Buying Feeder Pigs? Where To Get Pigs You’ll Love –
After completing the CAPTCHA below, you will immediately regain access to the site again. If you purchased your pigs at 60 pounds they will finish out for you in about 3. There is plenty of information available online, our first time we used the directions in a book-worked great! Try to get pigs from a farm that is raising their pigs the way you plan to raise yours. Feeder pigs can be purchased from a local small farmer, online ads or an auction. Have these pigs been outside or kept inside? Great question, actually!
Feeder Piglets For Sale In Ohio Free
Many Amish families that buy a market hog every fall for home butchering also like to keep their pigs to heavier weights in order to get more lard. Buy feeder pigs from a farm, if you can. Pork does not need to hang, like beef, so it can be put in the freezer right away. You will also need sharp knives to skin it and a loader tractor with a chain.
Your pigs will dress out at 72% of slaughter weight. This is an average number, so specialty breeds will vary with a fatter pig will yielding less and a wider, meatier pig will yield more. If the only pig farms in your area are CAFO's (confinement farms), not those. If you have deer hunting experience then no problem-you've got this. My husband is a deer hunter and we had been processing our own poultry for years, so this was the next big step for us. Another aspect of price to consider is that pigs are herd animals and like to have company of other pigs. Buy at least two feeder pigs. Where to get a feeder pig. The most common cross bred feeder pig available is called a "blue butt", which are piglets from a white sow bred to a colored boar. Feeder pigs eat a mixed ground feed. When I write local pig farm, I mean hands on family farmer, not an industrial pork production facility that happens to be close to your house.
Best Breed Of Pigs For Beginners goes into more detail about why some breeds are easier to raise than others. Feed for your feeder pigs will be available at most any farm store. If you go to a farm for your pig expect to pay a bit more per pig. Be sure to listen to the announcements at the beginning of the sale.
Feeder Pigs For Sale In Minnesota
In our area the prices for feeder pigs are highest in the spring when all the kids are buying pigs to take to the county fair. Everyone seems to have their favorite choice or is excited to try out for themselves a breed they read about online. We have weekly livestock auctions in our area so this is the easiest choice for us. The final weight you are shooting for here is 250 pounds. If you can get at least two so your pigs will be happy. They should be spunky, well grown and not have any obvious health problems. Most pigs reach the 250 pound processing weight at 5 to 6 months old. Most people would be butchering around the 250 pound mark, for a nice balance between fat cover and good size cuts of meat. Call the auction and see what they can set up for you. The main point here is you get to choose. Purchasing your first feeder pigs from the farmer will give you a good idea of how he raises his pigs so you will know what your pig is used to. You can plan on spending $50 per feeder pig at an auction.
Get cross breed feeder pigs.
If you want a pet pig that will stay smaller get a pot bellied pig or smaller yet a mini pig. Feeder pig prices will vary. The more time you waste, the more the skin cools, the harder it is to get off! The tractor is needed because you will be butchering the pig when it is 250 pounds you will need a way to lift up the carcass.
Piglets For Sale In Ohio
Feeder pig prices are higher in the spring. Prices will change, sometimes drastically change, with the seasons and the current demand. Blue butts are a commonly available and reasonably priced feeder pig that would work great as your first pig to raise for meat. Pigs will also eat hay, grass, bugs, and garden scraps. Keep their feeder full. They love to have a few extras to eat now and again. When your pigs are stressed it will take them longer to reach their finished weight. Honestly, it's not that hard. Think about what it is that you want most and feed your pigs accordingly. You determine the ideal finishing weight. We like 300+ pounders, so we plan on the pigs taking longer, more like 4. Check out the local auction reports for the current prices in your area so you can know what to expect to pay. Now that we have home butchered both pigs and cattle, we are wondering why it took us this long to try this at home! You can get fancy later once you have some experience.
Pardon Our Interruption. Important Note: Have all of your supplies laid out and ready before you start dealing with the pig. Can I keep a feeder pig as a pet? However, the best breed for you to start with is actually a cross breed.
Once you start cutting up the carcass into freezer ready pieces you will lose a bit more weight in trim and oddments that you don't want to keep, resulting in 120 pounds of meat. 5-5 months from feeder pig size. You'll get 120 pounds of meat from a 250 pound pig. I can help you with some of the basics so you can be more confident your new enterprise will start well.