Pallet Pen for the Piggies


8-Pallet pen for the weaners

When we posted about the great pig escape a few of our awesome readers suggested testing out a pallet pen the next time. Instead of releasing them into an area solely protected by electric fence, maybe put the electric fence inside a pallet pen and let them get used to it first. It sounded like a good idea, and an affordable idea, so we went with it.

In order to construct the pallet pen we first headed over to a neighbor’s place to pick up some used pallets. We thought eight would be good for each pen, the boars in one, the gilts in the other. He didn’t have 16 pallets, so we just got 8 and put all four of the pigs in it. Then a few days later we got 8 more from a different neighbor and built another one. One thing's pretty certain around here: there ain't no shortage of old pallets. 

Read More

Egg Mobile for the Guineas - a.k.a The Guinea Mobile


Towing the Guinea Mobile out to pasture. It dual purposes as a shelter and shade shack for goats and guard dogs

Most of our readers are probably familiar with egg mobiles. Egg mobiles are the glorified apparatuses used by famed alternative farmer Joel Salatin and many other small-scale farmers. The idea is simple: A mobile chicken coop that is moved around with ruminant animals (typically cows) in order to clean up the pasture (dig through cow patties) and provide a free-range habitat for chickens to express their chicken-ness (eat lots of bugs and bathe in the dirt). 

We love the idea of egg mobiles. Birds out on pasture living a natural life, not crammed three to a cage, forced to produce eggs under artificial light. Egg mobiles fit with our vision for Little Seed and one day we may actually have a real egg mobile. For now though, we have a Guinea Mobile. 

 

Read More

Victory is Ours! - Piglet Porkout- The Final Chapter (For Now)

Sheba, under NO circumstances are you to let those little piglets out of your sight. I know they're cute, but don't fall for it

Three full days after they first escaped, the two boar piglets were still on the loose and seemingly happier than pigs in, well, you know. The first few days we were worried about them. By day four, after a full day of piglet evasion tactics at their finest (under the trap, over the trap, around the trap...), we were just worried we'd never catch them. I even voiced possible acceptance of the worst case scenario of the boars running wild on our property. They'd have no qualms about slipping through the electric fence to visit their impounded ladies for a "marital" visit, and as long as they had reason to stay around, maybe they wouldn't go off and form a pack of wild pigs... Yeah, maybe not the best idea! But that should give you a good idea of where we were. 

Read More