Olive - I'd like to reopen the discussion about hogs in MI. I'd still love to get a couple Heritage hogs myself someday.. soon. I was reading the invasive law and it was vague in the descriptions.. Everything said wild, feral etc.. but then they said old world swine.. well, that included everything basically! LOL! Did the state provide you any info on what they're looking for, what they consider feral, invasive and safe to own?
I sent an email to the DNR yesterday asking a few questions about the law but haven't gotten a reply yet.
If you rather take this off line, please PM me.
Thanks!
In this case they're using "Old World Swine" in reference to Russians/Eurasians/Razorbacks. I agree that it's a vague term, though. It has no real definition and it's often used in reference to Tamworths, for instance, in other circles.
The really vague part of the rule is the phenotypic qualifications they've declared for identification. Basically, any pig anywhere could be determined to be a wild or wild hybrid. (Contrary to what some news outlets would like you to believe that
includes CAFO pigs in the big barns.) And that's largely what's got people riled up. There definitely needs to be some more defining and clarifying with the way it's written, but, that said, I would not hesitate to buy, transport or keep heritage hogs for pork right now in MI -- with the exception of the Russians, Eurasians, Razorbacks, et al, of course. The DNR has specifically said they are not aiming this measure at small farms or other types of hogs, they've included an exemption in the rule itself for
Sus domestica raised for "domestic hog production" and their actions have in every way aligned with what they're telling us -- which is that they're not after heritage hogs on farms.
If you want more detailed information -- links to the laws themselves, statements by Rodney Stokes and our personal experience with the DNR in this matter, etc -- feel free to PM. In general though, I would not say not to worry if I had ANY reason to believe there was a reason to be worried. And I have no problem making that public.
What will happen in the future if they don't better define the ISO? Well, that's anyone's guess, but at this time, with the information we have, I do not believe there is any reason to be concerned about this.
Thanks for all the warm welcomes! You seem like a great bunch.
