We raised pigs when I was a kid. Our sows were free range, except when they were about to give birth (3 months, 3 weeks, and 3 days after conception). We then put them in small one-pig huts. They were built with a stall that is too small for the sow to turn around in for two reasons - so there was room on the sides for piglets to get out of the way when she lays down (otherwise she would crush them) and to keep her from turning around and eating them (which otherwise happens quite often). So all the hand-wringing about small stalls is really misplaced - dead piglets means lost profit. The farmers are trying to protect their investments.
3 Likes
