The Accidental Smallholder Forum
Livestock => Pigs => Topic started by: harry on July 22, 2011, 08:55:04 pm
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hi..... i have an acre of ground.... for my ducks... it was grass but the nettles and docks are slowly taking over, dont want to spray again as they come back again next year..... what duck friendly pigs about 2-3 do you recomend to keep the docks and nettlesdown. i dont want big pigs, or pet pigs. want somthing that will maintain the ground without to much digging and be killed sometime when ready for my own consumption so econmics doesnt matter need a gardener that i can eat later. i like bacon ham and sausages rather than pork jionts, are kunes suitable.... have running water, shelter etc
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sorry to burst your bubble but no pigs are suitable for your idea any pig will eat your ducks sorry :farmer:
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BUGGER.............. ok so i will have to segregate them i have some excellent heavy fenceing to separate the land in 1/2..... so please answer again forget the duck friendly bit
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Hi Harry,
British Lop, Tamworth, Hampshire, the list of pigs, there are 14 pig breeds, any one of these will be good gareners but the best is no dooubt the tamworth. Yes Robert is right, they will eat your ducks, :pig: :pig:
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Harry,
If you can get piglets that are well used to the electric fence and respect it you will have very little problems regarding your ducks and pigs. :pig: :&>
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and do not forget the kunnies basically what ever pig you like you will think the world of them :farmer:
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While I agree with the consensus that all pigs will eat chickens and ducks, I have to say that my 3 Large Blacks have never harmed my 6 chickens, when they hop into their area to pick up scraps. When one of my lame sows was put into the hospital wing of the barn, prior to being PTS, my little silkie bantam spent 3 days and 3 nights with her, sometimes just snuggling down on her back. Sometimes there is just something magical about animal friendships.
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inquired about kunes...prefer a small breed as i dont want the land destroyed....are they any good for bacon, as i eat plenty of that and sausages
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yes you get sausages and bacon it is just you will think you are on a diet small pig :farmer:
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thinking small pigs for the first time....maybe something a bit bigger next year, easier to fence in etc.maybe less ground, tree damage.
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HEY ! Size isn't everything Robert :P and they're not that small ! :P ;D Your 'standard 85Kg liveweight porker will kill out at approx. 65 Kg and you can expect approx 45 Kg of pork cuts (can't think of the proper term) compare that to a Kune @ 11 months old giving 33 Kg of cuts and it's not that far off really ;)
My last crosses went at 'the magic' 6 months old, no idea what liveweights were :-[ but the deadweights ranged from 45 - 50 Kg, and we got an average of 38 Kg from each of them. I know, I keep saying it, but I LIKE Kune Kunes :love: :pig: :love: :yum:
Harry - You can make bacon from any pork loin - just Kunes are a little bit smaller, so the piece of bacon is a bit smaller (but the taste more than makes up for it, I think ;)) and they're great for sausages.
With around half an acre, 2 or 3 pigs should be all you're looking for. I'd go for 3 entire males to maximise your 'growth potential' but NEVER mix gilts and uncastrated boars, or you run the risk of ending up with piglets. They become sexually mature as early as 3 months in some cases :o Kunes typically grow a bit slower (being 10-12 months old before being ready to slaughter) but the feeding is less than standard 'big' pigs - Kunes only need around 1lb of hard feed per day when on grass (and as much fruit as they'll eat ;)) otherwise they get VERY fat.
Where abouts are you Harry ? Maybe there's someone close to you who you could visit and see some Kune Kunes ?
Karen :wave:
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I keep my chickens in with my pigs and they're fine. The chickens actually try to perch in the pig house overnight if I don't shoo them into the henhouse. I've also heard chickens will reduce the parasites that live around pigs. I know you have ducks not chickens but in 3 years I've never seen one of my pigs go for the chickens or the chicks.
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I had a Kune leg for dinner tonight and it was lovely :) I only keep kunes and they seem to be less distructive than i thought (BUGGERATION) so we're getting a gilt or 2 in a bigger breed. No idea re chickens as i've never tried it.
HH is right lovely meat from a Kune agreed yes it is smaller but on the plus side they're easier to handle :)
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Hate to disagree with some of the other posters, but I've got wild ducks plus ducklings roaming around and feeding on leftover pig food in my Tamworth paddocks. In my experience, ducks are quicker on the uptake than chickens (I've lost one or two which have found their way over the pig fence) and learn to move a lot faster.
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HI, we have British lops and my ducks are free to roam during the day and we never have lost any to the pigs, at feed time the ducks often come and help them selves to our boars food without any problem what so ever! :)
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Same here, my ducks and chooks spend a lot of time wandering round and feeding with the pigs,they're often to be found having a siesta amidst a pile of pigs!! ;D
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My choox are totally free-ranging and LOVE following the pig when she's turning over the earth - picking off all the worms and insects she's turned up and missed herself. So far I've never seen her so much as 'oof' at them.
And of course I have to throw in an ad for the Oxford Sandy & Black - lovely looking, lovely natures, very friendly, easy to care for, not too big (but bigger than Kunes), do eat grass, nettles, thistles (though not so keen on docks - have to scatter their food to make them dig the docks up), not too destructive (but more diggy than Kunes) and not too escape-minded provided their pen is large enough and interesting enough. Fab pork & bacon, won't get too fat if you don't overfeed (but you will get tremendous crackling :yum:), mine went to slaughter at 7 months. Oh - and in my case, cohabits happily with choox, dogs, calves, sheep, ponies... ;D
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This matches our experience too: our chooks and our neighbour's ducks & geese happily mix with our pigs. I do know of pigs who have eaten poultry, though, especially if they share bedspace at night. Certainly our pigs have had the odd pheasant that has dropped in. Thy will also trash your duck pond, if allowed near it.
As to breeds, if you want something a bit bigger than a Kune kune that doesn't root too much, how about a middle white?
Of course, i have to agree with SallyIntNorth that OSBs are wonderful, but they do get quite big if you leave them to grow to bacon weight.
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ok ...thanks for all that... ime looking at some kunes sunday may start with them.see how it goes, then try something a bit bigger next year.. i will have to put a couple of ducks in with them to see what happens i suppose its all down to the individual pig......
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ok..got 2 males kune piglets.. let them out yesterday... havent seen them since as the growth is chest high...i assume they are dossing somewhere........... will look again later... what are the economics of keeping pigs, i assume its cheaper to buy a butchered one but thats not why i got them i hope they will clear the ground, loads of free range to clear so with a few nuts i suppose i may break even????? probably to much to clear for them so might get 2 more next week
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good luck then. we have indian runners and chooks free range with pigs and never had any trouble, it probly depends on the pig, space, housing and feeding routines. you'l soon find out! :o
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ok..got 2 males kune piglets.. let them out yesterday... havent seen them since as the growth is chest high...i assume they are dossing somewhere........... will look again later... what are the economics of keeping pigs, i assume its cheaper to buy a butchered one but thats not why i got them i hope they will clear the ground, loads of free range to clear so with a few nuts i suppose i may break even????? probably to much to clear for them so might get 2 more next week
I would be slightly concerned that I hadn't seen them :-\
Are you certain they are actually still there ?
I would always recommend keeping them in a small pen for the first week, that way they learn to associate you with the bucket and come running when you shout ;) Don't want to worry you - but it's worth making sure you know where they are and that they are sleeping in their arc (or at least know where it, their food and their water is)
But enjoy them, Kunes are great !
Karen :wave:
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all ok they appeared this pm from the 4 foot nettles (i wasnt going to look for them in that lot..... didnt pen them in as there are 4 different places for them to use as a shelter .... and if anything like my ducks and hens ie they have sevaral nice sheds but prefer to use the trees or roost on the shed roof right though the winter, snow and all,so i thought bugger it you lot find where you want to sleep, and they drink from a stream only 4 inches deep.......... so as with the ducks i rattle the food bucket so i can inspect the pigs at feeding time.
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Glad to hear your Kunes have settled-in Harry. Not sure if you've got castrates or entires - but I'd be careful mixing entires from different litters - Kunes mature sexually quite early compared to other breeds (about 5 months-old) & may scrap even with no females to wind 'em up ::)
Your field sounds like Kune heaven - mine love nettles & docks, clover, goosegrass etc in preference to just grass. If you want them to dig it up you will probable need to confine them to small areas & move them around - are they trained to electric fencing? I use the white "horse tape" as they can see it easier. They will also be more likely to root if you throw their feed on the ground too.
Mine are also fine with chucks, ducks & turkey poults who frequent the paddock the mums & piglets are in (not stupid - they know the "maternity wing" gets the extras ;) They also ignore our daft Setters, who are more scared of the pigs than the other way round!
As a guide, we recently sent some to the abbatoir; a 14-month castrate killed-out at 82kgs, a 7-month boar killed-out at 24kgs & a year-old boar killed-out at 54kgs. No sign of any boar-taint, but we haven't tried Karen's sensitivity test yet ;) ;D
:love: :pig: :love:
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our chickens and ducks get in with the pigs all the time,clear up and feed bits etc...better than rats having it! >:( we have a kk and 2 larger sows and all are fine with them........kk are great though..you'll be addicted soon! ;D
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hi...yes i got 2 complete boys 6 weeks old from the same litter..... they are having a good go already rooting around but i may see if i can 2 more cos the work i want them to do seems emence for them.... would i need to get them from the same litter (if hes still got some) at that age for them to settle in............no not electric fence trained but i bloody well am having walked into it a few times thinking it was off......... the perimeter is electric but there area is street barriers and chain linked.
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If you've got entires you would be better getting litter brothers - either that or purchase others & make another paddock to keep them in. BTW I would have thought that 6 week-olds should really still be with their mum - I don't know what other folks think, but I don't wean my Kunes until they are 8 weeks. Have you checked if they have been wormed? If not you need to get them done sharpish or the burden will affect their health ( & their growth).
They'll soon get used to the electric fence - it only takes 1 or 2 shocks to keep most pigs away from it ( not like us humans ;) ;D )