The Accidental Smallholder Forum

Livestock => Pigs => Topic started by: Bionic on April 13, 2012, 08:28:29 am

Title: Pietrain v OSB weaners
Post by: Bionic on April 13, 2012, 08:28:29 am
Does anyone know anything about Pietrain pigs?

There are some weaners available fairly near me although very expensive. 

I have also found some OSB weaners availalble soon. Would they be better for a first timer?

thanks
Sally
Title: Re: Pietrain v OSB weaners
Post by: robert waddell on April 13, 2012, 08:36:46 am
pietrains are the Belgian blue of the pig world       very little fat compared to traditional pigs   the grow quicker if fed correctly
 i know to people that have them and both are delighted with them  one has tried almost all the traditional breeds       how expensive are they :farmer:
Title: Re: Pietrain v OSB weaners
Post by: Bionic on April 13, 2012, 08:39:25 am
Robert,
This is the price I have been given

Young gilts ranging from 7mths old to weaners range price from £150
Young boars ranging from 7mths old to weaners age range from £120

Sally
Title: Re: Pietrain v OSB weaners
Post by: Sylvia on April 13, 2012, 08:43:52 am
Robert,
This is the price I have been given

Young gilts ranging from 7mths old to weaners range price from £150
Young boars ranging from 7mths old to weaners age range from £120

Sally

 :o :o :o :o
Title: Re: Pietrain v OSB weaners
Post by: robert waddell on April 13, 2012, 08:52:45 am
i can see the value in  the 7 month old ones but not that in weaners  i take it the breeder lives at a place called neverland  :farmer:
Title: Re: Pietrain v OSB weaners
Post by: ZacB on April 13, 2012, 10:19:05 am

Young gilts ranging from 7mths old to weaners range price from £150
Young boars ranging from 7mths old to weaners age range from £120

Sally

Surely this is prices to £150  :o

Sally, we picked up some OSB's last year, 8 week old gilts at £55 each which in hindsight was a little over the top. Great pigs though & really pleased with as our starter piggies.

Have recently bought some Large Blacks, gilts again, 8 weeks & at £45 each.

Prices around us seem to be in the region of £40-£50.

Good luck & best wishes
Title: Re: Pietrain v OSB weaners
Post by: HappyHippy on April 13, 2012, 10:32:13 am
8 week old gilts at £55 each which in hindsight was a little over the top.

It's not though  :-\ We've had this discussion time and time again  ;)

I think anything up to £60-£70 for a good meat weaner is perfectly acceptable - that initial saving of £20 when you're investing £150-£200 in the pig over its' lifetime is nothing really in the grand scheme of things. Also from the point of view of a breeder - if we don't get fair prices (and that's not being greedy that's just covering costs with maybe a tenner profit) for our stock where is the incentive to keep and breed pigs  ??? I'm as tightfisted as the next man, but there has to be a fair price paid for good stock in order for breeders to continue doing what they do  :thumbsup:

Sally, Pietrains will grow like stink and be really lean, but OSB's would be my first choice for first time round  ;)
Karen  :wave:
Title: Re: Pietrain v OSB weaners
Post by: ZacB on April 13, 2012, 10:49:07 am
Hi Karen, point taken. My view was from a purchaser point of view, & a short sighted one at that, well & truely beaten up :bouquet:.

Given time, when & if we take our interest / hobby to the next level, I'm sure I will be singing from your hymn book  ;D
Title: Re: Pietrain v OSB weaners
Post by: robert waddell on April 13, 2012, 10:59:27 am
thankfully Karen you have posted about prices       it will be you that gets the flack before me this time
weaner prices  as Karen has said  it has been gone into in depth before   by all means get a cheap £5 special at the market alleged to be  x weeks when it is y months old and ready to kick the bucket   spend hundreds on fancy arks then argue over the cost of weaners and give them a meager amount of food because you want to save  a few shillings
and as Karen said 60-70 quid is not a rip off for well bred pedigree weaners that have been well looked after have had jags for worms etc if you don't get a good price for weaners that breeder will not be there next year and you will have to pay £150 a weaner do without or buy supermarket pork  not much of a choice then :farmer:
Title: Re: Pietrain v OSB weaners
Post by: SallyintNorth on April 14, 2012, 08:21:40 am
I expect to pay £50-£60 for pure bred rare breed weaners to rear for meat, quite a bit more for breeding stock.

I guess you will get more, leaner pork faster off Pietrain than OSB, so economically it may be worth paying more this end of its life as you'll be saving 4lbs per pig per day for a month or maybe more at the other end of its life plus possibly getting more meat from the carcase.  I could argue £20 - £30 more per weaner on that basis - not sure how to quantify the carcase difference, I love the OSB meat!  :yum:

If you're buying 8 week old weaners now, the Pietrain could be ready by the end of August, possibly sooner; the OSBs probably would want to go on into Sept/Oct - perfect timing for any dry/air curing you may want to do...  ;)

Of course I am going to say everyone should start with OSBs - they are lovely, friendly, easy-going, charming, entertaining, and don't get too fat if you don't feed them too much.

Who could resist....
Title: Re: Pietrain v OSB weaners
Post by: Tamsaddle on April 14, 2012, 08:40:36 am
If good looks come into the equation, I'd go for the OSBs any day.   Pietrains look decidedly weird in my opinion, with strangely bulbous rear ends, quite unpig like in shape.   But then I have never met one face to face.
Title: Re: Pietrain v OSB weaners
Post by: robert waddell on April 14, 2012, 10:48:24 am
sally you are the first one to come out and admit that good quality weaners that cost more than run of the mill ones actually save you money on feeding and finishing time both factors are relevent in achieving economicall  home produced pork



animal breeding is not that different from humans       that Greek god like figure may be ascetically pleasing but you have to look further than the thin veneer that is looks    animals have no option but to stay with you cars are on a similar vein


Hampshire's have the same bullbus back end as pietrains and others to a lesser extent you just have to view them as an end product :farmer:
Title: Re: Pietrain v OSB weaners - update
Post by: Bionic on April 14, 2012, 03:42:17 pm
This morning I went to see a litter of 13 OSB's and reserved 2. They will be ready for pick up on 5th May. 

I am so excited  ;D ;D ;D

Sally
Title: Re: Pietrain v OSB weaners
Post by: rockstar on April 14, 2012, 08:48:04 pm
good luck sally :thumbsup:
Title: Re: Pietrain v OSB weaners
Post by: Mammyshaz on April 14, 2012, 10:54:12 pm
That's great, get the camera ready! Looking forward to reading little piggy stories and your experiences with them
 :thumbsup:
Title: Re: Pietrain v OSB weaners
Post by: SallyintNorth on April 15, 2012, 03:02:30 am
Brilliant news, I am so pleased for you.  :-*

Good choice  :thumbsup:   ;)

We await pics...  :)
Title: Re: Pietrain v OSB weaners
Post by: Daisys Mum on April 15, 2012, 04:47:30 pm

Yes I agree good choice  :) I will be getting my 4 boys in a couple of weeks time
.I had a couple of pietrains a few years ago, I bought them at 8 months old for £100 thre was a huge amount of meat from them and it was very lean but I think it lacked the flavour of native breed.
Title: Re: Pietrain v OSB weaners
Post by: daveh on April 15, 2012, 05:28:32 pm
I kept a couple of OSB weaners next to a pen of Pietrain cross saddlebacks owned by a friend. Anything with Pietrain blood in it tends to make them look like the Jennifer Lopez of the pig world. Everyone to their own but I prefer my gels to be generous in the underline department.

Regards,
Dave
Title: Re: Pietrain v OSB weaners
Post by: Bionic on April 15, 2012, 05:39:07 pm
Typical man  ;D ;D