runt piglet wont eat

Question
QUESTION: My Female delivered a litter of eight babies, all are beautiful and happy. The runt however will not eat anything solid, all of the others are eating mashed pellets mixed with water twice a day, and nursing two times a day. They are only three weeks old, so I am not too worried as long as mom keeps making milk. I was wondering however if that is normal to have one piglet so far behind the rest of the litter? We have tried to separate her to eat, but she will not touch anything but water. Her poops are also still soft and thin, where the others are more solid. Mom seems to be tiring of the babies and I also wondered if there was anything i could give to make her produce more milk?

ANSWER: It's not unusual for a litter to have a runt piglet, especially from a large litter. If the runt is basically healthy, just smaller and weaker than the others, with a little extra love and care they can live long, healthy lives. Sadly, not every runt is born healthy.

If baby is far behind the others in size, activity level, etc., then I would get baby to a vet right away. Not every runt is born healthy, often there are problems. Also, the runny stools could be due to a mild infection, requiring antibiotics.

Or, there could be a problem inside baby's mouth. Babies are born with their first set of teeth, the second set begins to come in at 2 weeks. Baby could be refusing to eat due to mouth pain. Feel around inside baby's mouth for swelling, etc. Also, feel around inside the other piglets mouths, and compare. If baby's mouth is different, baby will need to see a vet right away.

If baby is keeping up with the others in every way except eating, then it might be ok to spend another week or so trying to get baby to drink something more nutritional than water. But if, at 4weeks, baby is still nursing only, baby will need to see a vet.

If baby can drink water out of a pan, perhaps you can persuade her to sample a little bit of warm goat milk or sow replacement formula from a pan. Bottle feeding usually isn't a good idea because the babies can easily inhale the liquid causing pneumonia. But, if a few sessions with a bottle will teach baby that goat milk or sow replacement formula tastes pretty good, it might be worth a try.

Mom needs plenty of nutrition right now. It's ok to give her slightly larger portions, a few extra treats, or add a little dairy to her dinner, like milk, cheese (real, not processed), yogurt or sour cream. The babies should be eating Starter pellets, it's ok to feed Mom the same food. Or you, could use a commercial supplement. Healthy Pigs sells a supplement for young piglets and nursing Moms at http://healthypigs.easystorecreator.com/items/feed-and-nutrition-items/list.htm?

There's a list of vets that treat pot-bellied pigs here www.farec.org


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QUESTION: I took baby to the vet today, he gave me antibiotic lincomix at 1/4 cc twice daily. I trust my vet but he usually sees farm pigs is lincomix safe for potbellies?

Answer
I am not a veterinarian and can not prescribe medication over the internet.

Medicines for hogs are considered safe for pot-bellied pigs also, in the proper dose for their smaller weight.

Lincomix is a broad spectrum antibiotic, which means that it kills several different bad germs. It's recommended for diarrhea from infection (called dysentery), as well as mycoplasmal pneumonia, which is both deadly and highly contagious for pigs. Babies often get pneumonia from aspirating, or inhaling liquids when they are learning to eat. Your baby already has diarrhea. So, Lincomix seems like a good choice.