The Accidental Smallholder Forum
Livestock => Pigs => Topic started by: white-blazes on June 20, 2011, 03:51:27 pm
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As a newby to pigs, I get confused as to the correct terms used for males and females.
Can you correct me please, if I am wrong.
Gilt - young female ?
Sow - older female, possibly one that breeds?
Boar - uncastrated male, any age?
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Gilt - I believe is a female pig that hasn't had a litter, although some refer to female pigs that have had a litter still as a gilt.
Sow - see above, had one litter, possibly two
Boar - yup
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Thank you Captain. In my previous post I referred to them as girl and males as I wasn't 100% sure I was using the correct terms :-[
thanks again ;)
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Generally taken that :
Gilt is a female before her first litter, although many continue to use gilt until she has weaned that first litter.
Sow from first litter until no more !
Boar - any age male
However these definitions are not set in stone, for instance the Welfare of Farmed Animals Regulations 2007 has an interesting set of definitions :
“boar” means a male pig after puberty, intended for breeding;
“gilt” means a female pig intended for breeding after puberty and before farrowing;
“piglet” means a pig from birth to weaning;
“rearing pig” means a pig from the age of ten weeks to slaughter or service;
“sow” means a female pig after the first farrowing;
“weaner” means a pig from weaning to the age of ten weeks.
So under these definitions a female born would start life as a piglet, become a weaner from weaning until 10 weeks old, then a rearing pig until mated by the boar, and then a gilt until she farrowed and then a sow !!!
However these definitions only apply to that law, other EU & UK laws have other definitions - always good that law clarifies things !!
However most of us stick to the simple definitions that this post started with.
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Thanks Oaklands. With Boars, are they always a boar, whether castrated or not? (It's just me with having horses I think of colts/stallions/geldings) ;D
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that will be a barrow may be not the correct spelling :wave:
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This is a longer list as published in 'Rare Breed Pig Keeping' published by the Gloucestershire Old Spots Pig Breeders Club in 2003:
Names given to pigs
Baconer - a pig of 83-101 kgs liveweight suitable for the production of bacon
Barrow (U.S.) - a male pig castrated young for meat production
Boar - an uncastrated male pig of sexual maturity. Also applied to the male of the badger, bear and weasel.
Brawn - an old name for a young boar
Brawner - a boar castrated after having been used for service
Brimming - a term applied to a female pig during her heat
Cut Sow - a spayed female, once common for fattening
Cutter - a pig weighing 68-82 kgs liveweight
Dam - the mother pig, used in pedigree recording. Also ‘grand-dam’ etc.
Doylt - a tame swine
Dryft - a collective noun for a group or herd of domestic pigs rarely used today
Farrow - to give birth. From Old English fearh meaning a young pig
Gilt - a young female up to the rearing of her first litter. (Dialect variations include: Barrow, Elt, Gelt, Helt, Hilt, Yelt, Yilt)
Herd - the collective noun for a group of domesticated pigs
Hog - a castrated male pig raised for meat. Also in the USA the more general term for pig, usually having reached 100 lbs in weight.
In-pig - pregnant. ('Lined' is an obsolete term)
Litter - the group of piglets from a single birth up to the point of weaning
Piglet/Pigling - the newly born pigs in a litter up to the point of weaning.
Porker - a pig weighing 50-67 kgs liveweight
Rig - a boar with only one testicle visible
Runt - the smallest pig in the litter. (Dialect variations on this include: Bonham, Bonneen, Bonnine, Cad, Cadma, Cadman, Creek, Crink, Crut, Darling, Dawlin, Derlin, Dilling, Dillon, Doll, Dolling, Dorling, Harry-pig, Nestle-tripe, Niscal, Nisgo, Nisgull, Niskral, Nistledriff, Parson’s Pig, Peppermint Pig, Piggywhidden, Pitman, Ratlin, Ratling, Reckling, Rickling, Rit, Ritling, Shargar, Squeaker, Tantony pig, Water-droger, Wossett, Wreckling, Wreg)
Service - the act of mating
Shoat - a newly weaned pig
Shot - a pig of 9-12 months old which was considered fit to kill for pork (17th c). By the early 19th c the age of a shot had reduced to 6-8 months. Today, it would be just over 4 months to six.
Sire - the father pig, used in pedigree recording. Also ‘grand-sire’ etc.
Sounder - the name given to a group of wild boar
Sow - a female which has produced a litter of pigs
Stag (U.S.) - a male pig castrated late for meat production
Stores - the term for young pigs between being weaners and porkers
Swine - a collective name for pigs
Teats - the pig’s mammary glands of which there should be at least 12 evenly spaced (14 for Gloucestershire Old Spots) and preferably more. (Dialect variations: Dills, Drills)
Weaner - the young pig after weaning. (Dialect variations: Shoat, Slip)
Wilgil/Wildew - a hermaphrodite pig having both sets of sex organs but being invariably sterile
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WOW think I will stick to the main three terms ;D
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lol! ;D
You did ask ! ;) ;D ;D ;D
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I did yes ;D