Never Had A Long Haired Pig Before... Help!

[Zofia]

I adopted my new pig yesterday as a friend for Pluto. She's 8 weeks old and a coronet. I've called her Stella. (She weighs 500g - I think that's ok for her age but it's ages since I've had a baby pig?)

I left her a day to settle in (she's remarkably brave given that she's only been here a day) and then this evening I thought I'd groom her and give her a proper check over, weigh-in etc. She smelled like wee! :o I determined the cause of the stink to be the long hair round her bum. It looks like the rescue has trimmed round the bum but it was still getting wet. I've trimmed the underneath back as much as I can and also around her legs because she has very hairy legs and I think I managed to remove all the wet bits. Her hair is already 2 inches long all over!

I've never had a coronet or sheltie before. Has anyone got any good tips for keeping them clean and dry and stink-free?

She's obviously going to need fairly regular baths but GG shampoo is only suitable from 12 weeks. Is there anything else I should use or is it best to wait 4 weeks until she's old enough for the Posh n Go?

 

[emo_d_88]

I have the same problem with mine and I struggle to trimaround the back end and legs as I'm scared I hurt him.

 

[Wiebke]

You can give her a hand warm water bum bath; that will go a long way! It's what I do with my own coronets and perus when they are very wet for some reason. The worst is a leaky old coronet lady of mine.

You are doing the right thing to keep the bum area cut short; that is biggest area of matting and stink. Trim the sides so they are off the ground and allow the piggies to lead a happy piggy life. I tend to give them a fairly severe shorthair cut at the beginning of summer; the hair will have grown by autumn, but it makes life a lot more comfy for them when it is warm.

If your girl REALLY hates grooming, you may consider to keep her top hair cut short, so grooming is not so painful and such a chore. When cutting hair, keep a finger between the scissors and the skin and then you are not likely to hurt them.

 

[Zofia]

Thanks. She seemed to quite enjoy being combed and brushed. She wasn't even that bothered about the haircut.

I'm reluctant to chop it all off because she's very beautiful! I think I'll have another look in a minute just to take off anything that's trailing behind her. I'll bottom bath if she needs it until she's old enough for shampoo - I intend to bath her once a month once she's old enough. I think she'll need brushing every day which I don't mind, her hair feels lovely.

I used to have a pig called Babe who had rough curly hair but hers wasn't as difficult to manage because it stuck out like a skirt and grew shorter underneath. She only needed a haircut about 3 times a year.

 

[katew]

We have a long haired girl with the same problems - she hates clipping and washing so we try and keep it to a minimum. We often use just tepid water for a quick bum wash and it seems to work. Good luck.