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Owners of private farms sometimes want to have a pig, but the obstacle to fulfilling the desire is the lack of a pigsty. The animal cannot be kept in a regular barn, because of its habits. If the floor and walls turn out to be fragile, the piglet will poke them out with its patch. Now we will try to consider how to build do-it-yourself pigsty and properly equip it inside so that caring for the animal does not turn into torment for the owner.
What are the requirements for the construction of a pigsty
Pigs differ from most other domestic animals in that they are not grazed. However, the piglet also loves to walk. Indoors, the animal spends about 75% of the time, and the rest is allocated to stay in the fresh air. Pigs walk in special walks. For convenience, they are attached to the pigsty. The walk is made from durable materials, and they try to make it comfortable for the piglet.
For example, when breeding pigs to obtain offspring, a completely different layout will be required, since you will have to keep a boar and a sow separately. Fattening of one or two piglets for meat can be done in a small pigsty, consisting of one room.
Even before starting construction, it is important to determine the optimal place for the pigsty:
- A dry piece of land is chosen in the yard. Better if it is a hill. But at the same time it must be warm, that is, it must be illuminated by the sun for most of the day.
- The site should be closed from drafts and cold winds. Sometimes the owners specially plant fast-growing shrubs or other cultural plantings around the building.
- Usually a private yard is limited in free space, but next to the pigsty, it is necessary to set aside a place for arranging a walk for a pig.
Compliance with these simple rules is the first success in keeping piglets. If a pigsty is built in a lowland or on a ventilated area, the animals will constantly get sick. The walk will flood with water in the slightest rain or when the snow melts. It is unreasonable to expect growth, and even more so offspring in such conditions.
In addition to these rules, there are still sanitary standards, which stipulate the distance from the pigsty to residential buildings. No matter how well the animals are looked after, an unpleasant odor will still emanate from the piglets. So the distance from the pigsty to their own and neighboring housing is maintained at least 15 m. It is important to take into account the constant direction of the wind so that smells do not spread around the yard.
The video tells about a pigsty for four pigs:
The norms for the allocation of free space in the room for each animal
The size of the shed depends on the number of piglets kept. The free space for each animal is calculated according to its dimensions, as well as its purpose. Typically, modern pigsties are built with pens with a depth of 2.5 to 3 m.
The calculation of free space for the intended purpose of the animal is done as follows:
- The boar is kept in a separate boar. 8 m are allocated for him2 free area.
- Sows are kept in pens ranging from 6 to 10 m2... Moreover, they are distilled there in the fourth month of pregnancy.
- The pigs left for fattening are kept in a common pen. The number of their heads can be from 1 to 6, depending on age and size. In any case, 0.6-2 m is taken per pig in the pen2 free area.
A domestic pig farm should be planned so that the building has free passages 1.5 m wide. They are needed for convenient feeding of animals, as well as for removing manure. Place the sow enclosure away from cold walls during planning. Here the newborn offspring will be warmer and more comfortable.
It is important to consider that the height of a pigsty cannot be planned at random. Here, the type of ceilings and roofs are taken into account:
- When the building is made without a ceiling with open beams, then the maximum height to the ceiling is 2.6 m.If thermal insulation is laid under the roof to insulate the pigsty, then the height of the room against the wall to the beams is 1.8 m.
- Flat ceilings are mounted at a height of at least 2.2 m.
The photo shows a diagram of a pigsty designed for two walks. But there can be one place for a walk. The size and layout are selected individually for the number of piglets.
The video shows a home pigsty:
Pigsty foundation
We will now go over the steps on how to make a home pigsty and start with the foundation. After all, any building construction begins with laying the foundation. The walls of the building are erected from durable material with an impressive weight. This means that a reliable strip foundation is required. It can be poured out of concrete, laid out from reinforced concrete blocks or stone. Usually, such a foundation is buried to 70 cm. If there is seasonal heaving of the soil, then the foundation is laid to a depth below the level of freezing of the soil.
The finished foundation should rise 20–60 cm above the ground level. Around the formed basement, a blind area of solid material 70 cm wide is laid. For these purposes, asphalt, clay, concrete, etc. are suitable. Rain and melt water will flow away from the walls of the building along the blind area.
Walling
We have already noted that you need to make a pigsty from durable materials, and in particular this applies to walls. In addition, the walls must have a minimum moisture absorption, as well as maximum thermal insulation properties. For construction, a wooden beam, brick, any type of block is suitable, but preferably not a foam block. The thickness of the walls depends on the thermal conductivity of the material. Let's say wooden walls are made up to 25 cm thick, and brick ones - 64 cm.
In general, the thickness of the walls is calculated from the thermal conductivity of the material and the climatic conditions of the region. During the most severe frosts, the indoor temperature should not drop below 0aboutC. If the building is made of bricks or other similar materials, you can additionally insulate the pigsty by laying thermal insulation between the outer or inner wall cladding.
Ceiling and roof arrangement
High-quality overlap contributes to the formation of a special microclimate of the pigsty, favorable for animals. In the built room, a ceiling is definitely needed if the outside temperature in winter drops below -20aboutC. Overlapping will heat the air inside the pigsty faster. In addition, an attic air gap forms between the ceiling and the roof, which serves as additional thermal insulation. In the southern regions, you can do without ceilings, but it is better if they are.
For overlapping, boards or reinforced concrete slabs are used. From below, the ceilings are whitewashed with lime, and from above, any insulation is thrown onto the ceiling. The roof is equipped with any available materials. Usually, inexpensive roofing is used for this, for example, corrugated board, slate or roofing material. In villages, pigsties used to be covered with straw or reeds.The material is short-lived, but it has ideal thermal insulation properties.
Pigsty floor
The cleanliness of the animals, as well as the convenience of cleaning manure, depend on how the floors in the pigsty are made. In a small private building for raising 1–2 piglets for meat, a solid concrete or wooden floor is usually made. On modern farms, a self-alloying system for removing manure is being equipped. At the same time, a slotted floor covering is made. A similar system is recommended for a home mini-pig farm.
For a self-alloying system, storage tanks are poured from concrete. Manure gets into them through the cracks in the floor covering. Each bath has a sewerage system, always closed with plugs. After the accumulation of manure, about once every two weeks, the silos are cleaned. To do this, open the plugs, and all the sewage is drained by gravity into a tank outside the building.
Cast iron or reinforced concrete gratings are ideal for arranging slatted floors. At home, you can lay boards at a certain distance, but the piglets are constantly trying to pry them off with their snout, and over time they succeed.
Piglet partitions
When the floor of the pigsty is completely ready, they begin to build partitions for the piglets. The machines are fenced with durable materials. These can be reinforced concrete slabs or metal blanks. In domestic pigsties, partitions are often made of wood, but usually they are enough for one season. After installing partitions, the entire room inside is whitewashed with lime.
Pigsty lighting
A piglet, like any other animal, needs natural light. For this, the pigsty must be built with windows. However, short daylight hours are not enough. For example, for a sow, it needs to be extended to 18 hours, and for pigs left to fatten, 12 hours are enough. Only artificial lighting can cope with this task. Throughout the pigsty, lighting fixtures are hung so that the light intensity can be adjusted. And you need to take into account the whitewashed walls. The white surface reflects light perfectly.
The video tells how to build a pig shed:
Pigsty ventilation
Inside the premises where pigs are kept, there is a large accumulation of moisture, as well as the release of unpleasant odors from the manure. To get rid of them, ventilation of a factory-made or home-made pigsty helps. At home, a hood is usually installed under the ceiling, and supply air ducts are made on the walls of the building. Thus, natural ventilation of the air is obtained. In large pigsties, the hood is equipped with electric fans.
Pigsty heating
Pigs emit a lot of their own heat, and it is unnecessary to equip additional heating in a small insulated pigsty. You can turn on the red lamp to heat animals during severe frosts. Large pig farms are equipped with stoves, water or electric heating.
Do not believe the claim that pigs are sloppy. In a properly built, as well as equipped pigsty, animals will be clean, healthy and an unpleasant odor will emanate from them faintly.
