Can Pigs Live Outside All Year? Cold, Heat, Mud and Sunburn

Many pigs live outdoors all year, and outdoor pig keeping is a well-established system. But pigs are vulnerable at both ends of the thermometer, and mud is a third hazard that people underestimate. This guide pulls together what government, industry and welfare sources actually say about weather, and is honest about the gaps.

Start with the site

The Scottish Government's pig welfare guidance says free-draining soils, in low rainfall areas, with lower frost incidence and low flood risk are most suitable for outdoor pig keeping. That is a useful test of your own land before you buy a single pig: a waterlogged, exposed field will be harder in every season. (Guidance on the welfare of pigs, outdoor systems)

Cold: shelter, bedding and draughts

Defra's guidance says cold stress can be equally harmful to pigs as heat, especially the very young and pigs kept in systems lacking active control of the environment. It calls for supplementary heating, increased insulation and bedding, and minimising draughts over the pigs, and it notes that straw bedding can help create a microclimate that levels out temperature changes. The Scottish guidance adds that all outdoor accommodation, including arks, huts and tents, should have bedding appropriate to the time of year and a warm, draught-free lying area. The RSPCA says pigs shouldn't be exposed to draughts or sudden temperature changes. (Defra; RSPCA.) Our guide to pig shelters and arks covers what a good shelter looks like.

Heat and sunburn

Defra states that pigs are acutely susceptible to heat stress, and that there should be a dry lying area available as a matter of choice, so pigs can move away to cooler conditions. AHDB says shade is essential so pigs can move out of direct sunlight, that sunburn is common in early summer (May and June), and that severe sunburn, when the skin blisters, can cause pregnancy failure. It suggests painting arks white to reflect sunlight. The RSPCA advises providing a wallow and shelter from the sun in warm weather, as pigs can get sunburn or sunstroke. (AHDB, avoiding heat stress in outdoor herds.)

Wallows

AHDB says wallowing and rooting in cool earth are the two main ways pigs cool down. It recommends a wallow with room for twice the number of pigs it is meant for, so the more timid animals can use it too, with a consistency more liquid than mud — like emulsion paint — and topped up daily in dry weather. It also asks for a separate supply of clean drinking water in addition to the wallow. The Scottish guidance says wallows are particularly useful for thermoregulation and also contribute to meeting pigs' behavioural needs.

Mud is a welfare problem, not just a mess

Every Pig Rescue Service, a UK charity that publishes set-up guidance for pig keepers, warns that living in cold mud harms pigs, which can develop bacterial and fungal skin and trotter conditions and arthritis, and that grassy areas are often too waterlogged in winter. It recommends hard standing of at least 30 by 30 feet (about 9 by 9 metres). See our land guide for how that fits with paddock size.

A checklist from the sources above

• Free-draining land that doesn't flood.
• A warm, draught-free, well-bedded shelter, with bedding adjusted to the season.
• Shade, and a wallow with room for twice your number of pigs.
• Separate clean drinking water.
• Hard standing so pigs aren't living in cold mud.
• Extra vigilance in early summer for sunburn and in cold snaps for the young.

What we couldn't find

None of the sources we read gave a temperature at which pigs are too hot or too cold, and none gave a reliable comparison of breed hardiness, so we haven't published either. If you keep a particular breed, ask the breeder and your vet how it copes in your climate,.

Sources: Defra, “Caring for pigs” (paragraphs 93, 94, 96); Scottish Government, guidance on the welfare of pigs, outdoor systems (paragraphs 210, 214, 219); AHDB, “Avoiding heat stress in pigs: outdoor herds”; RSPCA, “Environment for pigs”; Every Pig Rescue Service, rotation and hard standing. Sources checked: September 2026.

Common questions

Can pigs stay outside in winter?

Outdoor pig keeping is well established in the UK, but Defra's guidance says cold stress can be as harmful as heat stress, especially for young pigs and pigs in systems without active control of the environment. The answer is a warm, draught-free, well-bedded shelter, and enough dry ground that they are not standing in mud.

Do pigs get sunburn?

Yes. The RSPCA warns that pigs can get sunburn or sunstroke, and AHDB says sunburn is common in early summer, with severe blistering sunburn able to cause pregnancy failure in sows. Shade is essential, and wallows are one of the main ways pigs cool down.

What should a pig wallow be like?

AHDB says a wallow should have enough space for twice the number of pigs it is intended for, be more liquid than mud, with a consistency like emulsion paint, and be topped up daily in dry weather so it doesn't dry out. Pigs also need a separate supply of clean drinking water.

What temperature is too hot or too cold for pigs?

The sources we checked don't give a temperature threshold. Defra says only that pigs are acutely susceptible to heat stress and that cold stress can be equally harmful, so watch your animals and ask your vet rather than working to a single number.