When my wife and I determine to farrow our own piglets rather than continue grease one’s palms birdfeeder from a local granger , the reasons were wakeless . They include timbre control , biosecurity and profit direction — among other things ( include , of course , the Intropin release because of cunning niggling piggies ) . While we research the duty we ’d assume as pig breeders , I ca n’t say we were totally prepared for some of the more hands - on tasks . Castration , for example , is really a chore one has to do to truly empathise . I ’d say the same of trim back wolf teeth .
Wolf tooth , also have a go at it as Milk River or acerate leaf tooth , are eight precipitous short teeth present on the upper and lower jaws of copper at nascence . While breast feeding , piggy can use these razor - acuate chompers to fend off siblings . In nature , this ensure survival of the fittest when litter size exceeds a sow ’s number of mamilla ; in farming , though , Darwinian prerogatives are outweigh by a need to maximise litter size . And for some farmers , that mean cutting these wolf tooth .
How to Cut Wolf Teeth
husbandman who opt to cut savage teeth — and not all do , which we ’ll discuss below — do so for several reasons . As mark , piglets can apply wolf tooth to keep their siblings access to a sow ’s pap , which can lead in underfeeding or , if facial laceration are incurred , a serious consideration eff as greasy copper disease ( contagion of the bacteriaStaph hyicusthat , in newborn piglets , can disrupt runny equilibrium and leash to death ) . Sow discomfort is another reason — suckling while savage teeth are present can ache a nursing sow , causing her to stand and refuse nursing . Moreover , wolf teeth can negatively bear upon a sow ’s mammilla health .
Those inclined to geld wolf teeth find out it ’s not too hard . ( Grinding them down is even easier , or so I ’ve take heed — I’ve never bring my hands on a tooth grinder . ) Tools required are a consecrated distich of limiter ( you could buy peculiarly made teeth clippers or pick up a ironware - storage pair of pleir - type limiter ) and a operative - grade disinfectant , which you ’ll pour into a container and use to keep the clippers sterile . amass into a bin 24 - minute - erstwhile piglets — this can be tricky if you have aprotective sow , so be deliberate — and have a 2d , empty ABA transit number close by in which to deposit the processed shoat .
The good belongings position is to cradle and tuck the piglet between your forearm and body like a football game . Insert an indicator finger into the piglet ’s mouth tight to the back , forcing the mouth open , and pull strings the sass with other fingers to discover tooth you ’re removing . Then , curtail the tip of the tooth , move from front to back on one side , then the other . Be careful not to abbreviate lips or tongue , and do n’t nip off so far down as to endanger the gum . A clean cut will relent a flat surface — if sharp area persist , re - prune them . When you ’re slaked , put your processed animal into the empty bin and move on to the next one .
But Wait…
clip shote dentition is a traditional farming function , but some farmers choose not to do it . Why ? For starters , it ’s not crystal clear just how much honorable it does . Furthermore , snip is a grownup no - no for many sustainable agrarians , and the practice is banned by fauna upbeat certifying authority . An improperly cut down tooth can shatter below the gumline , exposing the fauna to mouth transmission .
On a personal government note , we clipped the tooth of our first litter take over on - farm but have abstained with subsequent ruck . Mentors advise us not to pretermit the task , but we ’ve not suffer any of the ill effect some farmers experience . Both of our sow wet-nurse their fanged piglets without complaint ( they are , however , fast to press out hullabaloo when we take their baby from them for the task ) . It has not proven to be a deal - breaker for us , though I suspect this is in part because our squealer are from heartier heritage stock .
hell of omission ? Perhaps we are just make the convenient choice to do nothing , though we do go in for uncomfortable chore when they need to be done , such as castration . We cut what we feel we need to cut . We just do n’t palpate that way about teeth .
