# Hauling Pigs in Utility Trailer



## High Stepper Farm (Nov 7, 2017)

I have a plan to make and bolt on side panels for my utility trailer to transport pigs to the butcher in a few weeks. I was thinking 32in high from the floor would suffice. Does this sound about right?


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## M5farm (Jan 14, 2014)

As long as they can stand up in it they will be fine . Some companies make a slide in for utility trailers so you can have a multi purpose trailer


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## High Stepper Farm (Nov 7, 2017)

M5farm said:


> As long as they can stand up in it they will be fine . Some companies make a slide in for utility trailers so you can have a multi purpose trailer


I'm not building a top. Just temporary wood panels on the sides. The slide in would be nice, but I can't find one locally and the fabrication shops around here only deal with big business.


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## M5farm (Jan 14, 2014)

High Stepper Farm said:


> I'm not building a top. Just temporary wood panels on the sides. The slide in would be nice, but I can't find one locally and the fabrication shops around here only deal with big business.


I would go higher without a top, When I ran side bodies on my truck years ago hauling calves ,goats, hogs the bodies were 36" above the side of the truck.


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## High Stepper Farm (Nov 7, 2017)

After reading some other posts on here about how high pigs can jump, I think I will just make a fully enclosed crate that I can take on and off the trailer with the loader. Maybe u-bolt it through the floor or just strap it down. I can also keep it in one of the paddocks to double as a shelter.


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## jkleven (Feb 28, 2016)

High Stepper Farm said:


> I'm not building a top. Just temporary wood panels on the sides. The slide in would be nice, but I can't find one locally and the fabrication shops around here only deal with big business.


You absolutely need a top at that height. I've seen even small ones jump out of my 36" high catch box easily. I had a guy show up to pick up a 150 pound boar with a trailer like you describe and I told him it could jump out. He assured me that he'd been hauling pigs for years this way and it would be fine. When we finally got it to walk up the ramp and into the trailer it wasn't in there 15 seconds before it went up and over the side and landed on it's head in the pasture. He was embarrassed as we looked for plywood to screw down over the top and it was nearly impossible to get that boar back into the trailer after that.


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## Bearfootfarm (Jul 13, 2006)

I used cattle panels to enclose a trailer to haul sheep.
You could make your own "slide in" using panels and hog rings or "J clips" and it will outlast anything made of wood.


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## High Stepper Farm (Nov 7, 2017)

Bearfootfarm said:


> I used cattle panels to enclose a trailer to haul sheep.
> You could make your own "slide in" using panels and hog rings or "J clips" and it will outlast anything made of wood.


Do you have any pics of your setup? I have some extra panels I could use.


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## Bearfootfarm (Jul 13, 2006)

High Stepper Farm said:


> Do you have any pics of your setup?


Sorry, I don't have any pictures that I can find right now.

I had square metal tube uprights welded to the trailer, then welded cattle panels onto them.
For what you need a simple box fabricated from panels would work just fine.


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## In The Woods (Apr 27, 2017)

High Stepper Farm said:


> After reading some other posts on here about how high pigs can jump, I think I will just make a fully enclosed crate that I can take on and off the trailer with the loader. Maybe u-bolt it through the floor or just strap it down. I can also keep it in one of the paddocks to double as a shelter.


That’s exactly what I did. Another plus is the pigs getting used to the crate in or near their pen before the big day.


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## nate77 (Mar 20, 2013)

I used to haul pigs this way, but my rails were 48” high, and I’ve never had any crazy jumping pigs.


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## secuono (Sep 28, 2011)

I made this for sheep.
I had it the full height if the cattle panel at first, but cut it down to fit neatly to the truck's roof. Didn't want wind blowing in at it or risking low branches snagging it.
I used 1 panel for the 3 sides, 90° bends, 1 cut panel with the end wire twisted around to secure it. Heavy wire to secure top cut panel. No floor.
It's very light for me to toss on and off as needed. Ratchet straps over and looped to keep it securely in place.
You could buy one of those curly wires from premiere1supplies to use as a lock for the door.


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## bobp (Mar 4, 2014)

This is what we use. It made from pipe and sheet metal. Fits on a standard 16' trailer.


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## High Stepper Farm (Nov 7, 2017)

bobp said:


> This is what we use. It made from pipe and sheet metal. Fits on a standard 16' trailer.


That would be nice to have.


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## bobp (Mar 4, 2014)

I can load it easily enough with the tractor.... and it's been done with a high boy jack and a come along.... but it's too heavy for what it is. 
I'd like to build one from old Aluminum Conduit. Thinking 1" (1-3/8" OD) 
I have access to demoed out Conduit at times... I can weld but ....AL is a pain....It has to be very clean...ECT.. I may try one of these days we'll see.


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## i8paintchips (Feb 27, 2016)

Just go to YouTube and search for "pig jumping from truck" and you'll soon realize a top is necessary.


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## Oxankle (Jun 20, 2003)

I have used the crate made from hog panels to move pigs and goats. It is very easy to load in any pickup truck and of course you need a top---made of the same stuff. Stand it on end and tip it, slide it into the truck. When done slide it right back out. Be sure to attach the back panel in such a way that you can have a "GATE"

i put mine together with hose clamps, but they can be made with any degree of sophistication desired. I had a chicken tractor made of the same stuff, but it was all welded, rigid and varmint-proof.


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## haypoint (Oct 4, 2006)

I made a pig crate to haul 6 or 8 feeder pigs. I also used it to haul a butcher hog. I made it out of 3/4 plywood, with a hinged lid. I couldn't figure how to fasten the plywood together in a way strong enough to resist pig strength. So, when it was done, I wrapped it with two ratchet straps going one way and two going the other. I put two handles on each end so two guys could load it into a truck. I generally bought feeders in April or May, often too cold for open air hauling. The plywood box provided ventilation, yet protection from the cold breezes.


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## cpnkrunch (Dec 6, 2014)

MY stock trailer looks a lot like BobP's. Square tubing uprights with cattle panels for sheeting, 6 foot tall, bolts on in sections to trailer. Can be removed for flatbed trailer use. It was built by the Maysville, Missouri FFA shop some years back. Hauls anyting pretty well. I also have a slide in stock rack for my pickup that I have used to haul hogs. I built a 52 inch tall rack for my shortbed pickup to haul pigs with, they didn't jump out, but that's when I got the slide in unit. You can pick them up on CL for abt 75, cheaper at auctions and probably cheaper than you can DIY. But they will load easier in a low trailer. Just sayin'


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## bobp (Mar 4, 2014)

i8paintchips said:


> Just go to YouTube and search for "pig jumping from truck" and you'll soon realize a top is necessary.


I've had them jump 4' panels but I don't believe they're going to jump out of my stock box. It's 7'+...I don't recall exactly but I'm 6'4" and it's well over my head.

Back when I still hog hunted I had an issue...I have a 2 horse trailer and once had some little 15-20# wild caught striped pigs in it... Two jumped out in a gas station parking lot and disappeared..

I have a slide in stock rack...Works OK, but it fits a long bed Chevy, without a tool box... It's a pain to remove the tool box...


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## Lookin4GoodLife (Oct 14, 2013)

I doubt they'd jump out too, BUT..... you know how liability is. I'd never haul any live animal out on a road that wasn't totally enclosed, especially if it was on a highway. If a pig somehow lost his mind and jumped over that thing and someone coming along at 50mph hit a couple hundred pound hog, that'd be ugly. A lawyer could turn that into "negligence" in a hurry instead of just an "accident". I'm not the "nervous nelly" type or Mr. Negativity, but I've had stuff fly out of my truck that I didn't secure that I *never* thought would come out..... and I drive like an old man. I secure *everything* now! LOL


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## Lookin4GoodLife (Oct 14, 2013)

Also amazing what you can bolt together with Simpson Strong-Tie type brackets if you can't weld. They're kinda pricey, but you can stand at their display at Home Depot for 5 minutes looking at all their configurations. Then the next time you're at the scrap yard, you can see that bracket in your head and fabricate your own for 1/10th the price.  Kinda gets you (as much as I hate the cliche') "thinking outside the box".


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## COWS (Dec 23, 2012)

I've never had pigs to haul but i have made 2 cattle trailers. The first 14 foot one had features copied from commercial ones, like a center gate with a heavy spring latch which locks when the gate is slammed shut and is easily opened for unloading. It uses swinging rear gates with center and bottom latches. The second one was a smaller 10 foot trailer for pulling with a small truck. It has a sliding rear gate, with inside gates that leave only a small space at the back. I wanted a way to confine them at the front so the load would not become unbalanced when the cows moved around. One thing I did for both was make them 6 1/2 feet tall. This was not for fear of cows jumping out(6 feet would have been high enough IMO), but so I could walk into the trailer and not bump my head on the cross members, which are spaced maybe 3 feet apart. For a hog trailer I think the same height reasoning would be valid. I never had to get on the trailer to move cows off, thank goodness, but I don't know about hogs. There are other reasons, like cleaning the trailer, that you need to get on the trailer.

I assume that hogs would slid on slick trailer floors so I would think that fastening corral panel wire on the floor for traction would be a good idea also.

I don't have any reason to try it, but I always thought that if one had a utility trailer with the rail about 18 inches high around the bed made from angle iron, or even better made from pipe, that it would be simple to fasten the corral panels that are made from light tubing to the sides and front with muffler clamps or other U bolts. Some thought would need to be given to the rear gate design, though.

COWS


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## oldasrocks (Oct 27, 2006)

Well get it figured out. I have 3 pigs that will be ready to slaughter in about a month. I hate skinning pigs. I have an 18 ft stock trailer that was redone to be a portable welding trailer to use. I put a new floor in it last yr.


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## COWS (Dec 23, 2012)

The simplest way to make a rear gate would be to use a short panel and chain it in place after loading. Back the trailer to the loading chute or gate closely enough so that the pigs wont escape out any gaps, slide gate across the opening, chain in place using bolts to secure the chain. Or devise some other method. I don't recommend duct tape for this, LOL.

COWS


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## High Stepper Farm (Nov 7, 2017)

Thanks for all the replies to this thread. Below is a pic of what I ended up with. I built the sides 42in high with 2x4's. I then attached 1/2 in pressure treated plywood (36 in high) to the inside. The fold down ramp served as the gate. I also added ratchet straps just in case. Weight distribution was not a factor since I was only hauling 740lbs of pigs. I opted not to put a top on it and had no issues.


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## KandCfamilyfarm (Nov 4, 2017)

secuono said:


> I made this for sheep.
> I had it the full height if the cattle panel at first, but cut it down to fit neatly to the truck's roof. Didn't want wind blowing in at it or risking low branches snagging it.
> I used 1 panel for the 3 sides, 90° bends, 1 cut panel with the end wire twisted around to secure it. Heavy wire to secure top cut panel. No floor.
> It's very light for me to toss on and off as needed. Ratchet straps over and looped to keep it securely in place.
> ...


wire is a pain to make but that was easy to make. I made one that works like a live trap but required some bed rail welding.


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## Lookin4GoodLife (Oct 14, 2013)

Looks good High... if you ever had a problem, you could always come back and add a couple more scrap 2x4's across the top or ratchet strap something like that gate there across the top.


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## highlands (Jul 18, 2004)

Here's how we move pigs:

in a van with the back area setup for livestock:
http://sugarmtnfarm.com/2014/09/20/ambulance-here/
http://sugarmtnfarm.com/2011/10/11/archimedes-farewell/
We started with a mini-van like this and gradually over the decades upgraded to a Ford E-350 superduty extended body van.

in a box on the tractor:
http://sugarmtnfarm.com/2012/02/17/rotating-pigs/
http://sugarmtnfarm.com/2014/10/21/vet-visit/
Works great for hard to drive to places.

with sorting boards: 
http://sugarmtnfarm.com/2013/07/03/moving-sowth/
http://sugarmtnfarm.com/2012/01/14/serendipity-chutes-and-sorting-boards/
Also use dogs for extensive work out on the mountain.

with a section of hog panel:
http://sugarmtnfarm.com/2011/01/30/moving-a-pig-in-wire/
Works well for piglets or a sow or boar over not too rough terrain.

Lastly, train your pigs to come when you call. That helps a lot.

-Walter


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## KandCfamilyfarm (Nov 4, 2017)

highlands said:


> Here's how we move pigs:
> 
> in a van with the back area setup for livestock:
> http://sugarmtnfarm.com/2014/09/20/ambulance-here/
> ...


The section of hog panel one we call a farm boy


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## arnie (Apr 26, 2012)

I would do as I did / screw a few boards across the top . that the hog can't fit through . you just never know ,what might happin on the road . heres mine the hog just layed down and didn't move much for his ride . I fixed this trailer so I could put it in the loading shoot with straw and feed a couple days ahead of butchering date so the hog loads its self and I don't need to call for help and get the pig all excited with a fight trying to load a stubborn scared hog .


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## oldasrocks (Oct 27, 2006)

This all gives me an idea. I have an old blue conversion van with all the back seats out. Haven't licensed it in 3 yrs but could cheap. Wife uses it for storage now. Wonder what they would charge me for insurance for a day?


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## gerold (Jul 18, 2011)

oldasrocks said:


> This all gives me an idea. I have an old blue conversion van with all the back seats out. Haven't licensed it in 3 yrs but could cheap. Wife uses it for storage now. Wonder what they would charge me for insurance for a day?


Call insurance co. you have now and see if they will put it on with your insurance you have now for just a short time. Will it pass state inspection for licenses.


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## gerold (Jul 18, 2011)

High Stepper Farm said:


> After reading some other posts on here about how high pigs can jump, I think I will just make a fully enclosed crate that I can take on and off the trailer with the loader. Maybe u-bolt it through the floor or just strap it down. I can also keep it in one of the paddocks to double as a shelter.


Nice to have a top to protect pigs or what you are hauling from the weather.


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## highlands (Jul 18, 2004)

Part of what I like about the van is that it puts the pigs inside where they are protected from the weather and wind. It gets very cold here. Driving them down in mid-winter when the static temperature might be -30°F and add 65mph winds (driving speed) and one might end up with frozen pork on the hoof when arriving at the slaughter house if the animals aren't protected. Hay is good but not enough. Keeps the stress down.

-Walter


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## Lookin4GoodLife (Oct 14, 2013)

oldasrocks said:


> This all gives me an idea. I have an old blue conversion van with all the back seats out. Haven't licensed it in 3 yrs but could cheap. Wife uses it for storage now. Wonder what they would charge me for insurance for a day?


Would you have to have some type of "commercial" insurance to make sure you're covered in an accident? If you're not a commercial farm like Walter, maybe not, but you know these insurance companies never miss a chance to make an extra dime. I would make sure I tell them the reason I was wanting to insure the van for just a short time period to make sure I was covered. Yes, I know I always sound like the "nervous nelly" type, but every day I turn on the tv or sit down at my computer, someone else is getting sued for something I never thought someone could be sued for.


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## highlands (Jul 18, 2004)

We have commercial insurance for our farm, our road vehicles, our tractors, our products. If you're in business then get insurance. If you're just doing a small amount of business it is not all that expensive and worth the protection.

I have a document that I go over with our insurance agent every year that states all the things we do, our assets, people, etc. This way I keep them up to date and make sure they keep my coverage up to date. It is a good way to review things.

-Walter


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