The Accidental Smallholder Forum
Livestock => Pigs => Topic started by: arusse23 on October 31, 2011, 10:08:02 pm
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Can someone explain to me in simple terms what action is required before slaughter in Scotland? I have 2 old spots that live on an equine farm. I keep reading about herd numbers etc for tags but I am unsure what I require for my particular situation?
Also, when my local butcher receives the meat from the abattoir will the carcasses be halved or whole? Therefore should I tag both ears or one. I need as much information as possible as the pigs need to go to the abattoir in the next week or so.
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the easy part first the carcases will be what you want but depends on the weight of your pigs they half them so that the staff are not hurting themselves HSE requirement
you don't say which part of Scotland you come from it does matter if you are worried about identification you should slap mark your tags are they plastic or metal again it does matter
now the difficult part from the briefest of info that you have written where the pigs are they should have a cph number and you should have applied and received a pig herd number both are a legal requirement until you fill in these blanks there is no point in going further :farmer:
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If you contact your local Trading standards office they will tell you how to obtain your CPH ( county parish holding ) number,
they will also give you the phone number of you local Animal Health Authority who will issue you with a herd number. you cannot even obtain tags without these numbers. You cannot take them to slaughter without some sort of ID, ie, paint mark ear tag or slap mark or tattoo. showing your herd number for traceability.
If you are the owner of the land where you keep the animals then it is fairly straight forward, If you are renting the land then they will want to know the individual field locations and acreages etc, the cph number is then allocated to the person, not the land. It will take about a week to get the numbers allocated, allow about two weeks for the tags to be delivered.
You will also need to keep a stock record book that must be kept up to date because you can be inspected by trading standards at any time. the book is issued by trading standards who may charge you about £3.50 for it.
They might ask some awkward questions about where you got the pigs from and movement paperwork. Good luck with that one.
I hope this helps
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As others have said - you need either a tag with the herd number or a slapmark with the herd number. This is the herd number which relates to the CPH under which the pigs are registered. If you've not got one, phone animal health at Galasheils on 01896 758806 and they'll get one for you.
I use metal slaughter tags with the numbers engraved on to them (it was cheaper to buy tags & pliers than the slapmark kit initially ;)) if you're unsure what the abattoir will accept phone them to ask (both Shots & Wishaw are happy with tags) but slapmarks are the only way to be 100% certain you're getting your own pigs back.
HTH
Karen :wave:
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Hi, I had 3 pigs go for slaughter on the 25th Oct to a slaughterhouse in central Scotland. My pigs were not tagged but I have all relevant CPH no and pig herd no, just not got around to ordering and tagging them. I phoned for details on up to date requirements. I was able to send them with a temp paint mark but as of 1st November was told they would have to be tagged. Thankfully just got them booked in on time. The slaughter house then delivered them to my local butcher and at this moment I am waiting for a call to go and collect. Pork chops for dinner! Hope that helps.
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rainyplace - were your pigs less than 12 months old then?
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I have 3 pigs going to slaughter on Monday and have just discovered that I only have 1 tag left (oops!), I am hoping that the ones I have ordered will be here in time.
Butcher is booked too so fingers crossed.
I usually ask the abbatoir to half mine as it makes it a bit earier for the butcher.
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Newby question here - Ive seen the slap mark equipment and it looks like a piece of torture equipment!!!! Is it done when they are dead? Need to decide ourselves what to use..... Thanks for this thread.
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Slapmark looks far worse than it is, and is done whilst they are alive.
Pigs skin is very thick, and there is a layer of fat beneath. The slapmark only penetrates thse two layers - it is like a tatoo for a human.
Pigs also have what is called transitory pain, that is they resond to a pain stimulus, but then revert quickly to normal.
We find that if you slap pigs whilst they are eating, they jump, and almost immedaietly return to their food and carry on as normal.
The alternative is an eartag, which involves holding the pigs ear, and punching small hole in the ear with the tag.
Again the response is the same, but it can be more tricky to get right if you are inexperienced.
You will need to do one or the other is taking pigs off for meat.
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Little Blue - yes they were 7 months old, all stored in the freezer now and soooo delicious!
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Slapmark looks far worse than it is, and is done whilst they are alive.
Pigs skin is very thick, and there is a layer of fat beneath. The slapmark only penetrates thse two layers - it is like a tatoo for a human.
Pigs also have what is called transitory pain, that is they resond to a pain stimulus, but then revert quickly to normal.
We find that if you slap pigs whilst they are eating, they jump, and almost immedaietly return to their food and carry on as normal.
The alternative is an eartag, which involves holding the pigs ear, and punching small hole in the ear with the tag.
Again the response is the same, but it can be more tricky to get right if you are inexperienced. You will need to do one or the other is taking pigs off for meat.
Very informative thanks - one last question, is the ear tag 'thing/gun' the same as what you use to tag sheeps ears? If so that the way forward for us as we will have to get used to doing sheep next year.
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The actual task of piercing the ear is the same, but you will need different applicators and tags. For pigs I use the metal slaughter tags, with their own tagger, and for the sheep is a different tagger and tags... but same procedure otherwise. I tag both ears, as pigs come back in two halfs.
Best time to tag pigs is when they are in the trailer ready to go, no room to escape! We load them the night before (straw in the trailer and usually a large bottle of cheap cider keep them happy overnight in there..., no food though)
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Do they drink it straight from the bottle or do they each have their own engraved pewter tankard? ;)
I really need to get my finger out and organise Hamish's trip to the Dingwall abattoir soon. I've been persuaded that a slap marker is the way to go but they seem very expensive.
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Tags arrived today so 3 pigs tagged and ready to go, have put the trailer into their run so hopefully they will be used to it and go in without any fuss on Sunday night ready for a 05.30 start on Monday morning.
Anke I have only put 1 tag in, didn't think about the other ear when they have been split, oh and we are enjoying the one we got from you she is delicious.
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Thanks very much for all the responses. Everything is much more clear now, I am buying the metal quicksilver tags from SFS just now. We already have a CPH number and herd number from previous use for cattle.....I am assuming this number will apply to the pigs?
The pigs are going to the abattoir in Ardrossan, then to my local butcher. Can anyone recommend a good smokehouse to send one of them to?
regards
Andrew
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Your herd number for cattle, is for cattle only. You need to register that you have pigs, and you will be given a pig herd/flock number.
Beth
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I also should have added that the abattoir in Ardrossan sent me an FCI (food chain information) form to fill out which isn't the easiest to make head or tail of.
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Oh yes- its a horrible form but it does need to filled out. I filled out what I could before, and then quizzed the nice lady at the abbatoir about how to complete the rest of it!
Beth
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Yeah they said they would help if I needed it....which i definitely do. As for the herd number do I contact the number on this post for Animal Health? Can this be given instantly over the phone or is this going to take longer?
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FCI forms used to be a three page document it changed to a simple one page format
you should have a separate pig herd no if you don't have a pig herd number did you inform TS when you bought the pigs just asking
it might be better slapmarking your pigs if it is ardrossan that they are going to better safe than sorry :farmer:
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yes this takes longer but they might just quicken things along if you dont ask you never know :farmer:
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Years ago my parents lost a pig when it went for smoking at Ardrossan.....apparently there was a mix up, however that was 10 years ago but my local butcher recommends them.....Does anyone still have concerns? Would anyone recommend another abattoir close to renfrewshire instead of Ardrossan? I was thinking about slap marking them but because we dont have any experience I wasnt sure.
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ardrossan specialise in rare breed and traditional pigs they supply butchers across Scotland we have never had any dealings with them the slap marks works only if they do not skin the pig and remove some of the fat layer you have to remember that rare and traditional pigs have a deeper fat layer than commercial pigs
i did hear last night of another abattoir that had lost a pig but they have tightened up there system and are now very helpfull and are also now busy
last year there were 19 abattoirs in Scotland not all take in private kills :farmer:
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Shotts Abattoir are really good - I normally use them and wouldn't hesitate to recommend them.
Wishaw is best avoided if you want your pig back ::)
Animal health at Galasheils is who you'll need to contact for your pig herd number, it will be different to your cattle or sheep one.
Karen :wave:
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Tags arrived today so 3 pigs tagged and ready to go, have put the trailer into their run so hopefully they will be used to it and go in without any fuss on Sunday night ready for a 05.30 start on Monday morning.
Anke I have only put 1 tag in, didn't think about the other ear when they have been split, oh and we are enjoying the one we got from you she is delicious.
Definately going senile, I bought pig from Tiva Diva, ??? but I am sure Anke's pigs are delicious too ;D
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Tags arrived today so 3 pigs tagged and ready to go, have put the trailer into their run so hopefully they will be used to it and go in without any fuss on Sunday night ready for a 05.30 start on Monday morning.
Anke I have only put 1 tag in, didn't think about the other ear when they have been split, oh and we are enjoying the one we got from you she is delicious.
Definately going senile, I bought pig from Tiva Diva, ??? but I am sure Anke's pigs are delicious too ;D
Well my current girls came from Tiva Diva as well, and right now they are driving me round the bend.... (human) teenagers cannot be any worse... these pig(let)s are up at all hours, as soon as they hear one of us coming out of the house (and that sets off the cockerel next door at all hours of the day (and night!)... as soon as I put fresh straw in (as I think it is quite cold atm), they however bring it out immediatley to be placed into the mud (transporting the straw in their snouts I have to add!), they knock over their morning feed and then proceeed to eat it from the mud rather than their old door that we use as a feeding floor... but no escapes so far, and I know they will taste delicious!
PS.: My pigs are not very refined - they drink their cider from a bucket!!!!
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maybe that is what is wrong giving them cider
give the teenangers the cider and see what happens :farmer:
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They only get cider on their last night in the trailer (we do like to eat their liver!) - and usually they are asleep very quickly...