When tissue comes out the back end of a pig, you have hours, not days. Rectal, vaginal, and uterine prolapse (locally "buwa") all show up on PH backyard farms, usually from mouldy corn, low-fibre feed, or a heavily pregnant sow on a sloped pen. Sugar shrinks the swelling. Some cases are slaughter cases. Tell them apart in ten minutes.
First, Tell The Three Types Apart
| Type | What you see | Who gets it |
|---|---|---|
| Rectal | Pink/red ring or tube from the anus, smooth surface | Any age, any sex; often after diarrhoea, coughing, or cold pile-ups |
| Vaginal | Smooth pink mass from the vulva; pops out when sow lies, may go back when she stands | Late-pregnancy sow, usually 5th parity or older |
| Uterine | Large RED mass, BUMPY with caruncles like meatballs, hangs to the hocks | Within 24 hours after farrowing |
Smooth pink = vaginal. Red and bumpy = uterine. That single visual difference tells you whether you can buy yourself half a day or whether you need a vet immediately.
The Reduction Protocol
Works for fresh rectal and small vaginal prolapses. Uterine prolapse is a vet job; skip to the next section.
- Isolate. Penmates will chew the prolapsed tissue within hours. Move the pig to a clean separate pen with soft bedding (rice hull, kogon).
- Clean. Warm water plus dilute povidone-iodine (Betadine 60mL, ₱110 at any drugstore). Rinse off feces, shavings, dirt.
- Shrink the swelling. Sprinkle table sugar generously over the prolapse and wait 20-30 minutes. Plain sugar is gentler; salt works in a pinch.
- Lubricate. KY jelly (₱100), petroleum jelly, or clean cooking oil. Coat the tissue and the surrounding skin.
- Reduce. Push the tissue back gently with the palm of a clean hand or folded cloth, working inward in small increments. No fingers poked into the tissue, no sharp objects.
- Hold or suture. If it stays in 5 minutes, observe. If it pops out, the pig is still straining; suture next.
When To Suture, When To Skip, When To Call A Vet
A purse-string suture closes the anus loosely around a finger's width. Stays in 5-7 days for rectal, longer for late-gestation vaginal.
Suture if: the prolapse pops out again within minutes of reduction, or the pig is still straining hard. Use 0 or 2-0 nylon (₱40-80 per sachet at vet supply shops; some farmers in remote barangays use clean fishing line as a fallback). Local lidocaine 2% if you can get it.
Call a vet (don't suture yourself) if: late-pregnancy sow with vaginal prolapse (wrong stitch can kill the litter), pig past slaughter weight (just slaughter), or second recurrence (heritable, cull her).
Uterine prolapse is a vet emergency. Backyard salvage rate is around 30% even with prompt help. Keep the sow calm, prolapse clean and elevated, call. If no vet and the sow is bleeding or shocked, humane slaughter is the kinder option. See the difficult farrowing guide.
Provincial private vet farm calls run ₱500-₱1,500; government vets cheaper but slower.
When To Slaughter Without Trying
Be honest with yourself. Slaughter humanely (or call the vet to euthanise) if ANY of these:
- Tissue is black, cold, leathery, or foul-smelling: necrosis is past the point of return.
- Bowel or intestine is visible through a torn wall: perforation.
- Continuous bleeding that pressure won't stop.
- The pig is at slaughter weight (~85 kg+): the economics are clear.
- Repeat prolapse after two reductions in the same animal.
About 90% of fresh rectal prolapses (under 4 hours, undamaged) recover. 70% of timely vet-stitched vaginal prolapses recover. Only 30% of uterine prolapses survive even with vet help. Past 24 hours untreated, assume non-viable.
The PH Prolapse Kit
| Item | What it's for | Approx. PHP |
|---|---|---|
| Table sugar (1 kg) | Osmotic shrink | 60 |
| Povidone-iodine 60mL | Wash | 110 |
| KY jelly or petroleum jelly | Lubricant | 60-120 |
| Robipenstrep P 100mL | Antibiotic cover after reduction | 267-500 |
| Nylon suture 0 or 2-0 | Purse-string | 40-80 |
| Lidocaine 2% (Rx) | Local anaesthetic | 150-300 |
| Mycotoxin binder (Toxoff 1L) | Prevention during rainy months | 350-500 |
| Mineral oil 100mL | Mild laxative | 80 |
For Robipenstrep IM technique, see how to inject pigs. Same sow-stress causes show up in lameness; see the pig limping guide.
Why It Happened (And How To Stop The Next One)
Mouldy corn is the most common backyard trigger. Zearalenone (the mycotoxin in humid-stored corn) causes vulvar swelling and constant straining, which pushes vagina, rectum, or uterus out. Inspect every batch, discard mouldy bags, add a binder (Toxoff, Mycosorb, or activated charcoal as a budget fallback) through May to November.
Other fixes:
- Boost fibre. Add 10-15% rice bran (darak) to commercial finisher. Pure pellets cause hard stools and chronic straining. See feed economics.
- Water 24/7. Check nipple flow daily. Dehydrated pigs strain.
- Flat dry pens. Sloped or wet floors push abdominal pressure the wrong way.
- Cull repeat offenders. Vaginal and uterine prolapse have a heritable component.
For multi-pig outbreaks, suspect the feed batch first; see the outbreak response guide.
Bisaya / Cebuano
Para sa mga mag-uuma
Ang buwa, dili kana drama. Naa kay 4 ngadto 8 ka oras ayha mahimong dili na ma-balik ang tissue. Una, ibulag ang baboy aron dili lamuyon sa kauban. Hugasi ug Betadine. Sabwagi og asukar (table sugar), pahuwaya 20-30 minuto aron mokulo ang hubag. Lubricant (KY o petroleum jelly), unya itulod gamay-gamay gamit ang luag nga palad. Kung mobalik dayon, kinahanglan og purse-string stitch. Sa lutahan nga buwa sa baboy nga buntis, tawga ang vet, ayaw og kaugalingong stitch.
Ayaw na lang sulayi: kung itom o bugnaw ang tissue, kung naa nay basa o nana ug baho, o kung naa nay tinai nga makita gawas. Patyon na lang nga maayo.
Ang dakong hinungdan dinhi sa Pilipinas: agup-op nga mais sa irigasyon. Ihatag og toxin binder sa pagkaon sa panahon nga ulan-ulan, dugangi og darak para makalibang.
