The Weigh-In
Posted: Saturday 19 June, 2004
Our 3 Tamworth boars will be 25 weeks old on Monday, which means they should be approaching their optimum weight for slaughter. With this in mind I weighed them this morning.
How do you weigh a pig? No, not with a big set of scales, but with a piece of string. Measure, in inches, from between the pig's ears along its back to the base of its tail. Call this measurement A. Next, measure around the pig's girth tight behind its front legs, and call this measurement B. Calculate A x B. Divide by 10 for a fat pig, 11 for a medium-built pig, and 12 for a lean pig. This will give you the approximate weight in pounds.
Our largest boy is about 185 lb, and the smaller two about 160 lb. So we've decided to take them to slaughter about the 2nd week in July, when the big one should be around 200 lb and the other 2 about 180 lb, good bacon and pork weight respectively. They are definitely leaner than last year's, and we're looking forward to tasting the pork.
I also popped into the butcher this morning to pre-warn him of the date of slaughter. Unfortunately he told me that they won't have time to butcher them for us this year because of pressure of work - understandable considering that last year he had to take his Sunday to process them for us. Anyway, he suggested we try another local butcher, and he has agreed to do the job for us. The abattoir will deliver direct to the butcher, so after dropping them off the next time we see them they'll be boxed ready for delivery to our customers. Orders now being taken for 2005!
- Previous « Wednesday night is soup night
- Next Homer's Odyssey Part 4 »
