[Gpdd] BREEDING [information]

[Penny Charlesworth]

Welcome back Linda and welcome little Abigail.

I hope, for her sake and yours, that she is not pregnant but there is lots 
of help available here and on both GuineaLynx and Peter Gurney's pages.

I have never bred piggies but have a small sanctuary for unwanted piggies 
and sometimes these have arrived pregnant.

Around three weeks into the pregnancy, the expectant mum can be see to be 
drinking more. Many of them become decidedly pear shaped as the pregnancy 
progresses and around a week to ten days before the birth you can feel the 
babes moving inside. Sometimes you can see her sides move as the babes kick 
about.

During pregnancy she will need extra calcium plus Vitamin D to produce 
strong babes and this is available as a liquid or as tablets here in 
England. Overseas readers please advise! She can have high calcium foods 
such as leafy greens and should also have extra Vit C.

I give expectant mums raspberry leaves as these are said to help with the 
birth.  Raspberry leaf tablets are available here but I have the plants 
growing at the end of the garden and dry some leaves for winter use.

I also give expectant mums a dish of brown bread and cow's milk. Some hate 
it, some love it but it is a way of getting the extra calcium where it is 
needed.

I have never noticed that mums-to-be nibble on clothes and hands and suspect 
that this is just her individual taste - nothing to do with pregnancy.

Best of luck with little Abigail.

Penny and the Piggyfriends.