[suzi]

this year has been my first year producing meat. pork and lamb. omg what a disaster its been.

sent off older pigs to make into sausages. awful meat. not even the dogs will eat it (their ex street dogs!!)

the right age pigs even made tough grissly meat that the kids just wont eat.

they had a varied diet of mole country growers, fresh produce. they were kept with love and kindness. outdoor reared (my son used to play football with them!!)
im not doing it again until next year.


what did i do wrong??

[PipKelpy]

I read the lamb post first so didn't understand the pork comment until I saw this post.

I agree with the stress comments. Many years ago I was taking my pigs for the chop and as I was pulling out of the junction, some idiot jumped the lights so I had to slam my brakes on, I heard a thud in the trailer! I was at the abattoir a few minutes later and there wasn't any one ahead of me in the queue, I happened to mention it to them and rather than push them straight through, they put them in the pens, telling me it's for best! Apparent they killed them last as the meat was perfect.

Corn/Nuts, whatever you want to call it, CAN be an issue! I've had pigs REFUSE food as the mill have changed ingredients due to shortages (they came out and swapped it after taking samples!). Also, dad told me once, that when he and his parents were raising pigs and turkeys in the 1960's, they had contracts to fulfil, like folk now, but the butchers came back and passed on complaints to them from customers, grizzly, boar taint, tough, you name it they said it. Dad said the only thing they had done different was change feed supplier due to costs (dad is a tightwad, my Grandad was worse!)

Saying that, it's curious that ALL is bad! Too much of a coincidence for the whole lot to be bad, so for me, feed or abbatoir! If it were just the pork or just the lamb, then maybe you (my first pig had so much fat on him it was shocking, but then Sausage liked milk and me being me bought him milk and mixed it in with his nuts ....... But it was bloody good meat!)

Also agree with the person who asked are you sure it's your meat?  2010, My first beef home kill reared by me Swissy, (we'd eaten 2 previously but they had been reared by the cow to start with and then left here at 29months) When I booked him in with the haulier, he said "you're not taking him to *******, sure you'll get him back?" ( I wasnt) because there was a local abattoir that HAD in the past, seen a good carcass and sold it through the shop rather than give the owner their own meat back!

[suzi]

I read the lamb post first so didn't understand the pork comment until I saw this post.

I agree with the stress comments. Many years ago I was taking my pigs for the chop and as I was pulling out of the junction, some idiot jumped the lights so I had to slam my brakes on, I heard a thud in the trailer! I was at the abattoir a few minutes later and there wasn't any one ahead of me in the queue, I happened to mention it to them and rather than push them straight through, they put them in the pens, telling me it's for best! Apparent they killed them last as the meat was perfect.

Corn/Nuts, whatever you want to call it, CAN be an issue! I've had pigs REFUSE food as the mill have changed ingredients due to shortages (they came out and swapped it after taking samples!). Also, dad told me once, that when he and his parents were raising pigs and turkeys in the 1960's, they had contracts to fulfil, like folk now, but the butchers came back and passed on complaints to them from customers, grizzly, boar taint, tough, you name it they said it. Dad said the only thing they had done different was change feed supplier due to costs (dad is a tightwad, my Grandad was worse!)

Saying that, it's curious that ALL is bad! Too much of a coincidence for the whole lot to be bad, so for me, feed or abbatoir! If it were just the pork or just the lamb, then maybe you (my first pig had so much fat on him it was shocking, but then Sausage liked milk and me being me bought him milk and mixed it in with his nuts ....... But it was bloody good meat!)

Also agree with the person who asked are you sure it's your meat?  2010, My first beef home kill reared by me Swissy, (we'd eaten 2 previously but they had been reared by the cow to start with and then left here at 29months) When I booked him in with the haulier, he said "you're not taking him to *******, sure you'll get him back?" ( I wasnt) because there was a local abattoir that HAD in the past, seen a good carcass and sold it through the shop rather than give the owner their own meat back!


ive been going over everything i think i did wrong with rearing them. as it was my 1st time i know there was a few things i will do better next time.
i have heard of abattiors selling on other peoples meat. my pigs were old spots and mangalitsas so nice meat i thought (well ignore the 3 older pigs as they were made into sausages and not even the dogs will eat it! the one tha did threw up for 2 days after! ive not been brave enough to try it again!!)

the animals left the day before they were processed. they stayed in a holding pen over night. thats the stress. and that it was a 3 hour journey there.

its an expensive mistake this year at nearly 2k to process alone. they didnt seem to charge for the lamb with that!!
it also didnt seem enough pork. id worked out id be tight on 3 chest freezers for the pork alone. i filled just over 2 with the lamb too.
something isnt adding up

[Fleecewife]

I too had a problem once with getting my own meat back some years ago (sheep but we seem to be using two boards)
We sent our first 6 Jacob lambs to a local abattoir and when we went to collect them the legs looked too short and wide to be Jacobs, even to my then inexperienced eye.  I asked the chappie if he could show me how to tell a ewe from a tup once skinned, so he happily did that.  As it happened, we had only sent males, so I got the vet across.  He agreed there was no way these were our sheep, but ours had already set off for Portugal.  We were given half a dozen of someone else's animals much against my will.  The meat was inedible, tough and stringy, and one looked as if it had a muscle disease.  I threw it all out.  Comfortingly, the abattoir was closed down, but we lost our year's production of what should have been delicious Jacob lambs to eat.

[Richmond]

Did you say you paid 2K for the pigs' processing, excluding your lambs? How many did you send off?
That sounds hideously expensive. We pay £105 per pig here for abattoir and butchery combined.

[suzi]

I too had a problem once with getting my own meat back some years ago (sheep but we seem to be using two boards)
We sent our first 6 Jacob lambs to a local abattoir and when we went to collect them the legs looked too short and wide to be Jacobs, even to my then inexperienced eye.  I asked the chappie if he could show me how to tell a ewe from a tup once skinned, so he happily did that.  As it happened, we had only sent males, so I got the vet across.  He agreed there was no way these were our sheep, but ours had already set off for Portugal.  We were given half a dozen of someone else's animals much against my will.  The meat was inedible, tough and stringy, and one looked as if it had a muscle disease.  I threw it all out.  Comfortingly, the abattoir was closed down, but we lost our year's production of what should have been delicious Jacob lambs to eat.

thats sounding fimiliar! the whole lot is being cooked and given to the dogs. the dogs are picking what they can and cant eat. im sorting it first. its awful!

[suzi]

we sent 6. 3 large pigs and 3 6 month olds. 1 mangalitsa was to small to go really. but i had to shut down until after we move.
there was 140kg in very rough sausages that the dogs cant even eat (they threw up after!)
i think it was £1700+ for the pigs. they didnt charge for the lamb and hogget.

i knew it was expensive. but i needed the big pigs gone. they were dangerous and destroying my buildings! i had no options where they went. it made sense to me at the time that the lot went. my mum was also dying in hospital at the same time. so as long as welfare was met i didnt care (i know that sounds awful. but trying to get consultants to even try and save my mum was more important).

i wont be taking my animals back there ever again.
we are moving in the spring. ill find somewhere new in scotland rather than in the south east

[Fleecewife]

we sent 6. 3 large pigs and 3 6 month olds. 1 mangalitsa was to small to go really. but i had to shut down until after we move.
there was 140kg in very rough sausages that the dogs cant even eat (they threw up after!)
i think it was £1700+ for the pigs. they didnt charge for the lamb and hogget.

i knew it was expensive. but i needed the big pigs gone. they were dangerous and destroying my buildings! i had no options where they went. it made sense to me at the time that the lot went. my mum was also dying in hospital at the same time. so as long as welfare was met i didnt care (i know that sounds awful. but trying to get consultants to even try and save my mum was more important).

i wont be taking my animals back there ever again.
we are moving in the spring. ill find somewhere new in scotland rather than in the south east

So sorry to hear about your Mum, Suzi.  That will have been a most stressful time for you. I've been through something a bit similar so I can say I sympathise 
Whereabouts are you moving to in Scotland?  Ask again when you get here about abattoirs.  Where I am it's difficult to find abattoirs that do pigs, and there are good and bad for sheep.  What we do is to go via our chosen butcher who collects from the abattoir then we collect from him. I can specify exactly how he hangs and cuts the meat and I prefer to make my own sausages and burgers from mince (I'm a bit past being able to do it now but I sort of lurk over him while he makes them for me to my recipe with my additives) I'm not sure if my butcher is still doing that as we haven't had any done for the past couple of years.
It sounds as if your animals were sent off in a bit of a panic, not when it was ideal for them to go.  With a new start, now you have experienced how wrong it can go, I wish you all the best of luck trying again from scratch.

[suzi]

im buying a croft in lewis. making our way there next spring.
the animals going was arranged for the big pigs and lambs. i sent the other pigs 1 month to soon for the old spots. the mangalitsa i sent off 4  months to soon.
worst case i was told the meat would be less. quality still good.

the collection was a complete mess up. 100% my fault because of the situation with my mum dying.

im taking our chickens with us. i just couldnt part with them

[harmony]

That sounds absolutely awful for you and I'm sorry you have lost your Mum


We take our pigs in the night before and we haven't had a problem When pigs are stressed the meat is like jelly. Did you only have sausage made? I'm assuming not as that really doesn't sound enough.


Did you get prices before you sent them? Always get a price.


If the pigs have been stressed loading and travelling that isn't the abattoir's fault. The bill for the slaughter and butchery does appear extreme and I would certainly be questioning it. They should also be able to give your kill weights.


I don't understand how all the meat is inedible. When you say older pigs, how old is older?