Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
with humans. When this happens, their physical appearance can change, which includes a
change in their skull. The dish-shaped face of the farmer's pig can change in just a few
months to the straighter skull of the wild pig. This change allows the feral pig to use its snout
more effectively for rooting and digging. The feral pig's teeth will continue to grow, particu-
larly its wolf teeth that will become tusk-like. The feral pig will continue to put on weight un-
til it weighs far more than the farmer's pig.
On the farm, feeder pigs usually are slaughtered when they reach 230 to 250 pounds. It typic-
ally takes about five or six months after weaning to reach this weight. Sows kept on the farm
for breeding may reach 600 pounds, depending on the breed. Boars kept for breeding may
reach 800 pounds, depending on the breed. Some of the feral hogs discovered have weighed
800 pounds or more.
Without a trip to the butcher, the lifespan of a pig is about 12 to 15 years, though some mini-
ature pigs may live longer.
Buying Pigs
In this section, you will learn all about purchasing your first young, recently weaned pigs, or
shoats. However, it is important to have their living area established before you bring them
home, and you will need to conduct a little research to find the best breeders in your area. If
you know anyone in the business, you have a tremendous advantage, but you can learn a good
deal by talking with local feed store owners and veterinarians. Check your newspaper's classi-
fied ads, yellow pages, or Craigslist (
www.craigslist.org
)
, but be sure you have also consul-
ted with your region's pork producers' associations or breed associations such as the Americ-
an Berkshire Association, the United Duroc Swine Registry, or the American Livestock
Breeds Conservancy. Breeders that join such associations tend to be more concerned with
their reputations and work hard to ensure their stock is healthy and well bred. Finally, you
need to check into your community's zoning laws to ensure they permit pig ownership.
If possible, never buy your pigs from a stockyard, auction, or other third-party seller. Buy dir-
ectly from the farm of origin if you can because the more livestock is transported, the more
chances there are for something to go wrong. Transport to an auction means contact with pigs
from other farms, which means there is a greater likelihood of disease and injury. When you
buy directly from the breeder, you have a better opportunity to assess the conditions of the
place where your new pigs originate. You can learn much just by looking. If the farm is gener-
