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[EarthNSky <erthnsky AT bellsouth.net>]

Leslie wrote:

> At some point, I want to raise some pigs, and I'm wondering if there
>  is anything in particular I should think about for site selection. 
> And, is the pig area super smelly, if so how far away from my mom's 
> house in particular should I be planning,,,, I think she wants to 
> forget some of her farming roots.... i.e. the smell of pigs....

Just like everything else, there are a dozen ways or more to raise pigs.
 In these parts, people pen them up with hog panel or run low electric
fencing, or raise them on a wooden deck. If you go with the last option,
a small wooden floored trailer works well, and you can take them right
to the processor if that if what you decide to do, no loading antics.
Some people have pastured pigs, just here, most folks keep them penned.
  We raise a few pigs every other year or so.  You want to raise two or
more at a time, because they will eat competitively and gain weight
faster than a single pig in a pen.  Pigs are smart, strong, and like
human companionship.  They can quickly endear themselves to you, so we
always name them after food...Moo Shoo, Bacon, Jerk, etc. so you don't
forget why you have them.  We raise pigs in a 16x16 pen made of hog
panels bolted into a square, and I just moved the pen around.  One of my
neighbors raises his on a landscape trailer, another uses electric high
tensile.  Pigs root and dig a lot...they are natures tillers and will
till up any area you put them in.  If you don't want them to dig, you
have to ring their noses.  The deck method prevents digging, the
electric fencing method almost mandates ringing noses.  If you move pigs
around, they really don't smell that much.  If you go with the
trailer/deck method, you just wash off the boards/floor.  Personally, I
think pigs are healthier if they are on dirt and can root up to their
hearts content.  They eat grubs and roots and grass and weeds and stuff
and I believe it makes them healthier, and of course, they really enjoy
it.  I figure if you gotta live in a pen, you should have some fun.  I
also provide bowling balls and other large toys(like a tire) to push
around for entertainment and amusement.  They like to dig, but they also
like to be clean and appreciate a good shower with the hose.  They
absolutely need clean water to drink.
We also find that the smell is less of an issue if we raise them in the
winter.  I have a large plastic water tank in a metal that is opened up
like a huge doghouse.  We toss a bale of hay in there and the pigs
nestle into the hay.  The tank/pighouse gets rolled around as the pen is
moved.  As for site selection, anything you might use as a future
garden, a nice level area, or if you don't plan on moving the pen,
choose a spot where you want a pond.  If you don't move pigs around
their poop their feet will create a mud that will compact into a nice
pond.  this is the way the old timers used to seal ponds-they would run
pigs where they wanted a pond.  So, if you go with the movable pen
method, you really do have the move the pen else you will create a
permanent mudhole.
Whatever you decide to do, make sure the fencing is good and sturdy.
 There are several people on the list who have also raised pigs, so just
ask away..
Too bad Granddad isn't here to post his classic "I hate chasing pigs"
story.  Loved that one!

Bev



--
"Nothing in this world can take the place of persistence. Talent will
not; nothing is more common than unsuccessful people with talent. Genius
will not; unrewarded genius is almost a proverb. Education will not; the
world is full of educated derelicts. Persistence and determination alone
are omnipotent. The slogan 'press on' has solved and always will solve
the problems of the human race"

~ Calvin Coolidge