# How do I know when to butcher?



## Healthy Skeptic (Oct 20, 2018)

How do I know when our 3 piggies are ready to take in?


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## Baymule (Oct 20, 2018)

How big are they? Have you called a slaughter place to get a date? Some of them are so busy that you have to book a date months ahead, others only a few weeks. One year we couldn't get a date that wasn't MONTHS out, so we slaughtered 3 hogs ourselves.

How old are they and how long have you had them? Can you get a picture of them next to a fence or something that you can measure for size comparison?


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## Latestarter (Oct 20, 2018)

Since you got them as babies, I think it generally takes about 5-6 months for them to grow to "normal" slaughter size of 225-275 pounds. Of course you could kill them earlier and have you some suckling pig, or wait a while longer and stockpile lard... I haven't owned a pig yet (for more than about an hour anyway )... But hope to at some point. I love bacon and pork products.


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## Healthy Skeptic (Oct 20, 2018)

I’ll get a picture tomorrow. They are 4.5 months old.


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## Baymule (Oct 20, 2018)

Typically, slaughter size is 6 months at a minimum and up to 9-10 months. I think the longest I have kept any was at 8 months of age. 

Are you tired of feeding them? They can be a pain, turning over their feed tub, turning over their water tub, then being thirsty, crows flying in to eat the feed.....and looking to you to fix it all. Or sneaking up behind you to see if you taste good, generally tearing things up and smelling the place up.


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## Baymule (Oct 20, 2018)

I would call around for slaughter dates if I were you. Project out at least to 6-7 months of age.


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## Latestarter (Oct 20, 2018)

But gosh Bay... they sure make up for it in a skillet or on a skewer or in a smoker or or a grill....


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## Baymule (Oct 20, 2018)

Latestarter said:


> But gosh Bay... they sure make up for it in a skillet or on a skewer or in a smoker or or a grill....


I KNOW!!!! Then you have a wildcatter like me who takes the risk on an 820 pound boar..... We pick up Wilbur on Wednesday, pork chops with pictures and taste test will appear on my 820 Pound thread on Wednesday night!


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## Latestarter (Oct 20, 2018)

So looking forward to that post with pics... Pie plate sized pork chops OH MY!


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## Healthy Skeptic (Oct 20, 2018)

Hmmmm I think it’s just I want to be done. Done reminding kids to go take care of them. I hardly go see them. They stink. And this was my sister and my daughters idea. 

We gave many of our chickens away last week. Had to keep the 5 pets who don’t even give us eggs. Grrrrr

I’m tired of animals. Yet I am about to get 75 meat birds cause I don’t like grocery store meat. 

Guess this 5 day migraine is making me grouchy.


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## Latestarter (Oct 20, 2018)

Dang... sorry about the migraine...


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## Baymule (Oct 20, 2018)

How big is your pig pen? The smaller it is, the worse they smell. Given room, pigs will use one corner for their toilet. They don't like laying in their own poo, but will if their pen is small. And there is the mudhole.... Pigs cannot sweat and must have water or mud to cool themselves. So that can be smelly as well.

I hear you on the tired of taking care of animals. You might just be a tad overwhelmed. Being a Mom is already a full time job, add animals that must be cared for and your duties double. And here you go getting 75 Cornish! I hope you have help processing them or you will have a bigger headache. My husband and I aimed for 10 a day, plucking and parting them out once butchered.


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## Healthy Skeptic (Oct 20, 2018)

We no longer do the chickens. Mennonite ladies do a better job and so cheap.


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## Baymule (Oct 20, 2018)

There are Mennonites in our area, one family operates a custom slaughter facility. But they don't do chickens.


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## Ron Bequeath (Oct 29, 2018)

I know alot of folks say butcher at 5-7 months, but a 5 month old pig can weigh 200 or 275, how do you know the weight. I use to as a youngster go to the auction and study the pigs i wanted my pigs to be as big as, then go home and see if my pigs looked like them. Hit and miss. So i started measure weighting them. Best done while they are eating. Wearing old clothes, you take a cord, and wrap it around the hog at about where the heart is and put a knot mark with marker. Take this number and square it (multiply by itself). Then take a string and stretch it from back of ears to base of tail.  Knot this measurement if different from first size. Multiply with the product of the first measurement. Divide buy 400. Should be a close proximity of the hogs weight. I'm usually +or- 5 pounds. Most people shoot for 250, but pigs are bred now a days to be lean. I like to make lye soaps so try to get my hogs 275 to 325. And even that doesn't give much lard.


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## Baymule (Oct 29, 2018)

Ron Bequeath said:


> I know alot of folks say butcher at 5-7 months, but a 5 month old pig can weigh 200 or 275, how do you know the weight. I use to as a youngster go to the auction and study the pigs i wanted my pigs to be as big as, then go home and see if my pigs looked like them. Hit and miss. So i started measure weighting them. Best done while they are eating. Wearing old clothes, you take a cord, and wrap it around the hog at about where the heart is and put a knot mark with marker. Take this number and square it (multiply by itself). Then take a string and stretch it from back of ears to base of tail.  Knot this measurement if different from first size. Multiply with the product of the first measurement. Divide buy 400. Should be a close proximity of the hogs weight. I'm usually +or- 5 pounds. Most people shoot for 250, but pigs are bred now a days to be lean. I like to make lye soaps so try to get my hogs 275 to 325. And even that doesn't give much lard.


Ron, try heritage breeds. There are still breeds around that make a lot of fat. You could also ask for fat trimmings from the slaughter facility. I recently made lard from a hog we raised and canned it. Love to cook with lard. Since we just took a Red Wattle 820 pound boar to slaughter, I saved the fat for a friend that wants to render lard.


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## Ron Bequeath (Oct 29, 2018)

Baymule said:


> Ron, try heritage breeds. There are still breeds around that make a lot of fat. You could also ask for fat trimmings from the slaughter facility. I recently made lard from a hog we raised and canned it. Love to cook with lard. Since we just took a Red Wattle 820 pound boar to slaughter, I saved the fat for a friend that wants to render lard.


Thanks for the advise, my boar was a hampshire, and used cross gilts, my preference is away from kune kune or American quinea hogs, since I'm supporting 4 families + people in need the larger, leaner hog goes farther. My butcher knows that when i come I'll ask for all lard i can get, and yes i love to cook with lard. Thanks again.


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## Ron Bequeath (Oct 29, 2018)

Baymule said:


> How big is your pig pen? The smaller it is, the worse they smell. Given room, pigs will use one corner for their toilet. They don't like laying in their own poo, but will if their pen is small. And there is the mudhole.... Pigs cannot sweat and must have water or mud to cool themselves. So that can be smelly as well.
> 
> I hear you on the tired of taking care of animals. You might just be a tad overwhelmed. Being a Mom is already a full time job, add animals that must be cared for and your duties double. And here you go getting 75 Cornish! I hope you have help processing them or you will have a bigger headache. My husband and I aimed for 10 a day, plucking and parting them out once butchered.


I know what you mean about smell, hogs have that ability. My pens are 6 x 6 with an outside area, and if i put 2 hogs in one pen it can get intense quick. How i learned that is when i was a young biology treacher one of my students wanted to show me his farm, the industry at the time was pushing raising hogs in 4 sq ft of space per hog. They had a 20 by 20 ft pen and had 50 hogs in it. I wore my leather jacket into the barn and the hog smell never came out. Thats why i raise my hogs on pasture, large pens and hog yards. I think they taste better also.


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## Baymule (Oct 29, 2018)

Ron Bequeath said:


> Thanks for the advise, my boar was a hampshire, and used cross gilts, my preference is away from kune kune or American quinea hogs, since I'm supporting 4 families + people in need the larger, leaner hog goes farther. My butcher knows that when i come I'll ask for all lard i can get, and yes i love to cook with lard. Thanks again.


Heritage breeds don't mean small hogs.

We have had Hereford hogs, Red Wattle and Large black/Berkshire. If you want a BIG hog and lard, look for Large Blacks.


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## Carla D (Oct 30, 2018)

Baymule said:


> I KNOW!!!! Then you have a wildcatter like me who takes the risk on an 820 pound boar..... We pick up Wilbur on Wednesday, pork chops with pictures and taste test will appear on my 820 Pound thread on Wednesday night!



820#! WOW! It’s a good thing he’s friendly. That could be a whole lot of attitude if he wanted to be. I guess our big boar looks like a baby compared to yours. I had no idea Red Waddles grew to be that big. We are suspecting our boy is Old Spot Glaucashire.


Baymule said:


> I KNOW!!!! Then you have a wildcatter like me who takes the risk on an 820 pound boar..... We pick up Wilbur on Wednesday, pork chops with pictures and taste test will appear on my 820 Pound thread on Wednesday night!


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## Ron Bequeath (Oct 30, 2018)

Baymule said:


> Heritage breeds don't mean small hogs.
> 
> We have had Hereford hogs, Red Wattle and Large black/Berkshire. If you want a BIG hog and lard, look for Large Blacks.


I understand, my boar is a hampshire and gilts are berkshire/yorkshire cross and over 300 lbs they start layering the lard thats when i just feed corn and weeds through the fall. Have considered the large black how are they for taste that big.


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## Baymule (Oct 30, 2018)

Here's my thread on the 3 I raised. the meat was delicious.

https://www.backyardherds.com/threads/feeder-pigs.32154/

do you sour the corn or feed it dry?


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## Ron Bequeath (Oct 30, 2018)

I feed mine dry, trying to buy non gmo from amish in the area, got to be careful though you can be told anything for a sale sometimes. I'm looking to the future for spring stock need 3 new zealand white does breeding age, 1 hampshire boar 3 mos, 2 large black gilts 3 mos, 3 dorset ewes, 4 Dec or Jan alpine does to graze and then breed in fall, willing to trade 5 year jersey cow 2nd lactation and/or 5 mo jersey heifer. Around Mercer PA  80 miles.


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## Baymule (Oct 30, 2018)

I feed my pigs free feed pellets and soured corn. About 4-6 weeks before slaughter, I stop the pellets and feed the soured corn. I also give them boiled eggs. A day before we load them up, I don't feed them. We back up the trailer, open the gate. I smush a couple of boiled eggs for them to get the scent and toss them in the trailer. Pigs hop in to eat the eggs, shut gate.


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## Healthy Skeptic (Oct 31, 2018)

Finally here is a picture of my pigs.


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## Healthy Skeptic (Oct 31, 2018)

Are they ready?


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## Healthy Skeptic (Oct 31, 2018)

We figured it out with the string and the middle size one weighs 168


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## Baymule (Oct 31, 2018)

They sure look nice! You want to shoot for 250-280 pounds. 

Will you keep the offal, heart, liver, kidneys? I can it in quart jars with a cup of COOKED rice for the dogs. They love it mixed with their kibble. 

You can also keep the fat and render  it. Lard is great for cooking.


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## Healthy Skeptic (Nov 13, 2018)

I would love to run to the lard I just have no idea how to do that


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## Baymule (Nov 13, 2018)

I made lard, it wasn't hard to do. Here is a link to the thread I posted on SS. Do you do any canning? Have a pressure canner or water bath canner? I will be glad to answer any questions you have and help you. I use the lard in place of shortening for pastry, dinner rolls or today I made muffins and the recipe called for shortening. I also use it for frying food or for stir fry. There is no piggy taste. 

https://www.sufficientself.com/threads/lard.15789/


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## Healthy Skeptic (Nov 13, 2018)

I’ll check it out.


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