# sow not producing milk--need help!



## Karen in Alabam (Jul 21, 2010)

Bonnie just had her second litter. She is a year and a half.

Didn't notice at first, she isn't producing milk.

I have given her six shots (three yesterday and three today) of oxytocin. It works when I give her the shot, but that is about it. I have three more shots for tomorrow. Today I also gave her a Vit. B shot.

she is drinking OK, but not eating much.

I dumped a half gallon of milk over her food and she sucked that down (the milk that is). I am about to give her some more milk and acai over her food.

Her temp is 102.5

what can I do to help this situation?

Thanks

Karen


----------



## CJBegins (Nov 20, 2009)

Has this sow started producing yet? I can't think of anything to help her along other than what you did. Fresh cow or goats milk for the piglets to supplement.


----------



## Karen in Alabam (Jul 21, 2010)

She has been eating better and drinking more, but doesn't appear to be producing much yet. She ate pretty good today. This morning when I went down there (5am) she had had a mud bath and this evening when I went down to check she had eaten most of her food and left me with the kids and went wandering and took another mud bath--so she is feeling a little better.

I also have this on the facebook page, and confused them a little. I got the shots from the vet. The shots have her drop the milk within 5 minutes--so the piglets are getting three feedings a day that I am sure of.

I have enough shots for tomorrow (they gave me a whole bottle of the stuff).

I have lots of fresh cows milk. I get a gallon a day that we are not drinking that has been going to the pigs (cow had gotten a shot recently).

How do I feed it to the piglets? Will they drink it out of a bowl or do I need bottles? They are routing and chewing on stuff.


----------



## bigmudder77 (Jun 9, 2008)

what kinda feed are you feeding her? feeder pig feed or sow feed made for right after she has piglets?

one of ours didnt have much milk and we were feeding her just grower feed we switched to a sow feed and she had good milk but your gonna pay more for it

and as far as the milk dump it in a pan short enough for them to get there heads in and maybe 2 or 3 pans in different spots away from the mom as she will just drink it all but it only takes one piglet to mess with it and they all go to it and drink it fine ours were 3 days old when we gave them milk in pans cause the gilt wasnt producing milk


----------



## Karen in Alabam (Jul 21, 2010)

Thanks.

I recently bought the sow and pig feed and a 40% feed that I mix in. they don't like it dry, so I mix it with Acai puree or in the mornings I have a gallon of milk from cow we are not drinking from. I will try that this morning.


----------



## Karen in Alabam (Jul 21, 2010)

not as easy as it sounds. they just made mud and Bonnie wanted to come in and drink it--I took her out to feed her, but they took so long. I stuck a few of their noses in it and still nothing. Will try again later.


----------



## CJBegins (Nov 20, 2009)

If they are hungry and they are because ........well, they are pigs, they will catch on soon. Because they are young it might help to serve it at room temperature or as clabber. If you give it to the tiny babies straight out of the frig it really drops their body temp and causes them to shiver.

Once they start drinking the milk really well start adding the pelleted feed to the milk and they will soon learn that that is good stuff too!


----------



## bigmudder77 (Jun 9, 2008)

They will catch on best thing is just not to worry about them spilling it because they root and they will get the taste for it that way and shouldn't spill it anymore but ours go crazy over it that's why we have 3-4 pans for each group of small pigs they all try to pile in one pan and end up spilling most of it but were feeding 5 gallons so somespilling ddon't hurt
i


----------



## Karen in Alabam (Jul 21, 2010)

Thanks all.

Bonnie seems to have settled and is dropping milk--not sure how much I notice their kneading then all of a sudden they settle down and start sucking evenly so I know they are getting milk. It doesn't last long, then she turns so they have to get off, but they don't really have big stomachs either.

Bonnie is eating better. I gave her two half pails yesterday evening. One was gone when I went down to check--it was outside the kennel and so I blamed it on one of the cows because all she had done was suck the juice off of it. So I gave her another and put it in the kennel and it was gone this morning but not licked as clean as before. I still wasn't sure she ate it.

So for breakfast I gave her a new bucket and a gallon of fresh squeezed milk on it and she sucked off the milk. Around lunch time or just before I went down with a jar of Acai puree to add it to the mush she left and added water and she finished the bowl off.


This is only my second litter and I am wondering if I just freaked out because my neighbor freaked me out saying they looked weak and then I couldn't get anything off her. But I know we did stress her a bit, but she seems to be doing well. The piglets climbed into the bowl (I transferred from bucket) and were licking it.

Thanks again, I am feeling better about the situation and not having to give her shots anymore.

We plan to have more litters and now I know a lot more than I did last week and hope I never have to use it again, but hope to get them eating solids soon enough.


----------



## Karen in Alabam (Jul 21, 2010)

Just an update. Bonnie and the piglets are doing great. 

She moved them into my barn--not the one I wanted her to (other one is more closed off and so hotter), we have been working around her---that is my milking barn.


----------



## martinbowhunter (Mar 31, 2013)

Are we not doing the pic thing anymore? :nono::nono::nono::whistlin:


----------



## ErikaMay (Feb 28, 2013)

I believe I read pigs only let down milk for about 30 seconds every hour so don't worry if she rolls over after a minute-thats normal for a pig. Thats also why the little piggies have to beg all the time (and mom is tired because she wakes up every hour to feed. yeeesh!)


----------



## Karen in Alabam (Jul 21, 2010)

As for the picture thing--I filled up my photobucket account, opened another one (files are larger now) and filled that up.

I do have a ton of pictures on facebook.

https://www.facebook.com/pages/Circle-G-Farm/382767251815159

Yes, I think I freaked out. My neighbor, I think (who was a vet tech) might have over reacted--I don't know. Everyone is OK now. I do have a skin problem on one, which I will post a thread on.


----------

