ELEVEN PIGLETS

Last night around midnight Molly gave birth to eleven good sized little piglets. I was caught by surprise by the numbers and only had one small  towel with me. This got damp fairly fast drying off one piglet after the other. So I took off my shirt and used that as well, by baby number ten that was damp so I took off my singlet and dried the last two off with that dressed in my work pants and sports bra. Luckily after baby number eleven she gave a big sigh wriggled over further so the piglets could reach her lower line of teats easier and went to sleep because I was running out of clothing.

They were pushed out every which way. Bottom first, head first, feet first. (This is quite normal).   They were all born vigorous and hungry, all dried and drinking within a minute of their birth.

Eleven is a lot of piglets and of course with the increased numbers there is the increased risk of being stood on or layed on.  But when I went back out at 4am to very, very quietly check them she had shifted them all away from the bloody birthing bed (she had made quite a  big bed with fresh grasses and weeds that she had carried in from outside) and all eleven were safe and drinking.  They have a warm light set up in their creep but for the first day or so they will stick pretty close to their mother drinking almost non stop.  I will have to show them the  tiny doorway to the warm safe space later on but they will not leave her at nap time quite yet.

Because I do not cage the sow for her farrowing there is always a risk of her accidently killing or injuring piglets when she moves around so the first few days are tense ones until they learn to go and sleep in their creep away from her feet.  Bright piglets will get out of her way.  And an aware mother will not lie down where they are gathered.  But we will see.

She has piles of food so she does not get up  in a hurry when she sees me and she will be left strictly alone, no visitors for the first few days  so she and the piglets can develop a safe rhythm.  Hopefully she is a good Mum.  And hopefully I can get a few sneaky shots for you today.

There is one snap shot on Instagram taken in the night but it is from a distance.

I am dog tired now, and am going to close my eyes for thirty minutes before I get up for the milking.

I hope you have a good day.

Love celi