suggestions for blood sample from large pigs

[bmurphy96]

I recently got a 500 lb duroc boar that had to have some blood test. The vet just left our property a few minutes after we spent an hour and a half getting 1.5 ccs of blood from the boar. Hopefully that will be enough. We fed him two "servings" of one type of tranquilzer and then a shot of an another and he still didn't go out. My understanding is that it was enough of the first tranq. for a pig twice his weight and the second was for his weight-- so he had enough tranq in him for a 1500 pound pig if that makes sense. His back end got to the point where it didn't want to work at all but he didn't go out. The vet was able to get the 1.5 ccs from the tail area of the boar. He didn't like it, but stayed down pretty much. Then the vet tried to get another sample from an ear. I thought it wasn't a good idea, but he's the doc. Well, I was right. when he poked the pig the boar decided that it didn't matter that his back end wasn't work -- he was going to hurt someone. The vet got out of the pen, but i bet the boar missed him by less than a foot. Hopefully that is enough blood for the test or we have to do this over again.

I am wondering what people normally do. I have no desire to go through this for the pigs sake or ours again. If i built a loading shoot and put him in it before tranquilizing it might help some, but honestly I think he would climb the walls no matter what if he was still awake at all. A ticked off boar is not a pretty site. He was dragging himself around by his front legs and snout and he had one thing on his mind...destroy whatever is bothering him. It better not be you.

[Lazy J]

Snare and jugular stick.