Pot bellied pigs?

[Denim Deb]

Recently RU got 3 pot bellied piglets for $10.00 each. And while I know she's not planning on eating them, I've often thought about raising them for meat, but can't really find much info out there. Most of the sites I found were either discussing them as pets or asking the same questions I had and not really getting any answers. And while I'm not in a position to raise them now, I'm wanting to get as much info as I can so when I can get pigs, I already know what direction I'm heading in.

First off, what's the best way to raise them, in a pasture, pen or a combination? How much room do they need? What's the best thing to feed them? How does different feed affect the taste? If you're raising them for food, do you need to worry about shots, etc? Do you need to castrate the males if you're raising them for meat?

I've heard various things about age/size for butchering them. What's the best size? What cuts can you expect to get from them? How do they taste? I've heard from some you won't get any bacon, and others that say you will.

Are all pot bellies created equal or are there some that are more suited for meat? When looking for piglets, what would I need to look for? How do I know I'm getting a healthy pig? How easy are they to raise if I want to have breeding stock, and how many of each sex would I need?

Any info that anyone has would be welcomed. Thanks.

 

[pinkfox]

ahh the pb meat question...one that tends to raise ALOT of controversy...
Pbs were origionally bred specifically as meat pigs for the small lots common in their native land.
so YES they can be used as meat...youll want to make sure to get actual PB's and not "mini" or "teacup" pigs (pbs bred down in size to be under 30lbs) as there not worth it...a good REAL pb should be 150-200 lbs on average as an adult. they should be short and stocky, but they shouldnt look "fat" (some rols around the face is normal but you should be able to see the eyes and snout clearly the belly should be pot bellied but not nearly dragging on the ground ect. best way to choose them is to see the parents.

in terms of flavor of the meat, its a "dark" pork, tends to be a little higer in fat and sometimes considere "greasy"...ive found PB makes excelent sausage and good bacon chops and ribs...as ham though they can be a little too "greasy" large cuts tend to do better smoked rather than baked... they do make nice spit pigs too!
ive had no problem getting bacon but im taking back bacon rather than belly bacon (english bacon as opposed to american bacon...)
youll get all the cuts of a larger pig, just less of them/smaller portions, and generally more lard.

in terms of the How to raise: pbs do well in confinement but liek any other animal do best on free range, they are rooters, so there actually a great choice to put over the vggie patch each year to glean out whats left all the stalks and till and fertilie it ready for spring planting, there not AS hard on the rooting as the larger breeds but if you pen them around a tre you want removing they will eventualy dig it out for you.
pigs do eat dirt (and the bugs and roots in it) dirt grass roots and acorns are the BEST diet you can give a pig...
but there also omnivores and will eat ANYTHING, so todd them those half oilt pumpkins, kitchen scraps, that "not quite right" chicken (cook it first to avoid them getting "meat mad")
whey, corn (preferably soaked) corn stalks and husks, bakery cast offs (they can even eat it if its borderline to mold!) brewery grain soaked is a favorite and add a little pig chow (which sint expensive) if the gleaned/spoilt food is running low they also LOVE LOVE LOVE grubs! and do great on wind fall fruit ect too.

personally i WOULD castrate a male being raised for meat, boars can be down right dangerous and need to be properly managed and cnabe VERY territorial so i wouldnt risk keeping a meaty intact.

in terms fo how many...a trio, 2 sows and a boar should provide all the meat you need PLUS some. id replace the sows every 4-5 years and the boar whenever you see production dropping...you can breed father to dautghter and mother to son with no issues especilly if just breeding for meat.

you might also want to look into the american guinea hog, they are a heritidge breed stay small (about normal potbelly sized) and aparently have to DIE for meat...itll cost you a little more for your start up stock BUT youll make it back on any piglets you sell as breeders...and its said they have calmer temperments than pbs who can be a little pushy/dominant and sometimes nippy as they hit maturity.

always bottle raise whenever possible if your rasing breeding stock, you want them used to you and eaisly handled, BUT like with horses they Need to be taught to RESPECT you too,
most problem BP's come from 1 of 2 situatios...1: not handled enough, and 2: SPOILT as piglets

 

[Denim Deb]

Thanks for the info, Pinky. If I ever am able to get pigs, I don't want huge pigs. They're just too big for 2 people, so I want something small.

 

[mississippifarmboy]

I agree with what Pinky said. I've raised them for years. I worked for the man that imported the very first ones into the USA.

Yes, cut all males when young if you are going to eat them. Otherwise the meat is very strong. They also "should be" fed on only corn and water the last 30 days to make sure the meat doesn't pick up any "off" tastes from the feed they are eating.

Also, something most people don't know, look at the tail when buying a pot belly pig. A true, purebreed one will have a straight tail. And twist or curvy tail means at some point they have been crossed with a meat pig. It really doesn't matter, but if you are looking at the grown weight, a pure pot belly will mature out (if feed a proper diet and not over-fed) at about 100 - 150 pounds usually. The crosses can go to 300 pounds if feed a large amount.

They are much fatter than a regular hog, but make the best roast whole pork you ever ate. Think cooking in the ground.

 

[Wannabefree]

The PB pork chops we had were awesome, and DH the pork chop king LOVED them, said they were better than the regular chops by a mile. I will be raising them for meat too. I just gotta get going with the project. I am well on my way with a pregnant sow and two baby females now. I will find a boar eventually, but I'm in no rush. The one I got on that truck was a mean son of a gun, so he is at my friends farm awaiting the sausage factory. I didn't want to fool with him at all, since he did have tusks. I'll have his offspring though, and will pick a boar from them and tame him down. These were kinda wild. You'll want to fool with them to keep them calmer. The ones I have now have mild temperaments thus far, but the sow I just lost because she broke out and wondered off, is about to catch a bullet when I find her. She is a vicious little troll. I won't breed her, and won't keep any of her offspring for anything other than meat if they can be salvaged at all. :/

 

[Hinotori]

I mentioned getting PB pigs to hubby once because he wants pigs. He wasn't to thrilled on that idea. He likes the idea of mulefoot hogs but they are a bit hard to get here. I'll look at guinea hogs and see if I can get him on board with them. I'd much prefer the smaller ones.

 

[pinkfox]

if helikes mulefoot hed probably like guinea hogs nice size, delicious meat, enerally docile and a heritidge breed that needs "protecting"