Temporary baby pig structure

Looking to  to build a temporary pig structure. I am getting 28 straw bales soon. I have total of 4 275 gallon IBC toes that I can use too. Concern is keeping them warm during the winter and them catching a cold as where these pigs are being bought from have been keep inside their whole life.

Could run a heat lamp in there for them during the night. Could use straw bales to protect opening from a draft during the night.

Uncle has lots of experience with pigs and lives close by. Those are his concerns.

Located in Zone 9B SF Bay Area. Coldest it normally gets during the winter is 35-40. Sometimes frezzes.

Hey Martin,
How many piglets?
How old are they?
How are you planning on building the temporary pen?
Will it be roofed?
What are they eating?
Water?

They need plenty of chow and fresh water.
Loose straw on the ground, and they will burrow under it.
They will pig pile to keep warm.
There must be a dry spot.

If I remember correctly, on a trip to Santa Rosa the weather stations were telling their listeners to bring their animals indoors at 50 F. People looked at me like I was crazy running around in a shirt.

So with that in mind….Everything Thomas asks above. If, it is a small number of small pig (6?), those IBC totes filled with water on the south side of the enclosure should go along way to keep …say…a 10 X 10 area warm at night.  Do have a tarp or better at night and on colder days over the enclosure. And, have a heat lamp available just in case.  I am assuming the pigs are old enough to have been weaned so they should be able to adjust their body temp.  If you want to be extra careful, invest in a thermometer that you can remotely read from your house.  I am assuming the pigs will be on your property that you are living on.  And yes, straw bales should work to a certain point. As those pigs grow, they will push the bales over. …and they will need more space.  You can buy some time by wrapping the enclosure in chicken wire, but you will need something more serious.  Even with gentle breeds of pigs, keeping them contained can become challenging.

High humidity and rain are the enemies in coastal regions. Both of those can turn into mold problems which can make animals sick. Building something that you can easily expand as the piglets grow would be important.

I don't do the pig thing, but I have a Mother Hen coping with 16 chicks since 4 weeks ago. They started in "The Attic" with a dog crate in it, so mom could gather them all in the crate at night. Three days ago, I moved them to a "mini-hoop" which is 4'x8' with an open bottom on grass. We've had lots of heavy rain this week, but I put the dog crate into the mini hoop with fresh bedding in it - see Tom's comment "There must be a dry spot." And his comment, "They will pig pile to keep warm."

So you need an area where they can be active and a sheltered area where they can be out of the wet and pile up to stay warm. Animals are simple, not stupid, so if you give them choices, they will meet their needs, if those choices are easy to access and obviously the best choice. Particularly keep in mind the typical wind direction where they will be. On my land, the danger winds are usually from the south east due to geography, so I made sure the mini-hoop was oriented to account for that. It will be a nuisance to have to remove the crate each day to move the shelter to fresh grass, but the crate is essential to keeping them healthy, so that's what I will do.