Basics 101 of a Pig on the Homestead -by Commando Bacon

Basics 101 on Pigs -by Commando Bacon

Pigs. We all like bacon, right? But with prices varying from $7-9/lb, filled with crap you don’t want your family eating, why trust the stores if you can figure it our yourself. Right? So what does a pig for the family need? Below are a list of the basics to get ya started. If you have any more, shout out! 

Shelter: Look at the laws in your county as to what is required for shelter FIRST. You might be surprised what you find, cheaper to do it the right way the first time. But basically…nothing fancy. A wind/shelter break that is on 3 sides filled with straw will do fine. Remember to add more straw if it gets really frigid where you live—remember, you want GOOD results in quality of taste right? So plan to get your hog early spring and in the freezer by hot season. Or start late Spring and then off to freezer camp in the fall. 

Fencing: Pigs root. Get a nose ring on that thing! There are variable kinds. Jeffers.com has a lot to choose from. They will root out from under a fence easily. OR use hotwire. You don’t want to see Porky running up the county road! Make sure you can keep a pig in your area, correct zoning is key!

Vaccines: Are you taking this pig to the farmer’s market or the fair? Then ya gotta get vaccines. If not, then Lepto is all I recommend for breeding stock (meaning the parents you are wintering over and breeding again. IF you are not breeding, don’t worry about it). But remember, worms live in the meat of a pig and can be transferred to the human. So start a good worming schedule and keep that meat healthy for your family. A stool sample to your vet or learn to do it yourself will tell you what kind ya need and how much.

Feed: Pigs eat anything. Feed em. To start off with, get them weaned onto a 20% protein food till they are about 40-60lbs, then drop it to a 16% protein level till about 2 weeks. Then, to finish it out, you want to feed  corn and bean meal mixture of 16% protein to corn ratio. All are on a twice daily schedule for these grain mixes. You will want to feed all scraps and anything else to fill it up in the middle! This is the number #1 pigs dig out—they will go off to forage for themselves if you don’t! So feed it, and feed it well. Pigs can be free range field bigs—cleaner and smell less. Grass fed also brings more on the pound. Or if you want a fat pig faster, confine it to an area you can clean and keep it from burning off calories.

Breeding: Your breeding stock (as mentioned) should be vaccinated for Lepto. Nature is cruel, a lot of the sows will squish the babies and well, that’s that. Prepare yourself and budget for loss. 

On a scale of hard to easy, remember these 3 things: 

#1 if one can raise a Labrador you can raise a pig.

#2 use you head, pigs dig if you are not going to feed, it will feed itself

#3 breed does not matter, all pigs have pork...