help with pig shelter

[marvella]

i need a sturdier shelter for my pigs. they have been living in a 10x 10x 6 dog kennel covered with tarps for the last 6 or 7 years. each year i put the tarps back on, fill a corner with hay, add a light bulb for heat when needed and call it done. it doesn't work well at all.

what kind of shelter can i make? i have NO carpentry skills (or very limited.) i have a few tools, post hole digger, etc. would prefer not to spent a whole lot of money on it either. placement options are very limited due to terrain, (mountains) and proximity to creek which often floods in spring.

problem with my current set up is i have to fiddle with it all the time, and the tarp over the top fills with water when it rains. the last few nights we have had VERY high winds, up to 60mph. i thought the whole thing was going to just pick up and blow away. it stayed in palce, but tore the tarps all to shreds.

right now, it's hanging on by thread, literally. the wind is up again for today, so i expect it to be nothing but tatters when i get home this evening, with wet, cold pigs huddles inside. yes, they are pets, not food. heading to lowe's after work, so any and all ideas are greatly appreciated. :1pig:

[BlueHeronFarm]

My husband built ours a very basic A-frame. An A frame can withstand a lot of beating...especially if you keep it pretty low. Our plan was to add timbers to the bottom to make it taller as they grew, but they just burrow a little and they still fit.

I'm sure you could find basic plans if you google it. He put it together in no time. You don't need it to be pretty - just functional.

ETA: Here it is in the background of this photo. Pigs were still small then. They are about 150 and 100 pounds or so now and still fit together.

[Charleen]

This pic is a couple years old and we've modified it since then. We have placed metal sheeting on 3 sides (below the tarp on the long sides) so there's no draft and filled it with straw or hay. In the summer, we remove the sheeting on just the ends. You could probably build some type of door or covering for the 4th end for the wintertime.

[brosil]

We used to just stack straw bales together and stuff it with loose straw for little pigs. Put another bale in front of the door far enough out for them to get out but still break the wind. It's not a permanent house but it gets them through the winter.

[Ode]

Depending on their size, you could build or buy a dog house. You can get door cover flaps that will keep out the rain and snow, and you can put the straw inside. Some of the larger ones make it easier to have a heat source. There are do it yourself kits available widely, or you can look for plans online. You should be able to build a sturdy enclosed shelter with only a few tools and the most basic of skills. You can even get lumber cut for you in places like Lowes etc. so all you need to do is screw or nail the pieces together at home.

I watched a home improvement show once where a simple dog house was built that had an insulated duct coming from the home to the doghouse, to keep it warm in winter and cool in summer. But that might be a bit extreme.

BlueHeron, cute piggies.

[mwhit]

Charleen-- does that pig in the back really have rabbity looking ears??

Michelle

[Kazahleenah]

I have handy housing for my hogs...








Kaza

[Beeman]

Look around for a place that sells or makes home entrance doors. You can many times buy damaged entrance doors very cheap and attach them together to build housing. They are insulated and water proof.

[CGUARDSMAN]

this was my set up last summer.

[Scrounger]

Pallets.....

[Shinsan]

Originally Posted by Scrounger

Pallets.....

Second the motion.

(Ya beat me to it Scrounger.)

[marvella]

they already have an a-frame made out of pallets, and covered with the inevitable tarps. they won't use it, i guess because they have pretty much outgrown it. it's in the dog pen with them now, and they just ignore it. there is also a dog house in there and they ignore that too. they want hay to sleep in. period.

however, those made out of cattle/ hog panels might just do the trick. not sure i can do it by myself, but maybe i can get my daughter down here to help.

one more ?? after they are bent, do they keep their shape or have to be secured in some way?

[Scrounger]

Build a nice square frame out of pallets. Use some 2x4's for the roof and you can even put pallets on them. It would be best to scrounge some tin for the roof. I had one that I covered with tar papr on the out side. Worked for years. Then throw your straw inside the building. They will like it then. If they prefer outside, then let them.Just have it available if they need a place to get out of the weather or sun.

[JasoninMN]

look on free cycle or craigs list for a truck topper and raise it up on railroad ties.

[Bearfootfarm]

Bolt some 2 X 4's to the top of your pen youre using now, and cover it with metal roofing. Then set a couple of posts at the corners to help hold it down.

[marvella]

hmmm, i have an unused truck topper, behind the shed! neighbors might not like it, the current shelter already doesn't look too swooft. do i care? nah.

bolting 2 x 4's is beyond me.

how would i connect those pallets?

told you i was useless with tools.

can someone please answer the question about anchoring the hog panels? are they heavy enough they won't have to be tied down too?

[tricklecreek]

if you make the base from rr ties or whatnot, i would use some bigger fencing staples and staple it inside the timbers so they would have a harder time working it loose tc

[CGUARDSMAN]

you van hold the cattle/hog panel in an arch with t-posts securing the bottom.

[marvella]

thank you!! i was wondering if the panels, once bent, would stay that way by themselves. i'll look into doing that come spring.

for right now, i called my son who was all for the truck topper idea. it will fit over top of their existing nest inside the pen, so all we have to do is put it in there.

i knew i could count on y'all!!

[Beeman]

Originally Posted by marvella

thank you!! i was wondering if the panels, once bent, would stay that way by themselves. i'll look into doing that come spring.

for right now, i called my son who was all for the truck topper idea. it will fit over top of their existing nest inside the pen, so all we have to do is put it in there.

i knew i could count on y'all!!

They have a tendancy to straighten out. But if you tie the ends with wire or set them into a box made of 2x4's that would hold them.