How to Care for Orphaned Piglets

Taking care of orphaned piglets can be time-consuming. The survival of piglets will often depend on whether the piglets are able to get any milk from their mother in the first 24 hours of life. The sow's milk contains high levels of colostrum, which helps protect piglets from infection and disease. The exact steps and process for caring for orphaned piglets will depend on their ages. Even if the piglets were able to get some milk from their mother, the chance of survival is only approximately 50 percent.

Things You'll Need

  • Heating pad
  • Baby bottle
  • Small bowl
  • Sow's replacement milk
  • Baby rice cereal
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Instructions

    • 1

      Warm the piglets with a heating pad or heat lamps. The piglets' environment should be approximately 90 degrees. Piglets are not able to heat themselves for the first two weeks of life.

    • 2

      Purchase a sow milk replacer from your local animal feed store. Alternatively, you can use goat milk if available.

    • 3

      Mix the milk replacer as directed. Warm the milk to room temperature by placing the bottle in a bowl of hot water. Test the temperature of the milk replacer before feeding it to the piglets.

    • 4

      Feed the piglets every two to three hours for the first week. Place the nipple next to the piglet's mouth. The piglets will fight the bottle at first.

    • 5

      Wean the piglets to a small bowl of the milk replacer after a few days or a week of bottle feeding. Hold the bowl with one hand and the piglet in the other hand. Dip the piglet's nose in the bowl.

    • 6

      Reduce the piglets' feeding to once every three to four hours after they are more than a week old. Add baby rice cereal to the piglets' diet at approximately one week old. Make the cereal very watery at first and gradually change the consistency to more of a paste.

    • 7

      Provide the piglets with fresh dirt that has not had any other pigs on it. The piglets will be able to sniff in and get some much needed iron from the dirt.

    • 8

      Wean the piglets from milk and rice cereal at approximately one month of age. The piglets will be able to eat regular piglet food at this age.