The Accidental Smallholder Forum
Livestock => Pigs => Topic started by: Guy on February 19, 2008, 12:38:20 pm
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Hi all! The OH and myself will soon be thinking about buying our next two piggies as our current ones will be making their final trip at the end of March. We have oxford sandy and blacks now , whilst our previous (and first) pair were old spots. We have thoroughly enjoyed both and wondered if any one could recommend any breed for the next ones and why?
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Oh Guy there is absolutely no question after the others you have to try tamworths, in my opinion the meat is just superb, second to none. Although I would strongly suggest neutered males or females.
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Thanks HM , do they grow to a similar size to the others? your post seems to elude to the males being a bit feisty?? also , how vocal are they (alas i need to sometimes think of my neighbours )- you should have seen their faces when i explained to them we were going to keep pigs initially - mind you i gave them a joint (of pork that is!) and since then they have been a lot more interested :D
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I've kept both Berkshires and British Saddlebacks and have to say that they're both wonderful in terms of nature whilst alive and meat once they've gone.
I slightly lean to Saddlebacks at the moment as they don't seem to carry so much fat - even if they're lazy and wanting to lie in the sun all day (some hope at the moment!).
What are you looking for in your grunters?
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thanks ww ,
the flavour and quality of meat is really important - but they also need to be friendly things - nothing worse than being chased out of the pen!!! as Linda found out last week! although they dont seem to give me the same run around!
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Gotta be a GOS then :D :D :D............ or a Berkshire ;D ;D ;D ......... and I've got a litter of piglets from each available from Easter :D ;D
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:D Hi Guy, yes tamworth boars can be a bit well bossy, which is why from now on we are going to us AI for the tammies. We have gossies and the boar is very gentle, but for flavour and superb meat quality and just plain FUN you cant beat a tammie.
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thats handy then blinkers ;)!! dont know much about berkshires - are they the blackones ? i guess i need to try out all of the different types at some point!!
I think we have definately decided to go for two gilts this time hm , although the young osb chap is nice enough he has given us a little more in the way of "fun!"- are the tammies easy enough to get hold of(I mean to buy that is , not wrestle with :D)
If i could only persuade the farmer next door to sell me an half an acre or so , i could try out lots of varieties in one go!!!
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Tammies are relatively easy to source, where are you ?
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We are in East devon about 10 miles from Exeter , so easy for motorway access.
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Hi Guy - yes Berkshires are black but kill out white. We bought the sow from the Lady Iveagh on the Suffolk/Norfolk border and they have a Farm Shop and Restaurant (well they do farm about 3 thousand acres !!!) and apparently the Berkshire Pork now had "quite a following" in Lady Clare's words. :D
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hmmm , more to think about there then (as long as 3000acres isnt the minimum requirement to keep them :D)
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There are quite a few breeders of tammies in that area, worth contacting the BPA for breeders.
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Thanks hm - thatll give me something to do on my day off on Sunday ( other than the other list of jobs ;) - always fun to go and look at piglets ;D
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We've never had anything else but Tamworths, so can't compare, but the Tamworths are great - they are just exuberant. And are good footballers, if that's important to you!
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well , footballs not my thing - but if they enjoy a run around they would love my dogs - the current game seems to be two dogs wrestling each other then running up and down the fence line whilst the piggies watch, then they stop and the piggies copy what they have seen whilst the dogs look on!!sureal :D :D
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I don't know if I've posted this before but we bought ours a Snak-a-ball - it's a horse toy that you put food in, and the food drops out in wee bits as the ball is pushed around. The pigs loved it - makes mealtimes last - and the dogs played too!
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Give the Mangalitza a go, definatly my favourite, hardy outdoor, friendly and you can teach them oh so many things,like walk to heel etc. maybe thats why here in France my neighbours call them pig dogs!!!!!!
Carole
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weve now got our own snak -a- ball !!! - it does seem to do a good job (until they pushed it against the electrics which caused a few squeels until we released it for them :)
The mangalitza eh? I saw one when i went on my piggie keeping course - quite surreal looking i thought - my oh thought it looked like a slightly strange fluffy dog and was concerned we would get too attached!! :) cute critters though!
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I think the mangalitsas could become the next exotic pets, they have the intelligence of the pig, yet are smaller and more trainable a bit like a dog. A friend of a colleague has one that is house trained, walks to heel, goes out for walks (they get a special licence) and adores being dried with a hair dryer.