Pigs wont come out when outside

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I have built a nice little run for our two pigs myself, its 2m x 1m and about a foot high...

We have been putting them in every day this week as its been nice and sunny out and about 12-15c, along with an igloo house thing we got from P@H when we bought them, and their food bowl and water bottle, but they wont come out of hiding in the igloo at all...

All day every day they have not ventured out of it once, even when nibbles are placed in there to try and entice them out, they ignore them..

If I take them out of the igloo and remove it, and they just sit there motionless for the entire time, until i replace the igloo and then they both scurry back in...

The first day or so I expected it if it was a new environment for them etc, but yesterday was about the 6th day in a row we put them out and they are still the same..

When I put a length of pipe down inside the house they both play in it loads, going in one end out the other and back and fore and seem to have great fun...
When I put the pipe in the run they just go into it and sit in there hiding...

How can we get them to get braver and come out more when outside...?
 
Piggies are very sound oriented and there will be loads of new frightening sounds to deal with. This is a seriously scary environment for them and you need to reassure.

You could try - having a radio on softly playing nice music inside so that they associate the sound with safety and then putting the radio outside with them too. Or simply sitting near them and talking to them as your voice will be all friendly and reassuring. Or just patience, eventually they will realise that nothing will harm them out here..., this will just take a long time!

Sarah
 
When I first started putting my piggies out in their run they just froze to the spot and wouldnt move. It took quite a while for them to come round. Keep trying as once they relax they will love it.
 
Try and throw an old bath towel or sheet over part of the cage. Lots of piggies are frightened of open spaces at first. The cover will give them a sense of security.
 
i havent tried mine again recently cos the first time i put them out they were exactly the same and the problem is i only have grass in the front garden so you have traffic noise to deal with! having a radio playing softly is a good idea and i like the towel idea so when it warms up again i will give that a go!
 
I put Archie my boar out for the first time last week, he is only 7 months old and we had him last autumn. He was unsure at first, and kept looking around checking things out, looking up checking for birds i suppose. Anyhow I put a blanket over part of the cage and this made him feel a little more at ease, I frequently kept going back into the garden and speaking to them just to let them know that I hadn't gone completely, and they gradually settled down to eat. If you do this gradually they will become used to it.
 
Disney and Paris were reluctant at first last weekend, we got a play pen and tried them for 10 mins on saturday and they hid in a box then on sunday we tried again but this time put the safety net over the top that came with the pen, they started running around and eating the grass like there was no tomorrowxx>>>
 
I think it is just because piggies like a "roof over their head" type of situation.

They can be frightened of open spaces. Yes, throw a towel over the run or a large piece of wood and see what happens.

However, I am sure that they will get used to the run, just give them time. But I do find that sometimes mine have had enough of being out on the grass after a short time and are waiting by the side of the run asking to go back indoors! Funny things! :{:))
 
my 2 babies who are 9 & 11 weeks old went out for the first time last week. :)) They were sat rigid for a while, then suddenly they decided that the grass was worth eating!

I only kept the babies out for about 10 minutes then took them inside again. I don't want to scare them as they are indoor pigs & so will continue to do this every time they go out until they are confident. :... The big boys stayed out for longer.

Mine too will got & sit in the roofed part of the run when they have had enough. I suppose even piggies have a limit on how much grass they can cope with... :{
+
 
mine did the same last week. so i took out the house and covered half the run with a blanket, she was fine eating the grass and wondering about under the covered area, untill my neighbours decided to get builders in to put in new windows and the drilling and hammering scared her and she tried to jump out the pen! so waiting till i aquire a solid lid for my run before putting her out again!
 
My pigs don't like the brightness of the sun, I was confused cos they were outside all day and hid ! Until the sun went and out they came munch munch :))

Now when they're out in the sun I make sure most of the cage is shady, with towels or other stuff. And of course their little ears burn easily, so they can pop into the sun for a minute for a chomp and then scoot back into the shade.
Result = happy pigs ! x>>
 
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