Author Topic: What's your favourite? (Read 6064 times)

SallyintNorth · « **Reply #15 on:** May 04, 2012, 05:16:29 pm »

I had a pair of OSB gilts, kept one for breeding. Fantastic pork from the other. Great fun and easy for a pig-beginner.

Meg-pig is a fantastic mother, put her to Saddleback AI and had a wonderful litter of delightful, friendly, laid-back but inquisitive and interesting piglets. We've eaten one (and the two that I sold as weaners have been butched); the carcase off my own was good enough that my butcher said he'd buy pigs off me if I can produce it like that but with a bigger carcase. (We'll see about that - I think the not getting fat past 60kgs deadweight is the difficult trick with rare breeds, but I am certainly giving it a go!)

We put Meg-pig to Saddleback again as we couldn't fault the first litter.

I love the look of the OSB, and suspect the pork may have the edge over the Saddleback (but the Saddleback x bacon was fabulous, as was the belly pork, slow-roasted) but really like the easy-goingness of the Saddlebacks. (Meg-pig has more opinions than the Saddlebacks seem to - she's a love, but she can make her feelings known and will argue if she's unhappy about something you ask of her.)

On looks, the other breed I'd love to try is (please note BB

) the Berkshire.

I am also intrigued to try a Large Black... oh, this could run and run

Padge · « **Reply #16 on:** May 04, 2012, 08:09:05 pm »

I would say i love the Berkshire real cheeky characterful little pigs and the sweetest pork i have ever tasted

Berkshire Boy · « **Reply #17 on:** May 04, 2012, 09:16:59 pm »

Go for it Sally you won't be disappointed.
Well done Padge, people go one about pigs being laid back that means boring in my book, you need something with a bit of spark that's a Berkshire and great meat.

ppd · « **Reply #18 on:** May 05, 2012, 09:17:35 pm »

It for me, may be down to what I can get locally but I actually wanted to get large blacks to start with, having read up about them and knowing they were docile and friendly. But I still think my saddlebacks are the most amazing creatures. Will be going next week to a local pig breader to check out arks that he has for sale and will also check out the breeds that he keeps too. I do love that eveyone has their own favourites, with all of them having thier own benifits - lots to think about now and lots more to ask!