The Accidental Smallholder Forum
Livestock => Pigs => Topic started by: charlestcat on December 30, 2015, 06:54:46 pm
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Wonder if anyone could advise. For past two years we've had GOS weaners - boars which went to the abbatoir at 27 weeks. This year we had Large black weaners. Again, boars who went at 27 weeks. All weaners were fed the same. We have noticed that the Large blacks pork is a lot fattier than the GOS. (But very very tasty)
Is this normal?; is this just a 'breed' thing?
Many thanks for any advice.
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While different breeds do differ a bit in the way they grow and lay down fat at the end of the day if your carcasses turn out too fat it's because you fed them too much. It's very easy to produce fat porkers. Constant monitoring of their fat levels by hands on checking throughout their growing period is what is needed. If you can't feel their spine easily with the flat of your hand on their back you need to cut back on the feed. Monitor them for the whole of the growing period because it takes a lot longer to take fat off than it does to put it on.
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Weaners at 8 weeks will use the protein in their diet a lot more efficiently than finishers at 24 weeks. There is, however, a limit to how much a pig can grow in a week and any excess is laid down as fat. If they're in a small enclosure with little to do except wait for the next feed time they won't need to build as much muscle as pigs with plenty of room and reason to explore and play so, again, will tend to lay down fat. Our GOS boar finishers are generally ready to go at 24 weeks but if I can't fit in a trip to the abattoir then I throttle back on feed, but still take them in at 26 weeks maximum.
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I haven't had GOS but I've had OSB, OSB x Saddleback, and Large Black. My LB were not fat at all, but they did take considerably longer than any of the others to be ready to go. The taste made them very much worth the wait, mind :yum:
So I wonder whether, if you were feeding them for a faster finish, they'd end up putting on fat?
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Are you feeding only 16% protein pellets? Straight wheat and other grains will make them lay down a fat layer. We feed ours a little (milled and soaked) in the last month before slaughter, to give a decent layer of fat for crackling.
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Many thanks for all your comments & help. They have finisher pellets and fruit and veg. I think we overfed them. But they loved pineapples and bananas!
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Ah,sweeties! Too many are so bad for the waistline.
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Ditch the finisher pellets. Just keep them all on 16% sow pellets all the time. Finisher pellets are more suitable for the modern faster growing porkers.
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I would agree with hughesy. I buy in large black weaners to raise to pork/bacon weight and changed to sow rolls at 16% protein rather than the 18% finishers. The lower protein does keep the fat off. Hang back on the bananas but veg waste will not put the fat on.
Regards, David
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Why does more protein result in more fat? I thought less protein equalled more carbohydrate which turned into fat if they weren't running around enough. ( :dunce: ??)
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This year it will be sow rolls at 16% as per the advice, cutting back on the bananas and surplus apples which they also got (high in sugar, I know). Many thanks to you all for all the help. :pig:
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Hmm interesting, think we will try switching over
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Do you keep a record of your fat probes from the slaughter house? I'm just curious to know what they killed out at as one man's fatty is anothers just right.
Our GOS kill out between 15mm and 20mm but we usually hit 17/18mm pretty constantly which our customers are happy about.
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Why does more protein result in more fat? I thought less protein equalled more carbohydrate which turned into fat if they weren't running around enough. ( :dunce: ??)
My understanding also.
More protein equates to less energy, therefore less surplus to store as fat.
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Do you keep a record of your fat probes from the slaughter house? I'm just curious to know what they killed out at as one man's fatty is anothers just right.
Our GOS kill out between 15mm and 20mm but we usually hit 17/18mm pretty constantly which our customers are happy about.
No we don't; didn't know about this; but our first 2 lots of GOS had about 1/2 - 3/4inch fat around the chops. The large blacks this year has about 1 3/4 inch around the chops.
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3/4 inch sounds about right especially if raised outdoors.
The slaughter house will record the dead weight/ fat probe and print it on a tag which goes with the pig to the butcher so you could just ask the butcher when he gets the pigs in, or just ask him to save the slaughter tag. We sell direct to a local butcher so I phone the slaughter house at lunch time (having dropped them off in the morning) to get the weights for invoicing purposes and they just give me the fat probe as a matter of course.