Our Pig

Our Pig

Ermine, our piggy, has arrived. Valerie Weihman-Rock, my person for pigs, sends me regular updates, and I intend to post them here.

I am slowly coming to grips with the reality of having another living being on my responsibility list – I mean, I have kids, and some older folks for whom I act with POA, but I don’t plan to eat any of them.

This is a confrontation with myself that I invite: I want to face the fact of my/our somewhat exalted place on the food chain…that, plus I’m looking forward to some tasty pork.

Wandering around Spence Farm a few weeks ago, looking into the eyes of the beautiful black hogs fussing about in the sty, I wondered if I could kill one of these perky, clear-eyed beings for my dinner. Not sure I can, and I’m sure I won’t have to if I don’t want to, but I’m not clear on how I feel about all this.

I think it’s kind of dishonest not to look your meat in the eye, but one of the arguments I have with myself is that maybe dishonesty is what keeps us sane. I don’t buy that argument. Hiding from reality is not healthy...is it?

Written in stone on Bond Chapel at U of C (where The Wife and I were married – Ermine was an anniversary gift for her), there’s the familiar quote, “Ye shall know the truth and the truth shall make you free.” This I believe. No one ultimately benefits from lies or cover-ups. If you’re going to be a carnivore, you should muster the intestinal fortitude to grasp, in a visceral here-now way, that our lives depend upon the taking of others. At the moment, I’m okay with that, but then again, I’m months away from having to think about taking Ermine’s life to fill my belly.

Here's Valerie’s update:

DeeDee had her piglets today. There are four of them. I know that two are girls: did not poke around while they were nursing. Born about noon. One of the girls has white hooves and white around feet, just like DeeDee. So this one will be Dave Hammond's "Ermine".

Demetria is happily nursing her 10 piggies (6 of her own and Diana's 4. Diana did not like the idea of babies around her. It was clear that she would step on or crush them.)

Still waiting for Dayspring to have her piglets. Her underbelly is so large - she was the small one of the group and her breasts are huge. I wonder if it is for large piglets or lots of piglets?!

There is a good chance that she will have had her babies by the time I get home. Each of the pigs has given birth and had no troubles on their own. This is one of the advantages of the heritage breeds: they are sturdy, self-sufficent. Otherwise, they would not still be around.

I will get pics soon. Also will print off and mail the pig-purchase agreement that I wrote up for initial purchase of pigs. Just assures buyer that I am responsible for the welfare, feeding and housing of the pig until you choose to take ownership for harvest. And if something happens to that pig; an equal or greater value pig replacement.

All the pigs and their piglets are snuggly ensconced in partitions covered with artists' canvas tarp. And a heat lamp for piglet bunk area. Moms can come and go as they wish and the "partitions" are to keep piglets from running off in the relative cold of the barn. Their tents are ~70 degrees F inside. And the piglet area under heat lamp is 85-90 degrees F. rest of barn was 45 this weekend..40 this morning. And the boy pigs are happy digging in the mud..and pasture.

I have not named all the piglets yet. One is Echo and one is Ermine. I think the largest male will be Ernest. It is enjoyable to see the little ones. I will make sure that next birthing session happens when school is out so I do not need to drive back and forth during my break between classes.!

This sounds like a great project. I thought of doing something similar and, if you don't mind, I'll share with you my thought process around it.

-I eat meat but have never had to hunt for it or farm for it. I've never killed an animal for food and was never sure that I could.

-Although i don't advocate hunting, I do understand that farm cows, pigs, sheep, goat, etc. are bred solely for the purpose of a food source. Without humans breeding them, they would probably not exist.

-I feel the farmer (or the investor raising the animal) bears a responsibility to the animal that it will be taken care of, humanely, especially if its life will be taken to feed that farmer/investor.

-I always thought that people are so far removed from that responsibility that it has lead to an over-indulgence of eating, whether it be meat or produce. If you had to grow it, care for it, and harvest it, you wouldn't be wasting it.

-That being said, I firmly believe that when you do harvest the meat, you'll use all of it and not waste anything, for that is your responsibility to the animal that was raised for your food. You'll most likely savor every bite, not over indulge and come to appreciate the meat for what actually went into growing, caring, tending, and harvesting it.

I wish you the best of luck and look forward to your updates.

Valerie's update, just in over the transom:

The piggies were all outside running around with their moms this weekend. I made an outdoor run for them and they really took to it. It is about 48 by 48 feet. They are able to choose when to leave the barn for a run.

It is amazing how ambulatory they are! In fact, they were able to get themselves to the mom's teats within seconds of being born..and were walking around within the half hour. At first, they did little sprints of 1-2 yards. That was within a few days of being born. Now they run full tilt the whole length of their yard.

They are eating grass, drinking water and eating little bits of ground corn and soybean with a little milk powder. And as soon as they got outside, they were rooting in the dirt like pigs should. It is really great to sit and watch them. If I lie down on the ground, they climb all over me.

Adult pigs and babies: all of them are happy and healthy. Demetria had 6, Diana had 4, DeeDee had 4 and Dayspring had 3. The adult boy pigs are in their own one acre area. Much of it is quite wet from the rains. They truly enjoy sloshing in the clear spring run-off water there (the water is from the surrounding wet hills, once drier, they dry up too).

Chrystal and Diana have joined the the adult boys. It turns out that Chrystal was not pregnant. And Diana threatened to attack her babies when born, so Demetria took them over. After an interesting welcome (all the boys were SO excited!), everyone has calmed down and settled into living together again. They have two large houses that are bedded with straw.

As far as the feelings about raising an animal and then eating it:
I raised chickens first to see if I could raise something from a baby to full grown and then harvest and eat it. A whole chicken still looks like a chicken...and it is easier to have it in a stew. But pork is as chops and other cuts of meat; not so much looking like the whole animal. If I had but one pig, it would be hard to do.

But with these heritage breeds, it is best to breed not just for a couple here or there in a zoo. The genetics of the breed need to be continued on a larger scale than that. It is best to breed and raise many and then continue to breed those that exemplify the best of the breed. The others are used for food and do not continue in the breeding. And those that are used for food pay for the ones that are kept.

I am raising these pigs in a healthy, stress-free environment. They have freedom and interaction as well as healthy food (no commercial tankage or medications or vaccines). In a way, I think that the pleasurable way these pigs live is a tiny way to make up for all the nasty ways that other pigs live. The way in which these pigs live is something I can make better.

Yes, I would like to keep all of them. And no, I do not look forward to "choosing" which ones to use for food. I will keep all the girls (except DeeDee, Diana and Ermine). And then I will keep the two or three largest males. A couple will be kept intact (not castrated) for selling as a boar. The others (4-5) will be castrated this week so that their meat does not have a "boar taint" to it.

Valerie Weihman-Rock
Welding Instructor
Madison Area Technical College
Madison, Wisconsin
608-246-6712 (office)

And I have just the thing for you. Have you seen the book, I say it's a cook book, but it's one of those books and cookbooks kinda books, Pork and Sons? All those odds and ends from your growing piggy, this book will help you know what to do with 'em. It's a fantastic read regardless.

Book Table in Oak Park, as of last weekend, has the book for about 40% off (at least). Also, if you go to Book Table, you can have them designate a portion of your sale to a local good doin' organization. We have our tithe go to West Suburban PADS.

Ecco Ermine:

She's adorable

Jyoti

She looks so cuddly, I could easily see her trudging around your yard, sleeping on your bed. . .

It looks like she is practicing the pose she will strike on your platter.

Some pig!

David,

Great picture of your pig. I have a feeling that many of us on the board will be somewhat "adopting" your pig experience as we live through these posts. Please be sure to keep us up to date, not only with your pig's updates from the farm but also what is going through your head (and heart) throughout this process. Keep a journal, this could be a really nice story somewhere. Thanks for sharing.

but also what is going through your head (and heart)

and, eventually, small intestine

Yesterday, after visiting the Dane County Farmers' Market, the Wife and I went to visit Ermine, our pig, and we were both very pleased to see that she and all the others in the April brood seem quite happy, frolicking in the grass, walking with a bounce in their step, talking animatedly amongst themselves, and wallowing in deep mud in the bright sunlight.

I’ve been to corporate feedlots, and that’s no way for a creature to live. It’s dirty, sad and smelly. What was very surprising about yesterday’s visit is that the pig lot did not smell at all. I mean, not in the slightest. The piggies are not fed meat, so that might have something to do with it, plus they seem to be healthy, enjoying their essential piggyness, growing strong and, I hope, tasty.

For a brief video clip of Valerie and Mike Rock’s happy hogs, click here: http://www.vimeo.com/1291561

"They say they don't need money/They're living on nuts and berries/They say animals don't worry/You know animals are hairy?/They have untroubled lives/They think everything's nice" D. Byrne

I love those little piggy grunts in the video!

An update from Valerie, the born-again farm girl and pig protectress:

Hi on Sunday. No rain today! A sunny day! It takes a while for the
wonder of the summertime to become real to me. And it is usually the
middle of summer.

I got up at 6am. Will paint in a friend's garden 8am-noon today. Last
night I primed 9 canvases 10 x 30 inches. Now, I am not usually so
prolific. But I am awake today and that is GOOD!

Yesterday I finally got the electric fence up to keep the moms and
babies (pigs) in. They have a nice big area up around the barn and along
the boys' pen. Almost an acre.

Also let a boy pig in with the girls(his name is Detlef: for strength
of ten in German). The babies are weaned naturally and the moms are now
in heat. Being bred now, they will give birth in early October. Still
fairly warm. I will not do an April birth again. Was pretty cold then
and used heat lamps, canvas tents in the barn for all.

I am glad to have the piggies fenced in now. The April pigs were ranging
fairly far and wide with their moms during the day. I hiked with them a
few days ago and was amazed at how far they all go. Even the littlest
piggies were along. They went all the way to the South of the property
and then some. Into an adjacent neighbor's property. I told the neighbor
of the piggies early in the season so that she would know that they were
not feral pigs. She has cows on portions of her land there. But the
brambly, wild stuff which we tunneled through was definitely not ever
breached by cows!!

Anyway, the hike was from 2:00 until 5:30 home and back. A few miles.
Not a run, but an "easy" ramble. Kid-high, however. And it was a bit
tough to get through the thorny stuff at my height. Had to do a
three-year-old-child crouch to get through a lot of it. And it was
obvious that the pigs had done it before and knew the way. With grunts
and the four moms rather spaced out across the span of the young-uns
wandering, everyone kept together and on track.

The ramble was like a "piggie scout trip" and Mike and I laughed about
the idea of little hats, bandannas and cook kits on the piggies as they
hiked "cross country" together.

To make a long story come to the conclusion: I am quite glad that they
were able to have the experience and exercise of those excursions. And
now I need the security of fencing so that they are not adopted by a
kind hearted pig rustler!

Think of me for good open Artistic creativity today. Opened eyes to
color and form. A good Sunday to you and yours.

Valerie Rock

P.S. For clarification, a pig or piglet is a young animal still nursing,
a shoat is about up to 70 pounds or so. Then a gilt is a female which
has not had a litter yet. A sow is a female which has had a litter. A
boar is an intact male. Barrow is a neutered male. I like the term
"piggies" though, for everybody. A term of endearment. (Grin)

DH--is Ermine a specific breed, or is she a mixture? I looked through the earlier posts and didn't see that info, so I apologize if I missed it.

I am soooooo jealous of you and your piggie!

A breed that my buddy Jean and I are thinking about maybe getting someone to pasture for us up here in Quebec is the Large Black Hog, which looks like a nice foraging breed, with superior taste.

Geo

Geo wrote:DH--is Ermine a specific breed, or is she a mixture? I looked through the earlier posts and didn't see that info, so I apologize if I missed it.

Wow, I should certainly have noted that. Ermine is a mulefoot. You can find out more about this most interesting variety of piggy here: http://mulefootpigs.tripod.com/

Yo Hammond! How's Ermine? Long time, no report. Is she fat 'n happy? swining and dining? livin' sloppy?

etc.

Your (and her) public wants to know!!

Geo

Geo wrote:Yo Hammond! How's Ermine? Long time, no report. Is she fat 'n happy? swining and dining? livin' sloppy?

etc.

Your (and her) public wants to know!!

Geo

We're planning one (probably last) visit near the end of September. After that, the next time we see our pig, she will be plated.

David Hammond wrote:We're planning one (probably last) visit near the end of September. After that, the next time we see our pig, she will be plated.

You aren't planning to be in at the bitter end?

LAZ wrote:

David Hammond wrote:We're planning one (probably last) visit near the end of September. After that, the next time we see our pig, she will be plated.

You aren't planning to be in at the bitter end?

Probably not. Members of the family are already wondering about me for giving our food a first name. Still, who knows...?

Hi,

An interesting article on the economics of raising a pig on a small scale: From Pig to Pork Chop: The Rising Costs of Raising Food.

Regards,

Cathy2 wrote:Hi,

An interesting article on the economics of raising a pig on a small scale: From Pig to Pork Chop: The Rising Costs of Raising Food.

Regards,

Thanks for posting the link, C2.

The monetary cost of small scale anything is going to be higher than volume production, though I think as red-blooded free market people we tend to focus too much on the dollars and cents of the inputs and outputs without regard to other, less obvious values.

David Hammond wrote:I think as red-blooded free market people we tend to focus too much on the dollars and cents of the inputs and outputs without regard to other, less obvious values.

In Great Britain, where farmers are subject to higher animal-welfare standards than some countries that import pork into the country, the National Pig Association launched a campaign (complete with theme song) to get consumers to pay higher prices for British hams. They claim that farmers stand to lose over £20 on each pig they rear and sell.

While I believe that farmers should be fairly compensated for their work, and there's a lot to be said for the intangible values of small-scale agriculture, at the same time, if prices rise higher than people can afford to pay, no one wins.

I don't know what the answer is.

This just in, from Valerie Rock, who is nurturing our Ermine:

All piggies are doing fine here. I think they are getting as tired of
mud as the rest of us though! A bit too slippery and slidey in the main
path to and from pasture and barn.

One of our one-year old females, Diana, had babies this Thursday
morning. I'd moved her into a 12x12 foot straw-filled pen in the barn
about four days before. But it is still a fine surprise to be greeted
with a scene of new piggies and hear the contented, soft grunting of a
mom pig nursing her newborns.

Now that she has babies in that pen, she does not pee or poo in there,
but waits until let out in a straw-filled alleyway. Our other mama pigs
(sows) did the same when they had babies.

We had some pretty warm weather on Thursday, Friday and Saturday. It is
hard on pigs since they cannot sweat. They can cool off with their wet
nose, pant or roll in mud. So when she developed a fever, it took a
little bit to notice. Took temperature and then got her on penicillin
and oxytocin. She had developed mastitis, which is a swelling of the
udder and also interferes with milk production.

Little piggies doing fine. Less mom's milk than usual but they are also
getting fresh, non-pasteurized goat milk from a neighbor. And believe it
or not, they can learn to drink from a pie plate at 2-1/2 days old! I'm
glad since it is kind of hard to bottle feed an unwilling little one.
They are strong and hard as a brick even when tiny.

I am glad that the first four birthings in my Mulefoot "herd" were
smooth. And now I get to learn how to deal with large needles and
injections (on my own). Even though were are antibiotic and vaccine-free
with no low-level medications....it was important to use medical
intervention here.

The short of it is: I am glad that this was on a weekend so that I could
focus wholly on the piggies. Yep, I stay in the barn with them the first
couple nights. I told my husband that when and if we designed a new
barn, it would have a herdsman's bunk in it!!

This makes me even more determined to stay small (less than 20 sows) so
that I can effectively insure health and comfort of all of them.

The April pigs are getting so big that they could almost be mistaken for
their moms. All are out on new pasture with the barn to sleep in if they
choose. Many sleep under the stars unless raining or windy. But there is
space for all of them in the barn.

A side note: they were born on September 11. This year the "E" is used
for new Mulefoot piglets. Any ideas as to naming? There are two girls
and five boys. I certainly have many more "E' names I like...but perhaps
you have some interesting ideas for connecting with the date.

Valerie Rock

Any thoughts on "E" names?

"Eat, eat, you look so thin!"

David Hammond wrote:This just in, from Valerie Rock, who is nurturing our Ermine:

...So when she developed a fever, it took a little bit to notice. Took temperature and then got her on penicillin and oxytocin. She had developed mastitis, which is a swelling of the udder and also interferes with milk production.... And now I get to learn how to deal with large needles and injections (on my own). Even though were are antibiotic and vaccine-free with no low-level medications....it was important to use medical intervention here.

This quote points up the difference between a small farm and a factory farm: the reason antibiotic use (or fungicide use, or pesticide use, etc.) is so widespread is that they can't accurately monitor the health of a large number of animals (or plants) until they are too sick to save, and have passed on their illness to the herd; so things that should be used as remediation are used as prophylactics. Nice to have that pointed out so clearly.

Lots of Spanish E-Names: Esperanza, Ermelinda, Esteban, Estrella, Efrain....maybe they'll be inclined to grow up into Serrano Hams.

Mhays wrote:

David Hammond wrote:This just in, from Valerie Rock, who is nurturing our Ermine:

...So when she developed a fever, it took a little bit to notice. Took temperature and then got her on penicillin and oxytocin. She had developed mastitis, which is a swelling of the udder and also interferes with milk production.... And now I get to learn how to deal with large needles and injections (on my own). Even though were are antibiotic and vaccine-free with no low-level medications....it was important to use medical intervention here.

This quote points up the difference between a small farm and a factory farm: the reason antibiotic use (or fungicide use, or pesticide use, etc.) is so widespread is that they can't accurately monitor the health of a large number of animals (or plants) until they are too sick to save, and have passed on their illness to the herd; so things that should be used as remediation are used as prophylactics. Nice to have that pointed out so clearly.

Lots of Spanish E-Names: Esperanza, Ermelinda, Esteban, Estrella, Efrain....maybe they'll be inclined to grow up into Serrano Hams.

And on corporate farms, where so many pigs are pushed together, the chance of infection spreading is much greater.

Except for the one pig she mentions, none of Valerie's pigs have received antibiotics, and all of them have survived. My understanding is that corporate pig operations lose pigs in the double digits.

Cochanita Pibil on the hoof is looking pretty good!

David Hammond wrote:

Geo wrote:Yo Hammond! How's Ermine? Long time, no report. Is she fat 'n happy? swining and dining? livin' sloppy?

etc.

Your (and her) public wants to know!!

Geo

We're planning one (probably last) visit near the end of September. After that, the next time we see our pig, she will be plated.

Are they letting you give input on the cuts? Does she process or take it somewhere?

Drake Ramoray wrote:

David Hammond wrote:

Geo wrote:Yo Hammond! How's Ermine? Long time, no report. Is she fat 'n happy? swining and dining? livin' sloppy?

etc.

Your (and her) public wants to know!!

Geo

We're planning one (probably last) visit near the end of September. After that, the next time we see our pig, she will be plated.

Are they letting you give input on the cuts? Does she process or take it somewhere?

I believe we have some input on cuts, specifically portion size. If we want, and for a small extra charge, they will make the scraps into sausage (we're taking this option).

The meat is processed by an approved and licensed operation in, I believe, Livingston, WI (or maybe IL).

Based on reports from Mike Sula (whose sow Dee Dee is the mommy of my Ermine), as well as MikeG, ronnie_suburban, stevez and others, the mulefoot hog meat enjoyed last Sunday at Blackbird was memorably delicious. I'm eager to get my pig off the farm and into my belly!