The new gilts we got are so cute. We are penning them next to the pigs so that they can get used to each other without being picked on. It seems to be working. One of them (the one we got from Hogwash) is a fence breaker, just what we needed. When I went to pick her up, they told me she’d gotten out already that day. Should I have said “no thank you” or just do what I did and figure she’ll fit in on our damn fencebusting farm?
We’ve settled into a routine with piglets out. We make sure the Pyrs are all behind a fence, and the Icies love to keep the piglets in. They come out when they are hungry, which is more and more often as the weather is getting colder. The amount of food we are giving the pigs right now is really scary. Three meals a day lately. That’s a lot of food. We really need to get our 8 off to Peterborough and bring Zippy home. Maybe after we deliver the turkeys to Westminster Meats on Friday.
But when Disa spots them out, she makes them go back. She loves it. Fun! Sanctioned piglet chasing. They hear her start barking and head back straight away. Except the new girls don’t know the routine. Disa keeps trying to put them back with the other piglets, but that’s not where they belong. They also don’t automatically head back home when she arrives, which pisses her off. They aren’t playing the game right!
I guess it’s a bit much for her to understand which piglets these are and where they belong. Yesterday, I saw piglets out and told her to go “make them go” which is usually all I need to say and she gets it done. But she came back and started barking at me with her little outraged bark, something was wrong. She took me over to the bunch of them, huddled under a pine tree, looking scared and confused. Disa barked at them and they didn’t move. What the heck? That’s when I realized it was our new girls and went to get Frank and his bucket. They like him best.
Frank came out with a bucket of yogurt over and they followed him like a charm. We find all sorts of food still in their trough, but they want more yogurt, please and thank you. Spoiled, spoiled girls!