be as comfortable as possible.

Forecast: Sunny. High of 96F and a low of 74F with very high humidity.

7:15 a.m. Rolled out of our driveway in Pittsboro, North Carolina. Saw the Chatham County mist rising from a nearby farm pond in the sunrise.

Passed many pretty farms on our drive.

8:10 a.m. Arrived at our favorite coffee shop, Buggy Town Coffee in Carthage, North Carolina. Buggy Town is just a few miles from the farm where our pigs were born. I love their seasonal lattes. Their cold brew horchata has been my top choice this summer. I decided to do the trendy thing and got avocado toast—mainly because I knew it was small and the summer heat makes me lose my appetite. Mike’s top choices are the breakfast burrito and a cinnamon roll—he says they’re the best cinnamon rolls he’s ever had in his life. If you go there, please let me know what you think!

8:40 a.m. Arrived at The Sarcastic Sow Farm and backed the truck up to a small pet crate where the pigs were waiting for us. Sandy, one of the owners, moved the pigs from their pet crate into the crate in the back of our truck. She also portioned off a week’s worth of feed for them because our feed order wouldn’t be ready from the mill for another five days. Sandy feeds all of her pigs a non-GMO, soy-free swine feed that’s custom-milled here in North Carolina. Fortunately, the store that distributes the feed, Country Farm & Home, is only 3 miles from our house. Also, fortunately, the store offered to increase the milling so that we can get a portion of Sandy’s same feed every month. We spent some time with Sandy and her husband and they generously shared about the pigs’ feeding routine, their favorite snacks, and what to expect in the first week.

The piglets loaded easily.

9:10 a.m. We left the farm and started our drive home.

10:10 a.m. Made it home with no issues. Parked in the shade to give them a few minutes to rest. Indy, our pup, circled the truck smelling something new, but we didn’t want to stress the pigs out, so we waited until later to give them a visual of each other. I topped off the water bowls while the pigs rested, and then moved Indy into the house.

They cuddled and slept while I got the paddock prepped for them.

10:30 a.m. We lifted the dog crate into their paddock. Mike stayed at the pen entrance, just in case they tried to cross the hot wire. I lifted the back of the crate and slid them to the grass. As soon as they touched the grass, they walked out and cuddled up in the shade of the cherry tree. Mike and I lifted the dog crate out. I hosed it off and set it to dry in the sun.

10:38 a.m. The pigs were in!

Both piglets found a spot in the shade.

10:46 a.m. I brought Indy out on a leash so that everyone could meet each other calmly with the electric fence between them. Indy was curious, but more relaxed than I expected, which was great to see. The pigs also weren’t alarmed or concerned about Indy’s presence. I brought Indy back in the house and gave him a treat. (ICYMI I shared about homemade dog treats in my last post.) All a positive experience.

11:00 a.m. I went out to the farmers market to grab a few things. Pigs were sleeping in the shade.

11:45 a.m. Got home. Pigs were still sleeping in the shade.

1:25 p.m. The pigs had some tree shade up until now. From this point until close to sunset, their current space is in full sun. It wasn’t until the tree shade was completely gone that they ventured over to their shelter for the first time and it became their new favorite snooze spot. (Their shelter was completely free, by the way. I got the tin roof pieces off of our county listserv for free a few years ago. The pallets were extras from the feed store, also free. Mike attached everything together in an A-frame style.) I noticed the pigs had either consumed or dumped half their water, so I topped off both water bowls. We learned when picking them up that cucumbers are one of their favorite snacks. I haven’t grown any, so I bought some at the farmers’ market. I cut one in half to give a piece to each pig, but they were too scare of me to try it. We were told this is totally normal behavior and that it will take a few days for them to associate us with their food.

3:15 p.m. I left for a writers’ potluck in Chapel Hill. Pigs were sleeping in their shelter.

6:00 p.m. Arrived home. Pigs still sleeping in their shelter.

6:55 p.m. Time for their first supper. The farm had explained that they’ve seen the best results with their pigs by feeding them once per day. They shared that evening is ideal. In the summer, it allows the pigs to digest overnight during the cooler time of the day and prevents the extra heat of digestion during the hot summer day. In the winter, the overnight digestion helps keep the pigs warm during the coldest time of the day. Since the days are getting shorter, we decided we’ll try and aim for their dinner time during the hour before sunset. Right now the pigs are about 20 lbs each and they each get 1-to-1.5 lbs of feed per day. I portioned off their meals and brought their bowls in. I brought Mike with me so that the pigs can start associating him with food too. They were curious, but one was more curious than the other. (I’ll share their names at the end.) Once one started to eat, the other came out and they both worked on their own bowls.

Their first meal at home.

7:00 p.m. Mike and I decided it had been a long day and it was too hot to cook, so we went into town to the fantastic Postal Fish Company. (My honey was used in their cocktails before my honey started selling out so quickly.)

7:53 p.m. Arrived home. Mike and I were surprised to see that the pigs hadn’t finished their meals. Almost all of it was gone, but a little bit was left in each bowl. We’re assuming it’s a combination of relocation stress and the heat. We turned all the outside lights on for them to get settled since it was getting dark out.

11:05 p.m. Pigs were sleeping in their shelter. We turned off all the outside lights.

Some overnight rain, mainly drizzles.

Forecast: Sunny with isolated thunderstorms. High of 89F and a low of 72F with very high humidity.

8:09 a.m. Pigs were cuddling in their shelter. I rinsed their feed bowls out and set them to dry, topped off their waters, and brought them a morning treat. We were told that they like melon rinds, and I had bought cantaloupe at the farmers’ market. One was more interested than the other, once again, and took some nibbles, which caused the shy one to get closer for a taste too.

9:55 a.m. Pigs were sleeping in their shelter. I went into town to drop off some honey orders.

We made it through our first 24 hours with pigs! Everyone has told me that pigs are easier than chickens. With just one day down, I totally agree.

Welcome, Fred and Barney. Some Idaho Pasture Pigs have wattles on their neck, which serve no biological function. Barney, the curiously hungry one, has wattles and Fred, the shy one, doesn’t.

Barney is on the left (with chin wattles) and Fred (shy one) is in the back. You’ll notice their snouts are turned up, which is a characteristic of the Idaho Pasture Pig. They thrive more on pasture than rooting.

In this first day we learned that piglets, like all baby animals, like to get their rest. They love the shade. They prefer melon over cucumbers. They eat until they’re content, and they stay hydrated. We already have a lot in common.