[janeislay]

My Tamworth is looking as though she's held to service, has anyone bred this cross before ?  He was the only boar I could find at the time, so it wasn't by first choice.

Anyone foresee any special problems ?

[robert waddell]

small fat piglets

[lill]

I'm sure you pig will be fine having her babies, as Robert did state they will be fat, the tamworth being bigger than kk should not be a problem, should be quite an easy going birth, you will have some fancy coloured piglets, but will be looking forward to photos when there are born 

[HappyHippy]

Kunes aren't always fat you two ! 
They'll possibly grow a bit slower than pure Tamworths, but should hopefully take some of the Kunes tendancy to graze  Just keep an eye on their feeding, if you were to feed 'standard' ratios they may well get over-fat but until they're born and you see how they go it's difficult to know for sure.
The lady I bought my young KK boar from had a Tamworth that she crossed with her KK boar for her Xmas bacon as she called it 
HTH
Karen x

[janeislay]

Sounds like I won't have to worry too much then.  The pens we have are big and with excellent grazing.  I am having trouble with feed at the moment tho; just got a second batch of mouldy stuff from a completely different supplier 

This is Boris with Tam in the small pen:
(just trying out my photo putting-in abilities ! may not work !)

[robert waddell]

now that is a big kunie or a small tammie

[HappyHippy]

You're photo putting-in abilities are just fine 
He's a looker, they'll be cracking looking piglets for sure 

I'm using East Coast Viners for my feed now and it's been great, even 6 weeks after delivery it's still fresh.
HTH
Karen x

[janeislay]

now that is a big kunie or a small tammie

I think he's a big kunie !  Cos she's a big girl !

HappyHippy - I'll be over your way in a couple of weeks time, I'll bring the trailer and hope to get some decent feed while I'm there.  My dad's at Auchlochan.
Jane

[robert waddell]

now this has got me intrigued          we had kunies for several years      and they were a good bit smaller than the tammies also there litter size was small as well  six was a big litter and was one of the attributes played on by the kunnie society
so what has happened to them now that they have developed to such a large pig and there litters can equal and even surpass traditional breeds   and if memory serves me right they did not have a very large gene pool 

[HappyHippy]

now that is a big kunie or a small tammie

I think he's a big kunie !  Cos she's a big girl !

HappyHippy - I'll be over your way in a couple of weeks time, I'll bring the trailer and hope to get some decent feed while I'm there.  My dad's at Auchlochan.
Jane

Auchlohan's less than a mile from us  and I'll be getting feed delivered next week sometime  How many bags are you looking for and I'll keep them aside.
Be nice to meet you 

now this has got me intrigued          we had kunies for several years      and they were a good bit smaller than the tammies also there litter size was small as well  six was a big litter and was one of the attributes played on by the kunnie society
so what has happened to them now that they have developed to such a large pig and there litters can equal and even surpass traditional breeds and if memory serves me right they did not have a very large gene pool 

You're right Robert. The herdbook was founded with only 18 pigs, so not big at all.
There's obviously been some close breeding and some breeders advocate it for getting the best from the breed/bloodlines but obviously, when doing this you also run the risk of getting the worst (in terms of deformed piglets and etc) I wouldn't expect this to increase litter size though, if anything surely in-breeding would reduce litter size 
Not sure why yours would be small (in comparison to mine for example) but as I've said before (and will say it again) Kunes shouldn't be fat - fat is due to the wrong food and living conditions  and if they get fat they not only lay it down on the outside but also lay it down around the overies which causes a drop in the amount of eggs being released and that might reduce litter numbers too.
Karen 

[robert waddell]

with kunnies the name means fat     that is like trying to pass of a white pig with a ginger sheen as being a tamworth
as i said before the kunnie society played on the small litter size as a marketing point and to justify there ott pricing
rather than inbreeding it would be outbreeding that could be responsible for the increase in litter size and their larger than first importation
well hatfield will be an education for us they have a dedicated kunnie class  i will be taking a great interest in them  and what constitutes a champion kunnie
to fat at mating can be just as bad as to lean both in the sow and boar

[Sylvia]

I have had the borrow of a Kune boar and he's a dear little fellow but half the size of my girls (he's 12 months old, the girls 14 months) At the moment he's more interested in grub than girls but seems to have all the right equiptment for the job   So, here's hoping!

[HappyHippy]

Sylvia, don't worry about his size ! Just ask Beewyched - she thought her little guy would need a ladder  Four litters later, it would seem not 

Robert, take plenty photo's for me at Hatfield please ! And fingers crossed their champion Kune Kune will look a bit like my gilt Rora 

[robert waddell]

big v small does not matter  to much in pig breeding     if she wants it and he can give it they will find a way        when it is the other way round the boar being to heavy for the gilt/sow that you get problems 


we have a new camera for hatfield and a blackberry just to keep you up to speed at speed without speed 

[Eve]

Will any of you be taking pigs to Hatfield?