Sooooooeeeeeeeeeeeee!

Unexpectedly, we got a new pig today. Well, the pig wasn't entirely unexpected, just his arrival today. Our first pig, you may remember, was a trade from Craigslist; I answered a post from a couple looking for a cattle chute, since I just happened to have one rusting gently away in the back field. They traded me a piglet. 

That pig turned out to be so delicious, even if he was a bit of a butt, that we decided we'd get another piglet from the same folks again. Great people, real serious homesteaders. They built their home from the ground up, lived without electricity for two years, raising two babies at the same time. They have a little bit of everything: cows, pigs, turkeys, you name it. He's a fireman and she's a farmer. And a knockout. They're the kind of couple that makes me feel genetically inferior, they're that handsome, hardworking, and nice. 

Anyway, L. called me this morning and let me know they were coming up today and would we like them to bring the pig a bit early? He can eat and drink from a pan, he's basically weaned, but it would be nice if I were to give him some goat's milk for a week two still. Okay, sure!

I had to run to the farm store for pig starter and a hook and eye for the door to the pig pen (because the goats push it open. They like to lie down in the shade on that side of the barn.), but that's easy. 

Right, like anything is easy on the farm. It slipped my mind that Iris, the Nubian, can open simple latches like hooks and eyes. The pig is so tiny, if he gets out of his pen he can slip right under the gate and then we'd have another escaped animal situation and I doubt the neighbors would be quite so understanding this time around. I can just imagine that piglet rooting up Mrs. J's  vegetable garden. It would make the damage the chickens did look like....chickenfeed. 

Good thing there were two hooks and eyes in the package; I put them in going opposite ways and I think that will frustrate the goat.

But only that one goat. The others just jump the fence. The poor pig wasn't able to eat any of his food. The goats are single-minded about eating the pig food. It must be delicious. I was whaling on them with a switch and they didn't even care. I think I'm going to have to lock them in the barn while I feed the pig, just until he is able to defend his own food, which shouldn't be too long. They grow pretty fast.

Oh yes, and my sister is gifting me some more chickens this evening. Just three. Not so many, really. They don't even replace the ones we ate a few days ago. Tried to eat. Okay, the dogs ate them.