my baby piggy

Question
My one week old teacup potbelly pig will not eat what should I do?

Answer
A one week old baby is very young to be away from Mom. Sows normally wean their piglets between 8 and 12 weeks of age. Chances are your baby is not weaned and does not know how to eat.

Give baby goats milk or sow replacement formula, slightly warm but NOT hot, in a shallow pan, like a cookie sheet or tray. Baby piglets need lots of warmth, and can die quickly from hypothermia. Babies under 3 or 4 weeks old need to be kept in temps between 80 and 90 F.

Rice cereal is not a good choice. Instead, teach baby to sample starter mini-pig pellets by dropping a pellet or two in the milk & let them soak. At each meal add a couple more pellets.

Baby will need to eat frequently, about every 2 to 4 hours. At this stage it's best to let baby have as much milk as he wants. Babies should gain about 1 lb a week. By 8 weeks baby should be eating pellets without the goats milk. The rule of thumb for piglets 8 weeks is 1/2 cup of pellets per 15 lb of piglet, broken into at least two or three meals.