Limping Pig

Question
QUESTION: I just rescued a 3 year old Female PBP.Her name is Pickle.Her hoofs are terrible.I have owned my own pig for 2 years and never had trouble with trimming her hoofs.
Anyways,me and my husband tried trimming her hoofs and she went crazy.
We got about 3 inches taken off,but on the bottom of the hoofs it looks like her pads are huge and she is limping badly.Sometimes she wont even get up to eat.The back hoofs also have cracks in them.
How can help her myself? My regular vet moved away,and now I am having trouble finding one.
I just would like to know what you can cut off on the bottom of the hoof.
Is there anything I can give her for pain?
Thank you.

ANSWER: Most pigs don't like having their feet trimmed. Pigs can be taught to tolerate this, and it sounds like you've done a good job teaching your 2 year old to endure trimming.

Pickles was never taught to tolerate trimming, from your description it sounds like her hooves were never trimmed.

You may need to get a couple of people to hold her for a good trimming. There's a video clip of a hoof trim here:
http://www.cppa4pigs.org/Health_Maintenance_-_Genera.html

Goat trimmers, sheep trimmers or pony trimmers all work. A cordless dremmel tool is nice for smoothing cut edges and shaping the hoof. A wood rasp can be used like an emery board or nail file. Cutting wire can take long chunks off, then take little snips with a trimmer to shape the foot. Or use a dremmel to file the foot to shape.

Bag Balm is an all purpose lotion that should help the cracked hooves.

Rimadyl is the best pain killer for piggies, but it requires a prescription. Some people give aspirin, at a slightly lower dosage than the bottle instructions or at 5 mg per lb.. but aspirin can cause all sorts of stomach problems, so if you must give aspirin, always give it with a full meal and do not give it for more than a couple of days.

There's a hoof trimmer/instruction booklet set available here:
http://www.pigs4ever.com/PotBelliedPigProducts/hoof_trimmers.htm

And loads of piggy care products including Bag Balm, skin conditioners, hoof trimmers, etc (Click on Care Products in the left hand column)
http://www.pigstuff.com/cgi-bin/shop/pigshop.cgi

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Thanks for the info.One more question.
I woke up this morning and Pickle would not get up to eat again.She did want to get up to go outside and potty,but it seemed like she was dizzy or off balance when she was walking.She even held her head a little sideways.Is that symptoms of anything you know of?

Answer
I'm not a vet and can't make a medical diagnosis over the internet, so all I can offer are some suggestions.

When a pig refuses to eat that's usually a sign of something very wrong. If Pickles skips the next meal try offering Boast or Ensure or such, and contact a vet.

Head tilt is often caused by something stuck in the ear, like a bug or a bit of wax. The ear canal is VERY narrow, never flush it with water, because that can lead to (hopefully) temporary deafness. Don't try to clean down inside the ear, but keep the area clean so the gunk can come out freely.

Salt poisoning is caused by eating a large quantity of salty food without water, or by water deprivation. If the pig suddenly drinks a large amount of water, the brain will swell, causing confusion and loss of balance. The solution here is to seek medical care and frequently offering small amounts of water.

These symptoms could also indicate a stroke or accidental poisoning.