Here’s the latest in our Weathering the Winter series where we profile how we take care of our livestock in winter. Today we talk about our pigs! Our American Guinea Hogs are pretty hardy, and there isn’t too much special care they require for winter, but we do make a few management changes.
In warmer weather the pigs forage in the woods via rotational grazing. For winter we bring them closer to home so it’s easier to access them on cold, snowy days.
This year that “close to home” location is the orchard. We’re hoping they convert the grass and weeds that are there into fertilizer for the fruit trees.
Their hoophouse is already sturdy enough for winter weather. Here you can see it covered with snow. For winter, we make sure the house is closed to the north, since that’s the direction where winds come from most often. We don’t want the wind sweeping into the house and making the pigs cold. One addition we make is that we fill the house with hay on a weekly basis. The hay functions as warm bedding for them, helping them stay warm in cold weather. They also eat the hay, which is one reason we replenish it weekly.
Another management change is how we water them. Our usual method of a barrel waterer with pig nipples won’t work in winter because the nipples freeze. In warmer weather, we enjoy the barrel waterer as we only need to refill it every week or two! When temperatures drop we use our winter watering standby: a rubber pan like this one.
We love using these rubber pans as wintertime water bowls! When the water freezes overnight, we can give fresh water in the morning by flipping over the pan, stomping on it to break out the ice, flipping it back over, and refilling it. This does require us to give fresh water on a daily basis. The only challenge to be aware of is that these water bowls can get lost in snow. So if you’re expecting a lot of snow, pickup the bowl beforehand.
Better yet, have your feed/water station in a covered area, like pictured, so it doesn’t get covered in snow.
We continue to feed the pigs once a day, which is the same routine we follow year-round.
Overall the pigs aren’t much extra work in winter. We continue to visit the pen once per day, it’s just that the visit includes watering them in addition to feeding them. There is also the additional weekly task of filling the house with hay. That’s it in terms of winter pig care! We’d love to hear any ideas you have on wintertime pig care, please share them in the comments below.
Pigs eating food scraps in the snow
Be sure to read our other posts on wintertime animal care, where we talk about the special considerations that winter requires for all our livestock.
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