Rhomboid Acres

If I'd thought of it sooner he wouldn't have gorged himself with nearly so much honey.

Either that or we would have had sock-infused honey.

Wow - that's a lot of honey Billy. Thanks for sharing.

Mrs C

Just to let you all know, as an unbiased observer (albeit one called Pork) - Billy's piglets are uber cute. I couldn't persuade him to turn his back for long enough to acquire one and, to be honest, I'm not sure getting one in the car and heading back to Sussex with it would have been a viable option if they scream although they'd have to be loud to outdo the boys.
So I shall just have to persuade Goat that we need our own pigs.

Fascinating. Not for me (bees) - I think I'm too excitable by nature - but it's good to see all your efforts paying off.

I was going to ask about the sock on the hand too . . . Obviously you have very individual children (just like dad I presume!)

You should see him in a (adult size) bee veil...

He loves going to inspect the bees but they don't make kit in his size so he borrows ours.

Brilliant pics of your honey.....we have all the hives but no bees.....if you hear of some we would be willing and able to collect....
Meanwhile if you want to barter any honey for some of my numerous wares both foodie and woolly do let me know!

Oh and you must try some of the sausages from a client of mine .....google 'Bringing home the bacon' Anna has a traditional oak smoker and produces amazing bacon and sausages....she is better at sausages than any one I know!...................she is going to butcher my 3 pigs in September and may do yours if you ask!

wow! Just found this thread.. Can't believe how much you've got done in such a short amount of time. Look forward to hearing more, especially about those little piggies - so cute! Many many sausages worth there, yum! Looking forward to being able to do the same someday

Thewoollyshepherd wrote:Anna has a traditional oak smoker and produces amazing bacon and sausages....she is better at sausages than any one I know!...................she is going to butcher my 3 pigs in September and may do yours if you ask!

We butcher and process our own, Val. We have been doing it for a few years - buying in pigs from farms initially and then buying at piglet stage and having them reared supposedly to our specification but we simply have not been able to get anyone to rear pigs to how we want. The whole 'quick and lean is good' mentality is too ingrained even in most pigkeeping smallholders we have encountered. We were fed up of ending up with a scant half inch of back fat and decided the only way to do it was to go the whole hog () and rear them ourselves. I want to finish pigs on acorns and double cream and get 300lb porkers. I don't mind taking 10 months or more to do that, rather than slaughtering at 4-5 months and finishing on proprietary feed.
We make a lot of traditional salumerie and you just can't do it with commercially bred pigs. Likewise really good bacon - we cure and smoke our own and it is good stuff but ultimately you get out what you put in and slow-reared is going to taste better straight of the bat, regardless of how secretive one's cure mix is and how long one smokes over this or that wood.
We have just broached a batch of wild boar and venison salami we made in December from wild wild boar and wild venison and it is really quite sublime tastewise. Really deep.

Billy - I have to say that I honestly don't know where you find the time to do all this! Good on you though - and if I'm ever passing your way I'll definitely be popping in to try some of your meat (so to speak!)

Mrs C

My salumerie brings all da girls to my yard...

Mrs C

He's not joking. I've seen the photographs.

Such is the power of Billy's weiner.

steering gradually back on topic, the power of my weaners, even after a week is becoming quite a handful. They are boisterous and playful animals and getting bigger by the day. They completely bowled Leo over this morning when we were feeding them. No damage occurred and he roundly castigated them for their ill manners but it was quite a wake-up call. They could easily have trampled him and in a week or two that could be quite problematic.

Oh no worries Billy....good to know someone else thinks like we do! I have Mangaliza x Tamworths at the moment who will be finished in early september at 9 months on apple pulp and barley meal plus brewers grains from the local brewery! I have been raising my own and occaisionally breeding a few for about 23 years!
Most smallholders I know raise traditional breeds and crosses......many commercial outdoor pigs are traditional x too as they do better!

We are trying the mangy crosses as they are supposed to be good for air dried ham......

Hope you have mains electric fencing....or at least 12v as piggies gone walkabout can do a bit of damage

Mmm they are strong animals Billy.

I helped to keep pigs in my (very much) younger days and got knocked over a few times. Admittedly I was almost half the weight I am now ( very nearly, but I WAS almost anorexic, so we won't go into TOO much detail...)

So yes, I would be a bit careful about having smalls around. The piggies are just being , well, pigs...but still...

A pig board is a very useful tool when you're in the thick of things, but I guess it's time the smalls stayed the other side of the fence.

I agree , Cotw..... Pigs are lovely but can be quite ..."robust" in their ways.

Thewoollyshepherd wrote: I have Mangaliza x Tamworths at the moment

LOL Woolly piggies as well? Should have guessed.

Reinforcements arriving. I had forgotten how dreadful hatching chicks smell.

Wow Billy - so cute!!!

How are the pigs getting on with the field's neighbours?

Mrs C

The heaviest recycled chicken ark in Christendom.



Checking out the eco-dwelling. Strawbale construction.



These pigs are small, Dougal. those are far away.



It's exhausting work being a pig.

Wow!
More piggies

Fantastic! Although when I saw the pigs' abode I couldn't help but think about the three little pigs and the big bad wolf...

Mrs C

Beautiful pigs, Billy...

Reminded me of my youth... I was dragged up ona pig farm, loved it... I used to ride the boar round his pen.. did that for years... I named him John, however... I recently learnt there wasn't just one John, but loads... I didn't know dad used to replace him evey few years, so I've probably ridden about 4 differnet pigs.. not the most observant log in the wood pile, me...