Hubby is on board to get pigs!!!! click to see questions.

[miss_thenorth]

When is the best time, season wise to raise two pigs?

What is the best breed to raise, considering I have a choice.

How much would a weaner pig cost.

Would a hoop house, made with a cattle panel and a tarp be sufficient for cover?

I realize there are lotsa thread on raising a pig, but can I have th cliff notes verion of what you guys feed them?

Thanks

 

[freemotion]

They fatten up best in cooler weather....and if you are doing your own processing you need night temps of 40 or lower F since you can't fit them in the fridge to hang!

Cost varies widely. I paid $75 each for four this year. Standard, modern, mixed breed pigs. These will often get bigger faster than the heritage breeds.

Still time to get them now and have them in the freezer by Dec-Jan. You may also find a slightly bigger pig, as the breeders often raise some for whole-pig barbecues. It will cost more but you'll have a head start.

I think mine would have fun destroying a hoop house, but BBH used pallets and tarps if I remember correctly.

If they are on pasture and have enough you can feed them almost anything you can get your hands on. Make sure they have a variety and fresh produce (I'm cutting grass/clover daily right now until the produce is available as they ate up their pasture already), some grains, and a protein source like eggs or milk or old ice cream. We even get salmon from a local restaurant, both skins and leftover salmon after a banquet. They like "spoiled" food....soured is best and I set up their meals about three days in advance in covered buckets so it will be nice and bubbly.

 

[TanksHill]

What do farmers who live in the south do about that 40 degree thing???

 

[D1]

What do farmers who live in the south do about that 40 degree thing???

january

 

[mandieg4]

What do farmers who live in the south do about that 40 degree thing???

It usually gets cooler than 40* in Jan-Feb here in Georgia, but I plan on taking mine to the butcher. The one down the road from me charges 40 cents a pound plus a $30 kill fee. I figure that's not too bad.


I paid $45 for mine at 6 weeks old and they are just mixed breed pigs. If I was going to raise them myself to sell I would probably go with Tamworths, but just for butchering I'm going to stick with the mutts.

The hoop houses might work if you have a large area to keep them in and plenty of stuff to keep them busy. Even then I would get the heaviest duty tarp you can find.

 

[justusnak]

We tried the tarp thing....once. It lasted ohhhhh....about an hour. They tore it down and shredded it like paper! We use big wooded crates. Mutt pigs are the best...like Free said..they grow fast and easy. We feed ours whatever we can get for them and supplement with corn and pellets. We also take ours to the butcher...we just don't have the time or energy to do the deed here. It is worth it to me.

 

[ohiofarmgirl]

When is the best time, season wise to raise two pigs?
- like they all said - time to butcher in fall when it gets cold. i have a buddy who just had to take his 2 hogs into be butchered so they can hang over nite. you can raise in winter if you have a shelter. Brunty Farms over on BYC raised them in a tarp covered hut with straw insulation. i dont recommend it if you dont have a building - but it works.

What is the best breed to raise, considering I have a choice.
i'm loving my tamworths - absolutely. we've had blue butts (which is just fun to say) but i'd go for a heritage one for sure. we had some mixed ones last year and they were ok but not great.


How much would a weaner pig cost.
depends on where you live - $50-$70 is about right here. auction could be less


Would a hoop house, made with a cattle panel and a tarp be sufficient for cover?
i think they'd rip it apart just for something to do. i whacked together 3 pallets and some shingles i dug out of the ground for the Hog Hut 2009. this year - they got a tarp over some 2x4's when they were little but now they are in our deep woods and dont even need a shelter. they will grow their coats out longer as it gets colder. several times last fall i went out to find "frost on the hog." heat is actually harder on them - but if you have a lot of water and shade they will be fine.

here's my overview:
http://adventuresinthegoodland.blogspot.com/p/what-i-know-about-pigs.html

we've been feeding mostly goat milk and HARD COOKED eggs (not raw) and they are growing so fast we need to slow them down.

you wont regret this - except for the stinkiness....and the bacon is worth it!
;-)

 

[k0xxx]

Congrats of getting the Hubby on board!

I got a call from my aunt today, asking me if we'd like a young potbelly. We've never raised a pig before, so I figure a free one would be great to learn with. I know others have said that a PB is not the best, but I figure bacon is bacon and I'm not one to look a gift pig in the mouth. We've got a couple of days to set up a place for it, and I'll post some photos when it gets here.

Congrats again! Keep us updated on your progress.

 

[miss_thenorth]

I have wanted pigs since we moved here, but could not get hubby on board. yesterday, we went to go visit a potential boyfirend for my cow, and they had pigs also. The man said to my hubby, that they were his favourtie things on his farm to raise. ( they have a hobby farm similar to ours). Once he expalined how easy they were to hubby, hubby and dd cleared out the area that I had originally mentioned would be good for pigs. So the spot behind the shop has been cleared, and the fence will be going up soon. I am looking around for weaners, so I'll keep you posted Yippee!!!!! Oh, the area will be about 12 ' by about 64' Long and narrow, but it will give us room to drive the tractor to the barn, and it is the whole length of the shop, and with tthe shop to block the wind, we won't smell it as much.

So, what kind of a structure would you recommend for two pigs? Pics?

 

[dragonlaurel]

Freemotion had a thread on raising her piggies. She built the shelter herself, for cheap, so you might copy that.
edited to add links

http://www.sufficientself.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=4411&p=4
http://www.sufficientself.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=4831 - lots of reading
http://www.sufficientself.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=9265