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Barnyard Buddies:  Pig People  |
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YakLady
True Blue Farmgirl
652 Posts
Natalie
Montana
USA
652 Posts |
 Posted - Nov 11 2011 : 6:52:56 PM
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Who raises pigs? I'm thinking of starting a small homestead hog breeding program with a mini boar and larger sow. Perhaps a Poland China if I can find one.
I'd love details on your set up and how well your containment works.
Thanks!
~Natalie~ Just a farmgirl in Western Montana. http://mtnme.blogspot.com
Starting a family and raising Tibetan Yaks, Nigerian Dwarf Goats, Laying hens, Muscovy ducks, and a few dogs. |
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Dusky Beauty
True Blue Farmgirl
1108 Posts
Jen
Tonopah
AZ
USA
1108 Posts |
Posted - Nov 13 2011 : 3:53:19 PM
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I think this might be useful to you; I snapped this picture from the section on pig raising from "Self Sufficient Life And How to Live It" by John Seymore.
Notice the gap in the fence in the front that is large enough for the younger pigs to get through to get to the food outside of the main pigpen intended for them, while the mature fattened pigs stay inside.
The farrowing rail sketch on the left is a basic construct for the piglets to rest out from underneath the sow so she doesn't squish them.
When I was researching piggies I came on this old blog post about one farmgirl's Gloucestershire Old Spot piggies.
http://www.goodwifefarm.com/2011/02/adventures-in-pig-ranchinggoodwife.html
"The greatness of a nation and it's moral progress can be judged by the way it's animals are treated." ~Gandhi
http://silvermoonfarm.blogspot.com/
"After eating an entire bull, a mountain lion felt so good he started roaring. He kept it up until a hunter came along and shot him. The moral: When you're full of bull, keep your mouth shut.” ~Will Rogers |
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Lieberkim
True Blue Farmgirl
839 Posts
Kimberly
Sunnyside
WASHINGTON
USA
839 Posts |
Posted - Nov 13 2011 : 8:02:26 PM
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I've never raised pigs but I'm hoping to someday. I really like the mulefoot hog. Be sure to inform us as you get set up!
Excuse the mess & the noise, my children are making happy memories |
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Farmtopia
True Blue Farmgirl
1465 Posts
Zan
New York
New York
USA
1465 Posts |
Posted - Nov 13 2011 : 11:58:40 PM
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Hey Natalie,
I've never done pigs myself, but we've interviewed folks that had them and I also interned for a couple of days at a farm way back when I was a vet tech.
I think they work great if you are pasturing them but gosh, they will root the heck out of everything and lots of people say they are maybe too smart for their own good. I'd go heritage hog, Tamworth is good for lean meat. Because they are apt to destroy much and make a lot of muck, I think lots of people with do the concrete confinement areas, and you need to provide them with good shade as they will burn easily with the sun.
Good luck on your new venture!
~*~Dream all you dreamers~*~
View My Work:
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www.beyondvagabond.blogspot.com
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sherrye
True Blue Farmgirl
3775 Posts
sherry
bend in the high desert
oregon
USA
3775 Posts |
Posted - Nov 14 2011 : 07:26:48 AM
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hi natalie, here at the silk purse we have been growing pigs for about 15 years. they are so fun happy and smart. toooo smart for their own good sometimes. i have tried the heritage breeds and the more common. as with people each breed has its pros and cons the older breed seem to root more for us. up till now we have always bought wiener pigs to grow. now we are going to try our hand in raising mama and babies. so still learning as we go here. we just sent a sow that would not breed back to butcher. she was a big girl after being gutted out hanging she weighed over 450 pounds hanging weight. we have a new sow now to breed. we just sent to butcher pigs a couple days ago. the folks who bought them picked their size. one hung at 166 and 220. we feed a lot of different food. our pens are dirt with heavy hog welded wire panels fixed with t-posts we then have a heavy hot wire. we move the hot wire up or down the t-post according to their height. it is 2 strands. all our pigs have a serious respect for the wire. ALL pigs root when they grow up. it is what they do to find bugs etc. a stressed pig will just get out. they are a tank. ours are lean machines. pigs can not cool themselves. they do no sweat. so they have to have water to roll in. clay type dirt even a little helps them keep a layer on to shade sun. we are in the hot area.. so ours have a shaded area also. right now we have 5 growers and one mama. hope this helps you some. happy days sherrye
the learn as we go silk purse farm
farm girl #1014
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Annika
True Blue Farmgirl
5602 Posts
Annika
USA
5602 Posts |
Posted - Nov 14 2011 : 09:04:58 AM
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I hope that this doesn't come across as too weird. I am too fond of pigs to be able to kill one. I'm really not squeamish about killing for food, as I've been doing it with poultry for the last dozen years, and I'm talking seriously with Drew about grass raising our own beef next year. Drew is a bacon fan, so I've been thinking of some lean heritage piggies, I am just too tender hearted to kill them 
Annika
Farmgirl & sister #13
http://thegimpyfarmgirl.blogspot.com/
http://pinterest.com/annikaloveshats/
Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication. ~Leonardo DaVinci
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Edited by - Annika on Nov 14 2011 09:05:44 AM |
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Lieberkim
True Blue Farmgirl
839 Posts
Kimberly
Sunnyside
WASHINGTON
USA
839 Posts |
Posted - Nov 14 2011 : 09:56:02 AM
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I've been told that nose rings will help eliminate the rooting problem.... one lady I talked to pastured her pigs, all they got was grass. She has nose rings in and she said they won't root when they have them in, so then they didn't destroy her pasture. She had hot wire up around the pasture to keep them in and it seemed like she didn't have any problems. Any one have any experience with this?
Excuse the mess & the noise, my children are making happy memories |
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YakLady
True Blue Farmgirl
652 Posts
Natalie
Montana
USA
652 Posts |
Posted - Nov 14 2011 : 12:57:48 PM
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Thanks for all the replies! I actually did take a Swine Management course while at college (animal science majors have the coolest classes), so I know some generalized basics, but that was a while ago! It all comes down to research. I think I will get this little (like 55 lb) pb boar for now and wait on a sow until I'm sure what I want to do.
Kimberly - I wouldn't put hog rings in, just because they need to root to get their proper minerals. The idea of pasture preservation is less important to me than healthy pigs. Of course, I'll probably have to supplement Selenium anyway... I'd probably run them out to the front pen for some good exercise in the warm months and just put them back in their dedicated set ups at night. I'll just have to get over the fact that their pens will be mud pits in time. However, they do deter rooting from what I saw at college :) We only had one boar with a ring because he was a bit... testy. But he made good babies, so we dealt ;)
Sherry- We have oodles of clay here! All different colors and everything depending on how deep you go; maybe I could turn one of our kiddie pools into a sort of clay slip bin for the pigs? Just toss a bunch of clay in and water it down so they could coat themselves. Like a large-scale of what I do with pottery :) We have hot wire tape, but need a charger.
I'm thinking of just getting one small boar and one larger breed sow. I'm still doing research on breeds- may just end up with a cross sow. I don't want to bastardize any heritage breeds with my experiment, just want to see if I can get consistently smaller, lean homestead hogs that allow for freezer room for other things.
~Natalie~ Just a farmgirl in Western Montana. http://mtnme.blogspot.com
Starting a family and raising Tibetan Yaks, Nigerian Dwarf Goats, Laying hens, Muscovy ducks, and a few dogs. |
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sherrye
True Blue Farmgirl
3775 Posts
sherry
bend in the high desert
oregon
USA
3775 Posts |
Posted - Nov 14 2011 : 2:58:04 PM
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i would say pasture raised is great. BUT pigs are like people they need protein to grow muscle. they do not get that in grass. our sow gets 12 pounds of protein a day it is 16 percent. the clay bath sounds great. LOL
the learn as we go silk purse farm
farm girl #1014
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YakLady
True Blue Farmgirl
652 Posts
Natalie
Montana
USA
652 Posts |
Posted - Nov 14 2011 : 8:32:55 PM
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Well the boar I was interested in got snatched up :( So back to the drawing board, but it's all good- no rush. I'm looking into different breeds and such. Lots of options! I always liked the look of the Hamp/Duroc crosses that are red with the white belt at school, or the black spot reds. It's just a matter of finding the right pig at the right time :)
~Natalie~ Just a farmgirl in Western Montana. http://mtnme.blogspot.com
Starting a family and raising Tibetan Yaks, Nigerian Dwarf Goats, Laying hens, Muscovy ducks, and a few dogs. |
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Barnyard Buddies: Pig People |
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Pig People
