Ryan sent me a message at 4 am, letting me know that Rosie, Levi’s momma pig, was showing signs of early labor. At 6 in the morning, I went out to check again and see how she was doing. It was obvious she was getting ready- heavy breathing, discharge, had made a nest for herself. However, she wasn’t contracting yet. So, we waited. At 7 am, Levi woke up, got dressed quickly and parked his lawn chair next to her to watch. He was quick to recognize her beginning to contract, holding her breath as they passed.

The first piglet was born and that little boy was near tears he was so excited. His Rosie girl was doing great and eventually, 11 little piglets came into the world by 1PM. Sadly, she is only raising 8 as 2 were still born and one was born too weak to survive but we are excited to keep shifting and changing our setup for even better success. Rosie did wonderful and tolerated the commotion of children during her farrowing. We’re so grateful for such a kind sow.

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

We were so grateful for the learning experience. The kids spent the entire morning learning about pig anatomy, labor, birth and newborns. Levi and Gracie absorbed all of the information as their little brother looked on in amazement! We made sure to record a lot of it to share with you. The only thing that could have made it better was having my dad (and mom) here to enjoy it with us.

We absolutely love our pigs and farrowing our own here on the farm is that much more sweet. Enjoy!