Big Pig Chronicles: I Must be Crazy!

Last week I got an email from our local humane society that they were getting in two pot-bellied piglets - was I interested? The two black males were from several removed from a situation in northern Ontario (that's all I know) and were born April 1, 2007.

So, I rigged a pen for them, reinforcing the cattle panels (larger openings) with 2x4" mesh to a height of 2 feet. I provided a large dog crate, pile of hay, food, water, toys, etc.

The two are inadequately socialized, and pretty scared of people. However, upon release into the pen they seemed curious, tho wary. I was optimistic. This was Friday afternoon.

Saturday evening, around 7 pm, I was in the house and heard a piglet scream. I raced to the barn, fearing something was in Pinky's yard (e.g., a dog), but quickly realized the noise was coming from Daisy's pen.

Lo and behold, the two little piglets had escaped from their pen and were trying to suck up to Daisy - literally I think ... I suspect they came to me right off their mothers. Actually, they seemed to be alternately trying to nurse and hump her! (Boys!). Daisy - who until now had probably though she was the only pig on earth (except for Pinky) - was taking the invasion pretty well - and thankfully only seemed to bark at them.

For whatever reason (I think I believed that they would stay with Daisy), I neglected to close the exterior barn doors (two) before entering the pen to retrieve the piglets. I caught the smaller of the two and carried him back to his pen to shut him in the dog crate, and as I did so, I saw a black streak out of the corner of my eye - running from Daisy's pen and out the door into the hay mow area of the barn - which in turn lead to the Great Outdoors. Sure enough, piglet No. 2 had gone AWOL.

I spent an hour or so trying to locate him in the mow. I thought he might have run between some of the large square bales of hay (5x3x3 feet and too heavy to lift) and was scared to come out. When I found nothing, I decided to leave the barn, hoping that in the quiet he would emerge from the mow and return to his brother (secure in the dog crate). I checked several times through the night, but when he had not shown up by Sunday morning, I decided to move all the hay out, fearing he had become wedged between two bales and couldn't get out. I wasn't ready to face the possiblity he was OUTSIDE - at risk of: donkeys, trains, coyotes, dogs, and who knows what else!

With the tractor, I removed all the large bales from the barn, checking every few bales to see if I could find him. No luck. Feeling like a total failure, I patrolled the pastures, the bush around them, and even checked the railway tracks that we back onto for piglet parts. No sign. I left a note for our nearest neighbour to call if they saw anything.

My sister came over with her kids, and we walked around - looking, listening. The remaining piglet seemed depressed, and had taken to lying inside the dog crate. But by afternoon, he managed to escape AGAIN and return to Daisy's pen. She didn't seem to mind TOO much, so I reinforced her pen door and left him there for the time being.

Note to Self: The mesh on hog panels is not sufficiently fine for PB piglets!

As my sister and I left the barn, we noticed the three donkeys looking intently at something in the treeline of their field. We cautiously approached, and Erica spotted a trembling black shape almost completely buried in some brush. It was him!

Now what to do? I quickly turned off the electric fence, got a broom, and opened the front doors of the barn. Erica tried to grab him in the brush, but he moved off (thankfully tired!). We slowly herded him into the barn, where he rushed to Daisy's pen door and exchanged many happy grunts with his brother. Phew!

Since they obviously wanted to be near Daisy, we sectioned off a corner of her big pen for them, and let them be. The smaller one still manages to squirm through the panel into Daisy's pen - so I put him back - and he does it again. But at least they are safe, and cannot get out of her pen into the larger barn (which is sealed up tight - just in case I'm wrong again!).

The longer term plan is to house them next to Pinky. Once they are neutered and a little bigger, I hope they can co-habit with her and enjoy the Pig Yard together. I think they are all a bit rambunctious for Daisy ... at least as she is now.

Here they are BEFORE the escape. The first escape route was just behind the crate, where they were able to push up some of the 2x4 mesh and crawl under (I swear - 2-3 in room only!)

The one on the left is the one that escaped - he's larger and greyer. I have now named him Truffle - in honour of his adventure in the woods. I have named the other Toad - because he's so h*rny - and I have a soft spot for toads!