[janeislay]

My outside born piglets are now nearly two months old and growing well.  I thought I'd read somewhere here that you should separate out the boar piglets from the girl piglets when weaning, but someone has just told me they should have been castrated at a few days old.

They are Tamworth crossed with Saddleback so not likely to be wanted as breeding stock; is it too late to castrate ? 

[JulieS]

I don't castrate here, but I thought it had to be in the first day or so.

[janeislay]

I don't castrate here, but I thought it had to be in the first day or so.

And are they ok to kill at about 6 months ?  The man that was telling us, said they would be "tainted".  But if you can eat uncastrated lamb at a year old, why not pigs at 6 months ?

[supplies for smallholders]

Hi,

If going by six months then they should be fine, we have taken males to 6+ months with no taint.

It may help to keep them away from the females, as being close can get the hormones going.

Too late to castrate now unless carried out by a vet.

Thanks

[janeislay]

Oh what a relief - thanks !  I plan to separate them at weaning in a couple of weeks time.

Thanks again.

[Sudanpan]

We had 4 entire boar weaners for fattening last year - kept them til they were 7 and a half months old - meat was (is!) superb and no taint at all. As the boars were all from the same litter there was no problems with any particular argy bargy.
Tish

[robert waddell]

with castration you can do it yourself up to 4 days old there after it is a vet job
if you separate out the males and run them separate  as entire males they will ride each other now you tell me if that is sexually active or not
any males that we have that is not up to standard for breeding are cut this is our preference and totally avoids any chance of boar taint which does exist

[Eve]

Janeislay: have a look at the "rancid joint" topic a bit further down the page, it explains about boar taint. We never buy castrated boars. 

[gavo]

You don't need to castrate them ,the group of boys will ride each other on occasion, but ours do this and we slaughter entire boars at 11 months we have never had taint; i would advise you to slaughter earlier than us, as cross breeds seem to mature earlier perhaps 7-8 months ;but again if they reach a size your happy with earlier, then do them earlier. My general advice is relax, enjoy the experience of producing your own meat ;treat them well ,give them a varied diet and they will reward your care with the best meat you wiil ever have tasted.It is not rocket science it takes commonsense and a true love and care of the animal and the ability to ask questions and follow your gut instinct it will generally see you right also have a good vet lined up just in case [probs are rare but they do happen].

[The Woodsiders]

I love the title of the thread, I would have thought the anwer to "when to castrate" would be when the poor b-gg--s aint looking!!!!!!!!!

[Tudful Tamworths]

I never castrate and have had no complaints - either about meat I've sold, nor about boars raised by others for meat.

The boar taint thing is a complex issue, and I'm sure there are threads elsewhere about it. I've researched this quite a lot, and there are numerous factors involved, including breeds, rearing systems, and feeding, so if anyone wants more info, message me.

I've never had it in traditional pigs and I've sometimes kept boars to seven or eight months before slaughtering. I only ever had it in Landrace/Pietrain crosses which went to slaughter later than planned. My husband didn't notice any taint, but I could smell it whilst cooking, though the taste was fine.

You may be interested to hear that pressure groups are lobbying for an EU ban on castration by 2018, and it looks as if the EU will have a ban on pig castration done without anesthetic by 2012. 

I don't separate males from females at weaning - never have done, and have never had problems. The "riding" that someone spoke about is an expression of dominance, not sexual behaviour - same happens with dogs, even when castrated.

[supplies for smallholders]

I know that this wont really interest or apply to most, but did you know that castration is banned on commercial units producing pork meat for "Farm Assured" schemes ?

Just thought I would mention it...

[janeislay]

Hmm - all very interesting.

Loved your answer, Markcott  

After taking the Black sow to the abattoir this morning, we moved Mrs Tamworth and her children to the proposed forest garden this afternoon.  What well behaved piggies they were - through the pony handling pens, across the burn, thru another field, across the main road and up the back drive into their new area.  They all kept together beautifully.

I was worried they wouldn't find their new house - they were all charging about in different directions, but when we went to check them before dark, they were all happily snoozing inside !  The stallion and his companion stood watching them over the fence - enjoying the entertainment !  (I thought horses and pigs didn't mix   )

[janeislay]

I know that this wont really interest or apply to most, but did you know that castration is banned on commercial units producing pork meat for "Farm Assured" schemes ?

Just thought I would mention it...

What - totally banned ?  Even by a vet ?  What's the reasoning ?

[supplies for smallholders]

Same as tail docking, teeth clipping and nose ringing - they are all classed as mutilation and un-neccessary unless on a case by case basis for health reasons.