we have some woods we want to convert to pasture. the town will let us cut down any trees poisonous to animals, and sick or dead ones, and will let us fence in and use the area as pasture, but we cannot cut down healthy, nonpoisonous trees. we are allowed to keep goats and pigs in the area, which is about 100x300 feet. we will want to get like 10 goats, to breed and sell kids and work on killing the trees and shrubs, and we were considering getting two pigs in spring and feed them on extra goat milk and whatever they can find to eat... hint hint hint bushes, roots, bark, etc. so... will goats get along with pigs? and will two pigs make a dent in the area roots wise? let me know your opinions on the matter. thanks!
Two pigs will make a dent on the trees and brush and unfortunately may also make a dent in the kids, especially if they are not being fed. Pigs are omnivores and opportunists. Out of 8 pigs I only have one that kills other animals but she does it with gusto and is not picky. She's killed my ducks, chickens, and turkeys. There's no doubt in my mind that she would kill a kid or puppy or anything else. I think it would be good to start with the pigs in the spring and let them take a good shot at clearing out the trees. After they are butchered follow through with the goats. Or better yet divide the area and let the pigs work on one side as the goats reproduce on the other and clear that side. Then switch next spring with two more pigs.
anyone else?? i'd like to have the pigs, but not at the expense of the goats. the plan was to make three paddocks anyway, maybe we could split the area in three ahead of time... thanks all!
My pigs are small (potbelly cross) and run loose with the goats, dogs, cats and adult chickens, your plan could work if the kids are not born where the pigs could get them. A larger breed of pig when full grown could eat an adult goat though. Even my small pigs could kill a baby goat. I think pigs are alot like dogs, but more stuborn.
are there smaller pigs that would be economical to raise for meat that would leave the kids well enough alone?
I would look to figuring out a moveable fencing system to enclose your pigs. Something that you could move around and manage their progress. Maybe you could use a premade (or rig up one your self) high strength wire fence that you could fasten between trees. Whatever you do don't count on finding any pig breed that will be non-aggressive towards other animals. One thousound people may have a breed that is not an aggressive omnivore but you will be the one who gets that pig. On a side note, pigs were actually once more of a true carnivore and scavenger. Over time they evolved into the smaller fatter creature we now know.
We always put goats in an area first than pigs, try four stock panels inside the fenced area with the pigs inside. Then just move the pigs stock panels each time they have successfully cleaned up the area.
WoW i wouldnt put pigs anywhere near my goats and ill tell you why. Last year i had a pig eat 2 of my kids and not just newborns but these kids were a couple weeks older well i really blamed myself on that one big time so this year everyone was seperate with a good strong fence but one of the goats had her kids by the pig fence and they pulled the newborn through the fence and ate it.
We have a small lamb now and the pigs have tryed to bite him several times, I have to yet the lamb in the house when the pigs come up.
First I would keep the pigs seperate from the Goats. Put goats on the pasture first. Goats will distroy trees ( good trees or bad trees ) up to around 6 ft tall and in small diameter. They will ride them over and bend them down. Goats love the bark on fruit trees no matter how big they are. Remember you may be in trouble as the Pig grow and become Hogs they will root around the good trees and kill them too. I would keep the pigs in a smaller area so they will do their job better and you could control the distruction of good trees. Do not ring their noses if you want them to root the ground up good. If you want pigs to root any one area more than others, just take a small diameter stake and drive it in the ground a little and put some corn in the bottom of the hole and they will root that area more to get the corn out Make sure they have plenty of water at all times. Hope you have success ! .
I raise Potbelly pigs with Soay Sheep, the sheep are likely the same size as your goats, and eat like goats, but have a better parental protection gene. My old top boar Lucky (125 pounds) walked between a lamb and the mother, just absent mindedly, not with any apparent hostile intent. The ewe let out a sound I didn't know sheep could make, and the main ram Donder (80 pounds at the time) appeared out of nowhere and litterally beat the snotout of Lucky, from one end of the pasture to the other. I'm sure he would have killed the pig if I hadn't called the dog to intervene by grabbing the ram's tail and diverting his attention form the pig. George
We have been using a combination of Angora goats and pigs to clear land quite successfully for 4 years. Goats first, then pigs, followed by goats. It's slow, but extremely effective. They also will go after grubs and other harmful creatures. Throw in a bale of straw every once in a while for them to make beds with, dig into the ground, eat. You'll need to lime where they have been because they make the soil acid. When we have scrap sheetrock, we throw that in for them to play with and to sweeten the ground. I wouldn't put pigs in with the goats. It's okay when the goats are large and the pigs are small, but that situation doesn't last for long. Ditto chickens. You will probably have to supplement their feed. They'll eat all of your scraps, except citrus. If you want to get rid of a tree and pull out most of its root system as well, keep "drilling"--wiggling sharp stick into hole by the roots when the ground is wet--and pour a little whole corn down the hole. They'll go after it. We time our pigs so that the goats aren't kidding when pigs are there. The blood smell will excite them. A couple or 3 pigs are some of the most effective investments you'll make. Great food, low cost. If you prepare correctly, they take up very little time each day. Handle the pigs when small. Get them used to you. Scratch their heads. Have a special call for them you use every time you feed them (we just use "Pig pig pig."). Then when they're really big, they won't be as formidable. Do not name the pigs if you're going to eat them. Tell children that if the pigs start to talk, herd, or have complimentary words in spider webs written over them, you won't eat them. Otherwise...
