Stripe is a mostly-hampsire sow that's new to my farm; she's been here about 6 months. When I first got her she'd never seen dirt -- she'd been born on concrete and was there until she was sold to me. I bring in new pigs and new genetics from time to time, and the hampshire breed of pig is one that I think does pretty well. I'm going for a hampshire/berkshire cross herd, mostly.
Her 7 piglets are actually under and around her. Behind her you can see the rear end of a brown-and-black piglet and over the top you can see a black piglet.
Stripe is actually the brave one that is leading her piglets and the other pigs out of the hay barn and onto the field. She'll take a few steps, and then pause as everyone catches up, and then repeat. They're a few acres from the barn, making a wide leisurely tour of the pasture. Eventually they'll end up back at the barn and go to sleep for the night.
She's teaching them to forage; that's one nice thing about breeding your own pigs. Each generation introduces the next generation to your system, and there's really not much I have to do, other than make sure that the feed and water are there, and the fencing is in good shape. It's kinda peaceful, actually.
Good for Stripe. Looks like she has a happy life now and appears pretty proud of her brood as she takes them for a walk. I met with a local farmer over the weekend and ended up ordering the last 4 available Berkshire weaners that he has from his last litter. They'll be ready around Christmas. Looking forward very much to having pigs around the farm again!
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