Pigs in woodland and on pasture, step by step

1. Three options

Before you start, decide which of the three options is possible for you at all.

1. Pannage in someone else's woods — Pigs in public or someone else's woodland in autumn, herded or in a fenced section. You need permission from the owner or forest manager and the vet's agreement, and the risk is highest.
2. Your own oak copse — A fenced part of your own woodland with oaks. Woodland and conservation rules and a double fence apply; the risk depends on the fence and on wild pigs in the area.
3. Pasture and a run — Fenced paddocks with grass, clover and roots, in rotation. With a registered holding, fencing, shelter and water, the risk is lowest.
4. Never without a fence — A domestic pig that eats the same acorns in the woods, or touches a dead wild boar or feral hog, can bring African swine fever or another disease home. Never turn pigs into woodland without permission and without a fence.

Why: For centuries pigs spent the autumn in the woods. Today woods have owners and managers, and African swine fever lives in the wild boar that share the same acorns; in North America feral hogs spread disease in the same way.

• Turning pigs loose in the woods is, in most cases, not allowed today or very risky. First ask the vet and the woodland owner or manager.
• The safer route is your own fenced land with oaks, grass or clover, with a fence wild boar and feral hogs can't cross.

2. Rules and permissions

Rules for woodland and for pigs come from two different authorities, and both must say "yes".

1. The vet and APHA — Ask the vet or APHA / the state veterinarian whether you may keep pigs outdoors and on what conditions, and whether any disease restriction applies in your area. An outdoor unit must be on a registered holding (CPH or premises ID).
2. Woodland owner or manager — Grazing or pannage in public woodland needs written permission or an agreement: place, number of pigs, period and fee. In young plantations and natural regeneration grazing is usually forbidden.
3. Gamekeeper or wildlife agency — Woodland is almost always used for shooting or hunting. Ask whether there are wild boar or feral hogs nearby, and tell whoever holds the sporting rights that domestic pigs are there.
4. All on paper — Keep every permission in writing. Moving pigs to a distant plot or into woodland counts as a movement and has to be reported.

Why: The rules differ between countries, UK nations and US states, and they change. So here is the principle, not a quote from the law.

• If disease restriction zones (for ASF, for example) are declared, keeping pigs outdoors can be banned outright. Check.
• Check with the competent authority in your country or state, and again every autumn before pannage.

3. Biosecurity · Locked

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4. Acorns as feed · Locked

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5. Grazing and a rotated run · Locked

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6. Shelter, water and soil · Locked

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