[Azzdodd]

I've only had weaners for the freezer but soon I will be starting to breed as I feel I have enough experience now. My question is I'm buying 2 gilts on the 25th who I plan too but too the boar end off feb/March is it a risk buying gilts that havnt farrowed before? Too make them pay they would both need to have litters off 7 or more?

[Tamsaddle]

Sadly, as I have discovered to my cost, there is no guarantee that any female pig, whether a gilt or a proven sow, will get pregnant the first time, or again.    My last one, a sow with a previously normal first litter when she had been a gilt, appeared to be having completely normal 3 weekly heats, but when she eventually went for slaughter, they discovered cystic ovaries and all manner of problems blocking the passageway up to the womb.    It is not that common, but there are definitely quite a few rare breed pigs around who have infertility problems, dozens of posts here on TAS re just that, and usually no obvious reason at all as to why it should happen, or that there is anything wrong while you are trying to get it to happen.    Would be impossible to guarantee that any pig will have 7 litters - thousands probably do, but it is only after the event that you can be quite sure that is going to be the case with yours.    So, personally, I think you are likely to have the same chances of getting a fertile pig pregnant whatever you go for. 


 

[kja]

no litter size is guaranteed be it from a sow or gilt, accidents happen even with a experienced sow the. there is always a risk with breeding a vet callout could wipe out any profit. and again some breeds have bigger litters than others lots of factors to be taken onboard.

breeding is great but you have to take the rough with the smooth and its not always straight forward.

[Bodger]

Keeping any livestock is a risk and all you can do, is to try and minimize that risk by doing your homework, making suitable preparation for your livestock enterprise and by doing things properly.
 Having said that, the most important thing that you need is something that you can't do anything about and that's luck. You need good luck and not the other sort. Fingers crossed that everything goes well for you.

[hughesy]

In the last year or so we've had a sow who'd had one litter with no problems unable to get in pig again. Also a gilt that simply couldn't get in pig at all. Their half sister has had two litters without problems of 13 and 16 and is in pig again without any fuss. There's always a gamble nothing is guaranteed.

[Bodger]

Plus, as long as you don't pay over the odds for your purchase, you should be able to recoup most, if not all of your investment by sending any problem pigs to the butcher.

[Stellan Vert]

Hi

Everything has the risk of failing, and animals, more so
As one colleague aptly put it: live stock can so easily become dead stock

Sounds like you have done your homework and have useful experience. Go for it, do your best, learn but be the wise smallholder and have numerous eggs in many baskets.

Wishing you success

SV

[Fowgill Farm]

Have to agree with all written before.....there are no guarantees.........one my sows who has had good size litters previously has suddenly become infertile....she comes raging into season and has now been to the boar 4x with no success so now I have to make a decision about her
You say will have more than 7 in a litter be more profitable........well IF you can sell all you want you will probably break even at best.....but think about been stuck with them all thro winter for example and then any profit you thought you might make goes....try to stagger your girls so you don't end up with two litters at once (double the possible probs!)
Breeding is a wonderful experience but you must be prepared to take the rough with the smooth and have back up plans at the ready for as many eventualities as you can think of coz come hell or high water (sorry if you're flooded out!) its sure to happen!
Whatever you decide all the best.
Mandy

[Tamsaddle]

Oops, how stupid of me, I'd read "7 litters" when Azdodd had said "litters of 7".   Never mind.    But reading all these posts makes me wonder whether these problems are particular to smallholders and rare breed pigs, or whether it is the same in the commercial sector.   Presumably commercial pigs that don't get pregnant are culled at once, but I'd be most curious to know what the rate is there.   Does anyone know?

[Bodger]

I think that decisions are made on the principle that it costs as much to feed a 'badun' as it does a 'goodun' and that anything that doesn't conform to the ideal is sent off. There's little room for sentiment in the commercial world.

[verdifish]

Pigs cost more than you will ever earn back from them! We recently bought 2 kunes (sisters)in pig at auction for £12 for both, they farrowed aprox 7 weeks later 11 piglets Lost 5, Males were castrated for Free  1 of which had a hernia op at cost pric, So at bang on all 6 sold at £80 and within 2 days Both the sows were on the hook total dead weight about 90kg All the meat sold. @ £8 per kg !Did we make a profit ? Yes but we aren't gonna retire anytime soon And I bet this was a one of ! My point is Keep pigs to raise your own pork but Not to earn a profit Because You WON'T ! 

[Azzdodd]

I have had livestock too know you will never retire :-) but i think the joys off keeping animals is worth it I'm gonna go for it and just wish me luck if not I like sausages anyway ? my next dilemma is do I buy a boar? I have tried too find local studs too not much luck.....AI? I've watched so many videos on it people would think I'm strange.....anyone have experience with it? This way I can experiment diffrent breeds for each litter

[hughesy]

I keep reading that there's no money to be made. It's true there's on easy money to be made but like any other business it all comes down to the sums in the end. I certainly wouldn't start to breed pigs without a plan for what I was going to do with the offspring. Hoping to make a profit selling weaners doesn't add up as far as I can see especially if you end up not selling them all straight away after weaning.

[Bodger]

I bought Pru last may and have been lucky enough to be able to borrow a boar for nothing but it has meant a six hour round journey, so the exercise still hasn't been a cheap one.

What breed have you gone for? And am I right in thinking that you're in North Wales? There are one or two of us on the forum in NW who keep pigs, so maybe a bit of collaboration could be in order?

I'm looking at a spot of AI, you need more than one or two sows to justify keeping a boar and that's the same boat that I find myself in.

[Marches Farmer]

We have a GOS boar for hire but if you're in N Wales it's a bit of a long haul.  We hire ours out to keep him busy (and fertile) - seems to work well for folks with two or three sows who don't want the bother or expense of a boar on site all year.