No March piglets

Friday night, as I returned to the farm after my off-farm job I noticed some flirting across the fence line between Sally and Zeb.  I parked the car, put my bag and my groceries down and started across the driveway.  "Hey piggles!"  Sally turned straight towards me and bee-lined for the new gate that Little man's father completed earlier in the week.  Zeb followed intently, nose pressed as close to the fence as possible.  Stepping over the electric fence I was almost knocked over by a sow who wanted nothing more then through that gate.  One check around her back side and I knew that the farrowing hut could be knocked down a rung or two on the priority list - she was in heat.

By the time I had said hi to Sally and Little One and checked them over for anything out of the ordinary, Zeb had decided it was late and he retreated to his hut.  Concerned, I headed over to look closer.  He had a little loose stool, probably from the rich food scraps that he had been consuming during the past week.  I would watch him.  I left them separated overnight and checked on them in the morning.  Sally jumped right up out of her hut and waited for me at the gate again.  I checked on Zeb - he wasn't warm so I took the risk and let Sally into Zeb's pen.  He was still pretty cozy in his hut and didn't pay her any mind for the first 5 minutes.  When Sally decided she wanted to snuggle, Zeb perked up and realized that she was over for a visit.  I left them to their business and ran some errands.  When I got home she was in his hut and he was doing anything he could think of to get her to come out and play.  She had enough and as I got out of the car, she met me at the gate to go back with Little One.

Sunday was a little bit chilly and forecast to snow pretty heavily.  I wasn't sure if I wanted to leave Sally with Zeb all day long or not.  Little man's father had fed and watered the pigs and they didn't even stir.  Their huts and all that hay was pretty warm.  An hour or so later I went outside and Zeb was waiting on his side of the gate.  "Hey piggles!"  Sally jumped right up and was ready for another day with her buddy.  I opened the gate and she went right over to Zeb.  For three or four minutes she stood and I waited to witness the actual sealing of the deal.  I guess Zeb had some performance anxiety so I left them alone.  While I went about my chores I would intermittently check out the window and across the dooryard; I never did witness a 'completed' breeding this weekend.  

By the time it started snowing in earnest early Sunday afternoon, Sally had taken up residence in Zeb's hut and he was standing out in the weather.  It took a few minutes but Little man's father and I got her back to her side with Little One.  Zeb came out a few more times Sunday night in the white-out conditions looking for her, but retreated back to the warmth of his hut pretty quickly.  Monday morning I checked Sally before I left for my off-farm job.  It didn't look like she was in heat any more.  

I will note the calendar for 21 days from this past Thursday and see if she comes into heat again.  Little One is almost due for her second heat this week as well.  If she is on schedule then I will probably try and get her and Zeb together in March.