# Is 2 farrowing sows per pen OK?



## ONG2 (Sep 22, 2010)

Hi folks,

We have 2 ABG sows that are due around the 22nd of March. We moved them both away from their guys this weekend and now have both of them in 15' by 30' pen. 

Will having them in the same pen be a problem? or should we make 2 separate pens and separate them?

Thanks in advance.

ONG


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## HeritagePigs (Aug 11, 2009)

2 separate pens. Imagine 20 piglets trying to suckle on one sow.


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## ONG2 (Sep 22, 2010)

Had not thought about that, thanks! Hope we have 20 that would be great.


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## olivehill (Aug 17, 2009)

Okay, my mind is drawing a blank, ABG?


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## tinknal (May 21, 2004)

When the younger pigs are 4 weeks old you should be able to run them together.


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## Ronney (Nov 26, 2004)

olivehill said:


> Okay, my mind is drawing a blank, ABG?


Thankyou, so is mine:grin:

ONG, I have done it but it was more by accident than design - and as it turned out, it worked very well. I had two sows (sisters) running in the same paddock and knew exactly when they had gone to the boar. Four days before farrowing I went to seperate them only to find that one had farrowed during the night and the other was well advanced in labour. Discretion being the better part of valour, I decided to leave them to it. Between them they had 20 piglets and both sows reared both lots of piglets between them. By the time they were weaned I had no idea which piglet belonged to which sow other than a little fellow with a spot of black on him - and I doubt the sows knew which owned what either. These two sows spent the rest of their breeding lives farrowing together and rearing each others piglets. I still have one of them - she is 14 years old.

The other interesting situation was having two unrelated sows in two pens with a gate between them that was 6" above ground level. They farrowed within 24 hours of each other and from day 3 the piglets started to run under the gate from pen to pen. Because one of these sows was a Lge White and the other a Duroc it wasn't hard to know which piglets belonged to which sow - and both sows reared each others. At the end of day 7 I opened the gate between the pens and both sows shared piglet rearing duties. 

So it can be done but I don't know what the criteria is that makes it successful. Personally, I would leave the sows together but make sure that when farrowing time comes around there will be plenty of room for both sows to do so. I spent a lot of time in another life watching wild pigs and they happily farrow with other sows, previous litters and boars in close proximity.


Cheers,
Ronnie


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## linn (Jul 19, 2005)

It may be possible, but I don't think it is advisable. By all means run your sows together until a week or so before farrowing and then separate the sows. Each should have their own farrowing area to prevent savaging by the other sow or the pigs being killed during a squabble between sows or by a nervous mother disturbed by the presence of another sow.


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## Farmerga (May 6, 2010)

I have two berk sows that always have their piglets together. I have had no problems.

http://www.dostersheritagefarm.com


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## DWH Farm (Sep 1, 2010)

We have had this happen twice and both times all of the piglets have ended up on one sow. We will be careful to get everyone separated in the future but it sounds like it works for some..


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## ONG2 (Sep 22, 2010)

olivehill said:


> Okay, my mind is drawing a blank, ABG?



Sorry for the mental strain that I caused. AGH is what I should have written. American Guinea Hog. My mind throws a B for Black in there every once in a while. 

Folks thanks for sharing your different experiences. I have to be extra careful that the sows don't start switching babies on us as they are all registered. 

When I started this thread it never dawned on me that they might not be fussy about who stepped up to the milk bar. I was more worried about just the opposite happening.

Anyhow they are now in separate pens and we are going to run chicken wire along the bottom of the gates to keep all the kids in their own yard, so to speak. 

Thanks again.


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## highlands (Jul 18, 2004)

If they are exactly syncronized then it may work but better not when farrowing. A week after farrowing or so sows normally join litters with other sows at similar stages out on pasture.

Cheers

-Walter
Sugar Mountain Farm
Pastured Pigs, Sheep & Kids
in the mountains of Vermont
Read about our on-farm butcher shop project:
http://SugarMtnFarm.com/butchershop
http://SugarMtnFarm.com/csa


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## RW kansas hogs (Nov 19, 2010)

Some people farrow two sows together if they know that one sow is prone to having small liters and the other a large liter, That way there is enough teets for the piglets.


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## matt_man (Feb 11, 2006)

Our sows run together and have farrowed together. They usually share the piglets without problems. They have a large pen but right now we only have 1 shelter that they have partially destroyed during the winter. We will have extra shelters for them this time around because last spring the young first time gilt did lay on some of the older sows piglets (she hadn't farrowed herself yet - just vying for space in the hut).


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## springvalley (Jun 23, 2009)

HeritagePigs said:


> 2 separate pens. Imagine 20 piglets trying to suckle on one sow.


Had this happen once Brian, had a sow have 22 pigs herself one time, we farmed them out to other mothers, so we saved more that way. > Marc


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## Mare Owner (Feb 20, 2008)

If you plan to register the piglets, yes, definitely separate so you can get them notched or tagged and registered.

I have Guineas and the ones that farrow out on pasture do bring them back into the large group after a week or so, and then they swap with eachother and you can't tell who belongs to who (they are all black pigs and black piglets!). This is no problem for the ones I raise as feeders that won't get registered, and I personally prefer it to penning them separate.

Be careful using chicken wire with hogs, they will put their nose under and crinkle it right up with no effort at all.


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