Dealing with an Aggressive Barrow

[Latestarter]

Never owned pigs but have hunted wild hogs. They are NOT to be trusted or taken for granted. I have to agree with Jan and the others. You are placing your life at serious risk that only increases over time. Even if you are not in the pen, should he get a hold of your arm, trust me, he IS or soon will be quite strong enough to pull you right over that fence! The alternative being you give up your hand/arm/foot/leg/whatever and remain outside. Freezer camp must ALWAYS be an option when dealing with livestock. These are not house pets. The doctor's bills will be a much bigger investment... justsayin. At the least, separate him and place behind very strong/secure containment.

 

[Goat Whisperer]

I have to agree with the others. Like I said, I know NOTHING about hogs/pigs. Life is too short and precious to mess with aggressive animals. It only takes a second to have a life changing moment.

I had this huge lamancha buck. 40 inches at the shoulder and over 200#. I had noticed some aggression but not something huge. Enough to know he shouldn't be trusted. One day I found him tangled in some old, non-working hotwire. He was really tangled and going to seriously hurt himself.

I did something stupid.

Grabbed a scoop of food and ran into the pen to get him unstuck. The food was to keep him occupied. As soon as I got the wire off of him he started to come after me.

Luckily I was able to run and jump the 4ft fence before he got me.
What would have happened had I slipped or wasn't able to jump the fence quick enough? He could have seriously injured me. It would only take one good hit for him to break my ribs. It only takes a second for everything to change.

This buck wasn't to be messed with. I put my own well being aside to help this buck. Something I will never do again. Yes, I paid a pretty penny for him. Yes he was an investment. Sometimes its better to lose some $ than a limb, or life.

Life is too short to have aggressive/dangerous animals.

 

[Green Acres Farm]

I have to agree with the others. Like I said, I know NOTHING about hogs/pigs. Life is too short and precious to mess with aggressive animals. It only takes a second to have a life changing moment.

I had this huge lamancha buck. 40 inches at the shoulder and over 200#. I had noticed some aggression but not something huge. Enough to know he shouldn't be trusted. One day I found him tangled in some old, non-working hotwire. He was really tangled and going to seriously hurt himself.

I did something stupid.

Grabbed a scoop of food and ran into the pen to get him unstuck. The food was to keep him occupied. As soon as I got the wire off of him he started to come after me.

Luckily I was able to run and jump the 4ft fence before he got me.
What would have happened had I slipped or wasn't able to jump the fence quick enough? He could have seriously injured me. It would only take one good hit for him to break my ribs. It only takes a second for everything to change.

This buck wasn't to be messed with. I put my own well being aside to help this buck. Something I will never do again. Yes, I paid a pretty penny for him. Yes he was an investment. Sometimes its better to lose some $ than a limb, or life.

Life is too short to have aggressive/dangerous animals.

Was he horned?

 

[Goat Whisperer]

Nope. Didn't matter.

I have been taken down by a horned buck before. He used his horns right behind my knees and just kept going.

Wasn't my buck. He was here awaiting to go to freezer camp.

 

[luvmypets]

My finger hurts bad, I cannot do anything with it. Im so thankful that I had the glove on. If it wasn't for the thick winter glove, I probably would have lost a chunk of my finger. When I turned my glove inside out, I found the layer of skin

Thank you for all the advice, he might meet his fate sooner than anticipated. All I can say is I will be happy when I am the one doing the biting.

@farmerjan Thank you, I appreciate all of the advice. I have seen how strong pigs jaws are and it never ceases to amaze/scare me. These pigs are small for being 9-10 months. We don't have normal market pigs, we have a breed called Mangalitsa. They are an old timey lard pig from hungary. They take longer to grow than other pigs. Im not sure how much they weigh at this time, but my guess is around 150-200. The breeder said the boys will be ready by summer. But keeping him around that long doesnt seem logical.

 

[NH homesteader]

That's scary. Unfortunately that's probably your best bet. I know it's a loss in terms of long term freezer filling but not worth the liability of having an aggressive pig.

 

[Bossroo]

Farming is one of the most accident prone occupations there is according to OSHA. Why expose yourself to additional opportunities to get hurt ? With you hurt or killed what happens to the rest of your charges as well as your family and your care ? I would have SHOT that pig at the first bite . NOT worth the price of a doctor / hospital bill for you or a lawsuit if the pig bites someone else. You could loose the farm. Do the right thing and get rid of that accident waiting to happen perminently sooner than later !!!

 

[OneFineAcre]

350 lbs???
I don't know why you would take him to 350 lbs
You are investing to much in feed for fat beyond about 270
@Baymule how much did your feeders weigh when you slaughtered ?
Like 225-250 if I remember

Edited
OMG
You got them in June at 4 months old?
So they are 10 months old now ?
How much does he weigh now?

 

[luvmypets]

Im not sure how much he weighs probably 150-200

 

[NH homesteader]

Best slaughter weight is around 225-250. My standard pigs make that in 6 months without me pushing a lot of feed. We spend less than $3.50/lb finished weight. That includes buying them. We butcher ourselves.

I'm curious if these pigs are delicious enough for the way bigger price tag!

Edit: that's my old number per pound before I got a good deal on grain. Forget off the top of my head what we got it down to this year.