Second Litter of the Season

The waiting time is over!  Spot had her babies last week.  Eight more healthy piglets!  This time it was 7 males and 1 female, just the opposite of Big Mama's litter.  The birthing went well.  Spot was restless at first but after a while she finally just lay down.  Only two required a little help from us.  We sprinkled extra IMO in between babies to help keep the flies down.  The whole thing only lasted about 5 hours.  Way to go, Spot!

These were from a Hampshire-Yorkshire cross boar, so two of the piglets are mostly black, with white forefeet.

Mama Spot and all eight piglets are doing really well.  Looks like we finally have the good mothering instincts we were looking for.  We will keep two of the gilts from the first litter to increase our breeding stock.  The rest of the piglets will be sold off at weaning time, at about 6 weeks of age.  This means that the first litter is ready to go now, and many of them have already been picked up and headed off to their new homes.  These little new ones will be ready in another 5 weeks.  It's amazing how fast they grow!