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South Central, Iowa | Sorry to hear about your experience. Gilts are always tough to farrow. I've had a couple that seemed alright, started nursing, and then a day later were goners. Oxytocin is alright, but with that you've got to really use discretion with it. Oxytocin causes tight short contractions of the uterus which in some cases is not beneficial to getting the pigs out, in those cases, lutalyse is a better option as it creates slower contractions and doesn't constrict the uterus. Pig pullers are great and often times can be a life saver...literally. Lube is a must if you're pulling pigs, the less friction the better. Even when using lube, you've got to be careful not to go in too far and tear the sow up. But, sometimes that's almost inevitable with gilts. Even had she survived, her breed back would have been difficult.
Sometimes those hard lessons are better to learn young, doesn't make it any easier though. I had lambs in 4H and lost one my very first year, that'll ruin your day especially when your sister brings home the blue ribbon you could have had. | |
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rough night...anybody up that knows pigs?
