[Beeducked]

We are very excitedly awaiting the arrival of 3 Large Black weaners in 3 weeks time and am trying to be as prepared as possible. Housing and pen ready, trough and drinker ready.


Just some questions about feeding.
Are there any feeds that people particularly recommend (or recommend I avoid!)? What do the rest of you use?
I am aware of the legislation regarding kitchen scraps etc but is there any foods that I should avoid giving them? We have a reasonable sized veg patch and I am planning on supplementing with left overs from there such as the gone to seed kale and past it leeks but just checking I won't poison them with something silly like onion tops. Guessing that rhubarb leaves should be avoided as toxic.

[shygirl]

im sure potato leaves and green potatoes are poisonous to some degree.
exciting times 

[Beeducked]

I can't believe how excited I am!


These are his pigs. He has talked about getting some for a while but I look after the geese and ducks, the sheep and bees and felt like I couldn't take on any more (in addition to a full time job) without it becoming a chore. Last thing I wanted was to stop loving it or worse that the animals get second class care. I only agreed on the understanding that the OH will do all the work with them.


Hmmm...

[Marches Farmer]

I suggest whatever 16% protein sow & weaner pellets you can get cheapest.  Rhubarb and potato are poisonous.  Don't give too much greenery at once - it can become impacted in the gut of young pigs.  If you give grain of any sort soak it first - feeding it dry can cause prolapse of the anus.  A handful of good hay, apple tree leaves, bolted lettuces, woody carrots and parsnips all go down well and will keep them interested and happy.  We have large concrete pens but floor feed over a wide (clean) area to keep them busy rooting about.  Cut apples in half before feeding - growers can choke on whole ones.

[devonlad]

excited on your behalf as I remember out first foray into pigs, very similar to what you're doing and it was every bit as much fun and ultimately yumptious as we'd hoped it would be. they soon polished off the buckets of peapods after i'd shelled my peas- sat in the garden like a good lad so as not to breach the kitchen scrap reg. have a great time and large blacks are super pigs.

[mowhaugh]

Very exciting - Large Blacks are the BEST pigs (in my limited experience or, er, Large Blacks and nothing else!), we adore them and I'm sure you will too.

[shygirl]

If you give grain of any sort soak it first - feeding it dry can cause prolapse of the anus.

how exactly could that happen? haven't heard that before.
ta   

[kelly58]

I give my girls sow rolls, bruised barley, sugarbeet sheds (soaked)  fruit and veg ad lib, never heard of soaking before ? Is it just for weaners  its a problem ? 

[Berkshire Boy]

mine only have grain, never had a problem, never heard of it being a problem either.

[Cactus Jack]

Mine have mostly crushed wheat with as much fresh greens and weeds that I can grow. I do soak the wheat as it blows away otherwise, also it's makes the pigs sneeze when it goes up their noses

[ScotsGirl]

What is the meat like when you get it back? A local farmer reckoned it was marked when the hair gets taken off leaving spots which some don't like.


I fancied trying a couple but didn't want my customers to be put off

[Beeducked]

Thanks for the replies everyone.


Apparently the rind is white when they are finished and doesn't look any different. They're our first pigs so we won't know any different and will be just for us, friends and family. Will let you know.

[oaklandspigs]

All pigs "dress out" white, the colouring is a very thin layer almost like paint on a wall.  You'll see that it turns white if they scratch.

The colouring is taken off as part of the scalding process that removes the hair, so don't worry you'll not have black rind from large blacks or any coloured pigs

[Fowgill Farm]

Feed a proprietary brand of sow/weaner pellets 16% protein and ad lib fruit & veg.
4lb of fruit/veg can replace 1lb of hard feed but bear in mind pigs need protein to grow and put on muscle to make meat.
Weaners at 8wks need 2lb of feed per day split in two feeds, at 12wks its 3lb, 16wks - 4lb right upto 6lb per day max for fatteners. see this will explain
http://www.gospbc.co.uk/so-you-want-to-keep-pigs-part-3/
hth mandy

[Beeducked]

Thanks for the nice summary. That's whats written in the guide on here and the books I have read are pretty similar. The Oh and I have agreed that initially we will be weighing the food as I am no good at judging weight on it's appearance and he is even worse. Found that out when I discovered that he had been feeding our ewes twice as much as they should have!


As long as there are no things I might be growing in the veg patch that might be unexpectedly toxic to them in the way chocolate is toxic to dogs (my sister has had 2 expensive trips to the vet on that one).


2 and a half weeks to go.