Raising pigs for meat

[FT Chickens]

hi everybody in addition to beginning raising chickens for eggs we decided to raise two pigs for meat. I was thinking of pouring a 8'x10' slab of concrete and making 5'x8' of it 3 and a half sided shelter. Would this be good size? Should I put the watered and feeder inside or outside of shelter? This set up would be for the summer months only, I don't want to mess with frozen waterers. Thanks for tips or design ideas.

 

[True Patriot]

I would first find the maximum size of the breed you're choosing. The shelter would be sized according to that. Feed and water outside, keeps the worst of the mess out of the bedding. And concrete would have to have a muck trough poured in with a suitable catch basin for daily cleaning. Water run to the pen is a good idea also. A concrete pen will need fairly frequent wash down.

 

[FT Chickens]

Thanks

 

[arrowti]

Our pig has the ground as the bottom of her shelter. It's covered in a good layer of hay that she moves around as she wants. There are walls on three sides and a roof, with the front open. Size is definitely dependent on the breed and number of pigs. I've found that the pigs don't always sleep in their shelter, especially during the summer.

Water and food belongs outside to avoid spillage. They just love to knock over their bowls.

We also have 'A-Frames' scattered throughout. Basically just triangular huts, covered in a tarp. They sometimes sleep in those instead of in their shelter. You won't need anything too fancy for pigs if you're just raising them in the summer.

 

[Juanita37]

Our pen is half inside, half outside, just bare ground. Feed troughs stay outside and we use a water tank, tubes and pig waterers. Way less mess. Mine free ranged a lot but if they stayed in, I did put some extra water in their pen to cool them.

 

[FT Chickens]

Our pen is half inside, half outside, just bare ground. Feed troughs stay outside and we use a water tank, tubes and pig waterers. Way less mess. Mine free ranged a lot but if they stayed in, I did put some extra water in their pen to cool them.

Being on bare ground do you have a problem with them rooting and digging? Turning it into a mudd pit?

 

[arrowti]

My pigs never really rooted or dug around inside their house. They do that outside. They will do minimal 'rooting' inside, mostly to make a hollow 'ditch' that they then fill and surround with hay for their nest.

 

[FT Chickens]

Thanks

 

[FT Chickens]

Thanks

 

[Juanita37]

Being on bare ground do you have a problem with them rooting and digging? Turning it into a mudd pit?

They would make a mud pit but it was just in one area. They rooted a bit inside but not much at all. When I let them out to free range, they would root like crazy.