Raising Pigs for the first time

[LAChick]

Hi guys! I am on my second hog here at our ranch. I have only wonderful things to say about pigs. It was 4 1/2 yrs ago when we brought Viola home, our first pig, cross of Exotic & Yorkshire. We picked her up at the Sheriff's pig farm next town over.
Thinking I was going to raise her to butchering age, only to find out that was 4-5 months of age, Well, that little critter was to smart and fun to have around the farm. She was leashed trained at a young age and went on long walks with me & the dog, soon she out grew the leash in a short amount of time. Only needed to be watched over for the first few months, then it was safe to let her loose.
She had run of the farm & liked hanging with the larger animals, cows & mules. She lived to be 3 1/2 yrs, when her wait (610 lbs) was to much for her to carry. At that point we butchered her, great meat, tender, with just a little fat ribbon through. The butcher was impressed with the quality of the meat at her age. She was fed slop. high end, from restaurant left overs, grazed with the other animals, socialized to her hearts content and was happy. The beacon strips were 3 inches wide and 11 long, over 400 lbs of meat processed.
We now have Jezebel. a Durac.

 

[hillfloweranch]

Wow that's awesome! What is slop?

 

[jen85]

Slop is leftover table food. I just started with pigs a month ago and may have gotten in over my head. We have four gilts and a boar to feed now, all 7-10 months old. Fred, Velma, Mollie, Shortcake, and Truffle. All Large Blacks.

 

[hillfloweranch]

Slop is leftover table food. I just started with pigs a month ago and may have gotten in over my head. We have four gilts and a boar to feed now, all 7-10 months old. Fred, Velma, Mollie, Shortcake, and Truffle. All Large Blacks.

Very cool! I will be getting my first piglets in April

 

[crazyfeathers]

That's some pig lol. We have pot bellies. I may be a bit afraid of your pigs they are huge but pretty.

 

[ozexpat]

mine are pigs 1 through 9 - the girls are in batched of 3, seven weeks apart so i can farrow three at a time

our boar is pig 20

 

[AlienChick]

Congrats on getting into pigs!
I raised a pig for the very first time last year.
Pigs are SO MUCH FUN!!!
I had a Duroc/Gloucester Spot cross and I named her Bacon.
She lived with my sheep and was free-ranged with them.
I fed her pig feed and any table scraps in the evenings.
She was so sweet and entertaining.
We purchased Bacon at 3 weeks old in April and butchered her in November.
The butcher said she probably weighed 210-lbs.

The pork chops are amazing!
We had a local Amish meat processor do our bacon and hams for us.
We also brought them some spices to make Oktoberfest sausage.

We had planned to raise a pig each year; however, we have so much meat that we'll just do it every other year.

This was taken the day after we brought her home.
She used to enjoy resting under the tree.




She also had her favorite basketball to play with.




When she was smaller, she used to be able to fit underneath the wheel barrow.




Bacon would spend hours chatting with MooCow at the fence.




This is Bacon eating her last meal the day before we took her to the butcher.






I can't wait to get another pig!

 

[hillfloweranch]

Congrats on getting into pigs! I raised a pig for the very first time last year. Pigs are SO MUCH FUN!!! I had a Duroc/Gloucester Spot cross and I named her Bacon. She lived with my sheep and was free-ranged with them. I fed her pig feed and any table scraps in the evenings. She was so sweet and entertaining. We purchased Bacon at 3 weeks old in April and butchered her in November. The butcher said she probably weighed 210-lbs. The pork chops are amazing! We had a local Amish meat processor do our bacon and hams for us. We also brought them some spices to make Oktoberfest sausage. We had planned to raise a pig each year; however, we have so much meat that we'll just do it every other year. This was taken the day after we brought her home. She used to enjoy resting under the tree. She also had her favorite basketball to play with. When she was smaller, she used to be able to fit underneath the wheel barrow. Bacon would spend hours chatting with MooCow at the fence. This is Bacon eating her last meal the day before we took her to the butcher. I can't wait to get another pig!

Very cute !! How much meat (in pounds) did you end up with after butcher

 

[hillfloweranch]

Ok so apparent pigs get sunburned and you have to put sunscreen On them?!! This sounds like more work than I bargained for

 

[donrae]

Ok so apparent pigs get sunburned and you have to put sunscreen On them?!! This sounds like more work than I bargained for

I can assure you most folks do not put sunscreen on pigs. Give them shade and they'll use it.