Some breeds of pigs can be very destructive to your land...our two go above and beyond the call of duty. They are hard core excavators, they till, they toil, they turn and they upend. I wouldn´t be surprised if we find our clay pan, which normally sits around 2 meters underground, to feature as the newly installed topsoil layer.
The biggest issue with this newly crumbed layer is the loss of soil moisture...and the fact that when it rains, it ceases to that have lovely crumbly texture and becomes a mud slick. Do the pigs mind? HELL NO!!!! It then becomes the worlds best wallow. Of course, it makes feeding the pigs hazardous as it clumps to the bottom of my wellies and suddenly I am engaged in a very unwanted weight training regime whilst trying to fend off two hungry little piggy cannonballs hell bent on getting the food bucket down to their level immediately. Me suddenly hitting the deck with the bucket is merely a further impediment to accessing the bucket. Feeding pigs in the rain is a hazardous sport. You must be quick, agile, strong and cunning. I often lure them out the gate into their general run then quick as a flash head on into their feeding/sleeping run, nimbly closing the gate behind me, deposit the goodies, open the gate and then duck out after they have sped into the run.
Once the piggies have been dispatched into the freezer we will engage in a very enthusiastic reforestation program for the pig run. We have great plans for that churned soil. It involves alot of pumpkins, zucchinis, cucumbers and sweet taters. That little piece of land deserves a living mulch layer. Also, it will provide some foodstuff for the next batch of piggies.
Daffodil
Pig wrangling sounds as hazardous as goat wrangling!
ReplyDeleteSounds like feeding pigs is quite an adventure!
ReplyDeleteThey sound like real characters! I like the idea of fresh bacon! Will you butcher them yourself?
ReplyDeleteHazel, I think that most livestock wrangling can be hazardous to yourself if you are the primary source of food! The easiest animals by far to work with are the horses.
ReplyDeleteHi Dom! Thanks for dropping by! I have become quite a fan of your blog as it concerns my favourite breed of horse, the Standardbred.
For these two little pigs we will be getting in a professional butcher. HH will be sending himself off for some butchery lessons. He is intent on butchering the next herd of pigs himself.
He already has a handle on rooster slaughter, plucking and butchery.
(Apologies to those readers who cannot stomach the thought of butchering their own livestock for consumption!)
I believe that people need to become aware of the process in which the meat they eat is produced, start to finish. And if it makes you squemish the perhaps vego is the way to go. Not all of us may want to personally do the butchering but is important that we are at least aware of the process involved in getting that steak or bacon to the table.
ReplyDeleteWe are really very different unique because in my case I really like using my rototillers. For now, i used it in cultivating my garden.
ReplyDelete