baby pigs we lost

I feel like I just can not get this right! I see other accounts of “my sow furrowed” it goes perfectly. Baby Monster had her pigs yesterday morning, 2 weeks pre-mature. They are so little.

 I woke up feeling so tired and my stomach so upset, I decided to call in sick, and go back to bed. Jackie had gone out to feed the critters, I heard her yelling ‘we got babies”. We went out. There were already three dead, one was not fully developed, but five were tottering all over the place. One looked weaker than the rest and was off in a corner. I have DD scoop it out. It looked pretty bad, but was squealing like crazy. We warmed it up and tried to get it put back hoping it would nurse. They were sucking, but now I am not sure they were getting anything out, her bag was so engorged it looked like they were too small to bring the milk out.  She kept getting up and turning around and every time the little ones had to scramble out if the way. This went on most of the day. We put the heat lamp in hoping they would go to it, but they didn’t. Finally it was obvious we had to get them out. She was stepping on them, even though she was being as careful as she could. Jackie and I agree she looked like she was still having labour. DD got the little ones into a calf stall and all settled in, we got a heat lamp going. I mixed up some electrolytes and we got a bit of that into them. Jackie and I went out and gave them some more before we went to bed. I woke up at 1:30 am and went to give them some more. I mixed some egg, and powdered cream (NOT coffee creamer) with the electrolytes, got a little of that down them. Jackie had one in the house, it was hanging in, and I gave it some formula when I was up, but it was dead this morning. The three left are weak and not sucking. We kinda have to squeeze the formula into their mouth and they swallow. If they got colostrum they may just make it, if not they won’t.

A whole new level of not feeling well!