[melholly]

Well I thought I was doing ok with my first 2 weaners. They are 5 months this coming Sunday. They are outside happy in mud, lovely big ark, plenty of straw and have been fed on (legal) scraps of windfall apples, pumpkins etc along with marriages pig food which I was told should be 1lb of food per day for each month old they are. So 5 months old = 5lbs of food per day.

I've had an awful shock though weighing them for the first time this weekend. I think I've measured them correctly (but I may be wrong) but they are only showing as 63lbs & 55lbs - I thought they'd be ready to go in 6-8 weeks time but I think I've done something very badly wrong!

They are happy and big etc but I'm not sure what to do next to be honest as I don't want to end up with pure fat as my meat!

Could anybody help? Not sure where I've gone wrong or what I should be doing now!

Mx

[Barrett]

You are doing nothing wrong my boys and girls live outside until they are nine months old and my killing weight ranges from 35-47K which in my pig keeping book that I have is fine a little fat for flavour but good quality meat. I did start to think the same as you, my pigs have wheat, barley and yogurt the dairy I have learned is important, all the little fat weaners you see when buying are usually given the milk from the cows on the farm.  You are doing everything right, what breed are they?.

[melholly]

Thank you! I'm feeling a bit more assured. I felt bad even writing the topic as thought I must have been completely underfeeding them!

One is Saddleback, the other Old Spot - OS definitely bigger!

Mx

[JulieS]

You will be surprised how much they grow in the next few weeks too 

[Eve]

They grow less fast during winter. And yes, the last month they put on quite a bit 

 

[SallyintNorth]

I was about to post were you sure you were reading lbs and not kgs?  I weighed my Saddleback x OSB weaners at just less than 14 weeks and the largest was 40kg, the other two just under.  Like you I feed 1lb weaner pellet per day per month of age, plus what legal extras I can get - and these have been indoors through the last very wet few weeks, so not much extra, except as much hay as they want. 

Now reading everyone else's replies I am worried mine are pure lard!  They don't feel fat...  Fingers crossed the ground dries up a bit now and they can go out for the last couple of months.

[melholly]

Hi Sally,

Yes I thought I was losing my mathematical sanity and reading it all wrong. I even questionnned the formula I got to weigh them so cross referenced! They are definitely the right way round - 63lb/28kg and 55lb / 25kg.

The OS has a heart girth of 25" (measuring from under one front leg over the top to under the other front leg. I assume you dont measure all the way around?) The SB a heart girth of 24"

I'll see what happens when I measure them again at the weekend. It's so frustrating. Given their mud swimming antics I can't help but feel I've been feeding them and they've been burning it off! In which case I'm scrapping the pigs and opening it up as the best way to lose weight and get a beauty mud treatment at the same time!!

Mx

[Fowgill Farm]

If it helps mine go to the butchers when the tape measure reads 40 inches round the chest behind the front legs, these are GOS so it sounds like yours may have some way to go yet. Not a veryscientific measure but works for me (see GOS website forum articles Time for pork for picture of where to measure)
HTh
mandy 

[manian]

you measure all around the girth (as you would your waist measurement) just behind front legs
this would add a possible 5-6 inches to it and increase your weight
try again
see pic below

[Berkshire Boy]

I would say they are seriously under weight. My weaners go off at about 14 weeks and weigh nearly 30kg. At 5 months I would expect them to weigh at least 50kg.
Just re read your last posting and you are not measuring them right. You have to measure all the way round.

[princesspiggy]

dont stress about their weight unless u are on a time restraint? just send em when u think they are ready. i think 7 mths/80kg is a better size for traditional breeds than rushing them off at dead-on (excuse the pun) 6 mths.
my butchers and abattoir only need a weeks notice so that takes the pressure off timings a little bit.
enjoy the experience!

[Sylvia]

My rule of thumb is this--If when they try to walk between my legs at feed times and I find myself sitting on their backs then they're big enough.

[princesspiggy]

My rule of thumb is this--If when they try to walk between my legs at feed times and I find myself sitting on their backs then they're big enough.

i agree! especially if ur feet leave the ground!  lol

[manian]

My rule of thumb is this--If when they try to walk between my legs at feed times and I find myself sitting on their backs then they're big enough.

i agree! especially if ur feet leave the ground!  lol

  i'm only 5 ft so they are still small when i'm lifted 
Mx

[melholly]

Sylvia - I love this theory! Rodeo riding - pig style!!!

I feel so stupid now - I looked at so many websites with diagrams of how to measure and I never thought it would be all the way around. But then, now I think about it, why wouldn't I measure all the way around!!! Back to square one and re-measuring! I'll post the amendments!

No rush for time, these are our first 2 to 'learn from' and the meat will just be ours. Just about to get a chest freezer for the garage (as hopefully we'll get some lamb too this year) and another question for you experienced guys - will 2 pigs fit into a 'standard' chest freezer? (obviously when back from the butcher jointed etc!)

Thanks everyone and sorry for being such an idiot but very glad I posted!

Mx