You have an excellent idea. I've raised a lot of pigs. Pigs get large - very large. I would not, personally, consider raising a pig that I intended to keep for the long term, especially a potbellied. Believe me, a 400 (or much more) pound pig eats a lot, the vet bills could be astronomical as they age and they need care and attention at least twice a day, every day. Plus they tell me the potbellied is not a good meat animal. That said, the idea is wonderful. You got good advice about fencing if you can sort out a solution that'll work for you. Pigs are a blast to raise. Get yourself two feeder pigs, raise them together and have them slaughtered when they hit about 225 to 250. Unless you have a large family, I'd suggest finding someone to buy the extra pig and maybe pay the feed bills for both in return for your work raising them. Myself, I like at least a 10'x20' area for the pigs with 1/2 that in shade. Remember to give them water at ALL times and a place to wallow in the heat - pigs don't sweat and so must be kept cool. You'll be surprised at how clean and smart pigs are. And tasty, too. If you do it, have fun and feel free to email me for help - we really enjoyed our pigs and we're always happy to help other pig farmers get started.

My guess would be that the hatchlings died and the parents disposed of them. I've seen this on numerous occasions--especially during a cold, wet spring. We once had a pair nesting in a yew right under our window. We watched them sit and hatch 4 nestlings. One week the weather turned, and the nestlings died. We watched as one of the parents picked up a dead chick and flew off. I guess that explains why occasionally you'll find a dead baby bird in the middle of nowhere. I think this has been a particularly tough spring. I've noticed more failed nesting attempts at our houses than usual.

Yes, it is a Hansgrohe Metro that I got from costco. I liked the price too. It doesn't give a really hard spray like you can sometimes get from a stand alone spray, but that doesn't bother me. I did have a problem with the spray head when it was first installed and didn't want to have to take it back to Costco, so I contacted Hansgrohe online and they sent me a new one, no questions asked. They stand behind their product. I use to do frequent searches for "hot buys" on the costco internet site. Sometimes you can pick up some really good deals. I missed a great sink by not making up my mind soon enough!

I'd get her some freezer containers ;-). -Do they know if their refrigerator is even a food-safe temperature of 40°F or colder? If it's warmer than that, trash it - especially if they placed it in the refrigerator while still hot or really warm. -Food that contains potentially deadly bacteria doesn't necessarily "smell bad", so that's not a good test. -How was the food handled when it was placed into the refrigerator? Was it quick-chilled using an ice water bath in the sink (the prefered method), or was it left out at room temperature (the not-so-great method), or something else? -Was it reheated in the pot several times and placed back in the refrigerator each time? Too many variables for me to give it a clean bill of health - I'd trash it and call it one of life's lessons. If they are going to consume it, I would certainly follow pilllog's method, except it needs to come to a complete boil, not below boiling, in order to kill bacteria. By the time it's goes through a vigorous boil, there really isn't any real nutritional value left in it - so why bother wasting time and cooking energy? -Grainlady