Trimming a Boar's Tusks

Today we decided to tackle Jaws' tusks.  We had called the vet yesterday to see if he could come out to help us by sedating the pig, and he recommended we use a squeeze chute instead of sedation.  Ok...only one problem...we don't have a squeeze chute.

J being the incredible builder that he is, and our property being a treasure-trove of scrap, we began to construct a steel squeeze chute for the pig.  J took a ramp that already had bars on both ends and welded several more bars down the sides.  We didn't have time to make the "squeeze" part as the vet was coming this afternoon, so we improvised.

The infamous tusks from Jaws.

When the vet got here, we moved the boar into the chute with pig boards.  I was waiting at the far end of the chute with some food, hoping to coax him in.  Once he moved into the chute, I ran around to the back and put two bars through to block his exit.  The vet also slid the pig board down in front of the pipes to make it a better wall in back.  But...we misjudged Jaws ability to squeeze through small spaces and within a few seconds, he had shimmied through the hole in the front, crawled over my casserole dish (I was using it for scraps), and was on the loose - tusks and all.

Ok.  Don't panic.  We just need to catch a 300 pound pig with two inch long razor sharp tusks who has just been irritated.  We weren't worried.  While J and the vet followed Jaws with pig boards, I grabbed a bucket of grain.  They managed to keep him from heading down the driveway too far and turn him back toward the pen.  I ran to the front and shook the grain bucket at the pen.  He hesitantly returned to his pen.  Back to square one.

We took another pipe and tied it across the front of the chute with baling twine (thank God for baling twine!).  I put the bucket at the front of the chute and the guys started to "push" Jaws toward the chute with their pig boards (J was actually using a door).  Amazingly, Jaws went in.  As we secured the rear, I had a horrible vision of Jaws climbing out the top, so J threw the door on top of the chute and just as Jaws bucked, he jumped onto the door and held him down.

We took the metal snare and the vet looped it down around the boar's top jaw.  Holding it tightly out the side of the chute, he passed it off to me.  With J sitting on top of the pig (on a door) and me holding the snare attached to the pig's snout, the vet began sawing through the tusks with a wire cutting tool.  The teeth cut quickly and Jaws didn't squeal much at all.  I noticed the vet had earplugs in, so it must be more common to have horrible noises (like when Jaws was caught in the fence).  Each of the four tusks flipped off as they were cut.  The vet then went in with a pair of nippers and made sure that the sharp edges were gone.

While Jaws was escaping the first time, he broke my casserole dish and cut his leg on it.  So I grabbed the betadine and flushed out his cut before we released him from the chute.  He slowly backed into his pen (we had the chute up against the gate opening to his pen).  I have to say that it was fun...maybe not "fun," but definitely an adrenaline rush!

The vet said that we can expect to have to do this about every six months to a year.  I think as long as we have a couple of extra hands around, we will be able to handle this ourselves the next time.  Since all three of us were busy during the ordeal, I couldn't photo-document.  But the guys posed for a picture after we were done.  I guess it's better than nothing.