Pig Shelters & Straw
Of course we do have lots of shelters for our pigs and we put plenty of straw out for them. They move freely around the shelters and they always know the best one to be in.
They can stand the cold, wind and rain/snow but not all at once blowing directly on them.
We use old grain bins for shelters and we have a metal calf shelter which they - and we prefer. They haven’t destroyed it like they do wooden buildings. We also have a pigloo - which is a damaged water tank - this is perfect for the younger pigs. We even put heat lamp in it one year when we had a pig farrow in it.
It doesn’t always look pretty but we use whatever we can for windbreaks over the entrances - tarps, rubber matting, old blankets, comforters and old carpets - then we put straw bales in front of the shelters for additional windbreaks.
They will pull straw from the bales and carry in their mouth to their bed. They will do this for hours and make a straw bed to bury themselves under. We usually help them as we can move straw quicker than they can but building their own bed is what they do naturally.
Then the pigs will all snuggle up together under the straw keeping each other warm. There is the occasional squabble for the best spot but they settle down quickly.
Some farmers manage without shelters and put lots of big round straw bales out and the pigs bury under those for winter with no problems.
Berkshires are an old fashioned lard pig & their extra fat helps keep them insulated,
This fat gives us delicious pork and juicy marbled meat lacking from the modern, factory farmed, leaner breeds of pigs - these don’t need a natural fat covering because they are raised in climate controlled barns - this is why store bought pork doesn’t have flavour like outdoor raised pigs.)
The extra fat is never wasted. In fact I generally don’t have enough! We render it all into lard.
Based on our experiences free ranging pigs in Saskatchewan, this downloadable guide is packed with tips on housing, feeding, watering, fencing and handling pigs.