TanksHill...Roll on!!

[TanksHill]

Ok so the pigs are mean and scarry. That really does not help the situation. Hummmm!!!

OhioFarmGirl did you guys butcher your own? If not, what was your method of transporting them?

Not sure if I could manage it once it hits 250 lbs.

I guell I will need to call the loccal butcher and check into cost as well.

So much to consider. .....

 

[freemotion]

Oh, and Tanks, I went from dh saying, "I will NEVER eat anything once I've seen its face! NO!!! NO raising anything for meat! NO-NO-NO-NO-NO!!! AND THAT'S FINAL!" This is the man who lets me do (I use that term VERY loosely!!) whatever project I want, with grumbles at first, then pride after. Then after my pestering he agreed that "turkeys are ugly so you can get some turkeys." Then I started on the pigs. He hadn't agreed, to my knowlege (and I wouldn't have missed that one!) but asked me recently when I was going to get the pigs....soon? In the spring, I told him, no pigs over the winter, thankyouverymuch!

I think pigs may be your transition to goats. Pigs as the "gateway drug!" So build a sturdy goat pen, but call it a hog pen. Build it where you can surround it with a goat pasture. Just don't mention this to your dh! This will give you over a year to find someone to share your milking chores and your milk supply if you want, or just someone to cover for you occasionally, whichever you need. And to find a nice, clean, well-kept place that has kids to go look at....there is nothing on this planet cuter than baby goats playing and the little noises they make!!! DH went from NO GOATS! to "Let's breed all four does!" Sheesh. Now I have to hold him back!

 

[TanksHill]

That's funny Free. Dh is helpful with the initial building project and such but after that you won't find him anywhere near the project. He built the coop and rabbit hutch but the responsibilities are all mine. He will help fix stuff on occasion but thats it.

I am definitely the farmer in this family.

 

[ohiofarmgirl]

Free - you are hilarious! um.. do we have the same husband???? but mine went from 'its all livestock' to 'how could i possibly butcher those beautiful ducks -- why dont we hand raise a couple for pets?'... me silently weeping for the roast duck of my dreams.......sigh..

gateway drug.. hee hee hee

and yep we do our own and i have to say that two big rednecks can easily handle them... but much smaller me + one big redneck would actually be kinda hard. we have our buddy come down to help and once they get the halves hung then i'm right there in the splash zone. and no i didnt feel bad at all or work up a tear for their little piggy faces. i'm good with the cuttin' part so i'm on 'guts' and cutting.


i dont know if we noted the goods after live weight but our were REALLY efficient per pound as basically nothing really went to waste. you may know my love of lard so we rendered it all... and the dogs got almost everything else. altho...there was the unfortunate 'pig gut fire' that went horribly wrong....

anywhoo... our neighbors found a guy that processes deer and he did their non-fair pig at a very reasonable rate. might be something for you to consider. without the right knives, saw, and grinder (my buddy has a commercial one!) you may not get the same results. i think its kinda like dressing a really big deer???? and it helped that it was a cold weekend so we could hang them in the garage and not have to worry about cooling.

as far as transport - our neighbors have a stock carrier for their truck..but ours pigs have a one way trip. when we got them we just popped them in the back of my hubby's crappy little ranger with a cap on it and were good as gold.

does that help!?!? and even tho they are mean and scary if there are two of you it will be ok. some people socialize them. one of last years kind of looked at me lovingly and i always said "no i dont love you and i'm NOT your mommy!" but i think it was because i always had the food bucket.

 

[TanksHill]

"altho...there was the unfortunate 'pig gut fire' that went horribly wrong...."


Ok don't leave us hanging... what happened?

We have a local butcher were people take their livestock to be processed. There is no way my dh would have anything to do with it. He runs the other direction when my kids barf.

I would love to learn about the lard rendering. Is it kinda like making shortening?

So much to learn....

 

[Quail_Antwerp]

OK, out with it, we need to hear the pig gut fire that went wrong!

 

[ohiofarmgirl]

well golly now i feel bad... we're unloading a truck full o' gravel... stay tuned for the unfortunate pig gut affair...and lard renderin....

 

[freemotion]

Pork fat rules!!!! I actually go buy leaf lard (special pig fat) and render it, since nothing hydrogenated will pass my lips, and the store-bought lard around here is all "partially hydrogenated." To me this means, "We used the poorest quality fat so we had to partially hydrogenate it so it would look and feel like lard to dumb ol' you."

Lard is actually much better for you than veg oil (which industry has more money behind it? So which one will be able to say it is better for you? Who can afford to buy expert opinions???) and lard from naturally-raised pigs who live outdoors and get some pasture and sunshine is VERY good for you!!

I can't wait!

 

[modern_pioneer]

I kinda know two things, copper and pigs..... What they have to do with each other is any bodies guess.

All hogs are curious by nature, and all stink the same. The most gentle breed is Yorkshires or yorkys, blood lined hogs are top choices for meat and profit. Its best to pick a straight eared yorkie as floppy eared has been cross breed with a Hamp at some point in its blood line.

Though a good hog, it tends to be lazy when it comes to tending to piglets. Hamps are almost as bad as poland chinas when it comes to temper. Their happy to be fed, give you thanks, and leave them alone. The meanest breed of hog is the Red Duroc. You just can't trust them, Mom always said they were born spoiled rotten.

FYI- This info is based on when I was a kid.... But Mom knew what she was doing...

We raised pasture hogs, free roaming they call it today. I shared some pics on my journal already. They all had a pen to come home to, and were left to roam at free will all they wanted. Of course prior to slaughter they were penned.

We always set the pace at the county fair for top stock, that was always important back then.

LOL @ Free.... Pork Fat and Cheese clothe rules!!!! Thats when you have lard... LOL...

 

[TanksHill]

MP... Now your getting technical with breeds and such. I have no wear for the pigs to roam and to be honest I don't think I want them to.

I got chased by a rooster once and that was bad enough. A 250 lb pig would give me nightmares!!!