# Pig with sore leg - need advice



## mbosma

I have a pig (100 lbs) that is keeping weight off one of her hind legs. There is no visible injury, just a lot of limping. She is still eating fine, and able to go up/down the hill to the creek and drink. 

I can't see any swelling or any wounds on her hoof or leg. She acts like there is a splinter on the bottom of her foot, or maybe a sore knee/hip. 

One commercial hog farmer I spoke with said it might be strep. Looking for your advice. Should I shoot her up with Penicillin or wait? It's been a couple of days and it hasn't gotten any worse, but it doesn't appear to be getting better on it's own either.

Thanks,
-Matt


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## mbosma

Hey folks, I'm not looking for a professional vet diagnosis here, just a "what would you do?" from anyone with pigs. Any help? Thanks.


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## bruceki

Sometimes pigs get a limp just because; a pulled muscle or a sprain of some sort, or a bite from another pig that's tender. 3-4 days would be the timeframe that i'd expect to see some improvement if it was that sort of injury. Gradually putting more weight on it. 

If it's just a wound, keeping the pig confined for a while might help with the healing; keeps the pig from putting its weight on it until it has a chance to heal. To try that I'd put this pig and a buddy pig in a horse stall for a week or so, see how its doing after that. 

If it's an object like a splinter, or an abcessed wound, or swelling around the foot and hoof, or in a joint, I'd probably have to look carefully at the foot, which usually means either a very friendly pig or restraining it, and treating it. Removing the object, draining the abcess, making a decision on the joint. 

If the pig is walking on the leg with a limp its not as serious as if it is not putting any weight on the limb at all. If the leg was broken, or the joint damaged, I'd be inclined to butcher the pig right now. No reason to let the pig get out of condition. 100lbs live weight = 75lb bbq pig. That's a nice size. Scald, scrape, gut and freeze, and bring it out for the 4th.


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## mbosma

That sounds like good advice. Thanks. I'll plan to give her another day or two (at least until the weekend) before making a decision. She is very friendly and lets me snuggle up for a close look. I've only got four pigs now so separating from the heard doesn't make much sense. She is still climbing fine (really steep bank to get to water) but doesn't put much weight on it if any.

Does anyone have experience with strep or administering penicillin? Is it a bad idea to try if not necessary? Touchy subject I'm sure, I prefer to intervene with nature only when necessary.


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## haypoint

Not to be snarky, but if your pig has free access to the steep banked creek, you are already "intervening" with nature.
A shot of penicillin in a pig that's 140 pounds from butcher isn't going to hurt anything.
My most recent viewing of a down hog was mineral dificiency. You are supplying minerals, aren't you?


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## mbosma

They get a balanced pig feed twice daily + kitchen and garden scraps. I do not supply additional minerals. They have 1/2 acre of pasture each month, plus a valley with 10' of stream bank access at the bottom. They choose to go down the steep part because it's not muddy like the bottom of the valley (spring fed wallow). It's about a 45 degree slope down 50 feet or so to the bottom of the hill. 

I'm not sure what you mean by intervening with nature. I thought pigs lived in valleys before we domesticated them.


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## bruceki

Most pigs like to have their belly rubbed; if it's friendly, see if you can get it to flip over and get its belly rubbed -- and while you're doing that, take a good look at the foot in question. Compare it to the other foot for swelling and stuff, and see if you can spot the problem. Might take you a try or two to get it to let you rub its belly. Most of the time I start with my hand on their back and slowly work down to their belly; if the pig is skittish I'll do this while they've got their head in the trough and are eating and give it a good belly rub so they know what you're doing later when you catch them sleeping or just being friendly. "oh yea; he rubbed my belly earlier! I'm ok with another belly rub!"


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## mbosma

Oh, yea, this pig loves a good belly rub. Good news too, she seems to be snapping out of it. This morning she was putting more weight on it and I wouldn't have noticed if I didn't know there was already something wrong. 

Thanks for the advice everyone. Much appreciated.


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