Tracy in Ky Posted June 7, 2009 Share Posted June 7, 2009 (edited) We got a piglet this morning. She is 5 weeks old. She is very friendly and smart. Isn't she cute?! I am going to try hard not to get attached to her. She should be ready for the freezer in 5-6 months. We're not naming her. We don't name the food :wink: Edited June 7, 2009 by Tracy in Ky Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ibbygirl Posted June 7, 2009 Share Posted June 7, 2009 OOOOH!! She's so cute!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blueridge Posted June 7, 2009 Share Posted June 7, 2009 Why don't you call her Pork Chop? :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yvonne Posted June 7, 2009 Share Posted June 7, 2009 She's too adorable for food! We're reading Babe the Gallant Pig aloud at the moment. Don't read it... You'll have a pig forever and no food in the freezer. :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ailaena Posted June 7, 2009 Share Posted June 7, 2009 You simultaneously made me happy and sad. Where is the emoticon for that??:001_huh: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tracy in Ky Posted June 7, 2009 Author Share Posted June 7, 2009 Happily, she won't be this cute as an adult. Babies are always cuter ;) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yvonne Posted June 7, 2009 Share Posted June 7, 2009 Happily, she won't be this cute as an adult. Babies are always cuter ;) :smilielol5: That's why babies survive into adulthood (as I've reminded myself when my 1 yo niece leaves a wake of disaster behind her...) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
runninmommy Posted June 7, 2009 Share Posted June 7, 2009 Tracy, That is just the most adorable little thing. We are buying pigs too. I left a message with the seller today but no call back yet. I can't wait to get them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tracy in Ky Posted June 7, 2009 Author Share Posted June 7, 2009 Tracy, That is just the most adorable little thing. We are buying pigs too. I left a message with the seller today but no call back yet. I can't wait to get them. I was excited too. It is a lot of fun. It is tough, knowing that she is here to provide food for us, but that is part of life--strangely enough. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
katemary63 Posted June 7, 2009 Share Posted June 7, 2009 http://harmonpfarms.blogspot.com/2009/05/pig.html See here to meat, I mean meet, :lol:, my DD17's fair project and our next freezer pork. This guy has turned out so friendly, he will roll over on his back so you can scratch his belly. You piglet is SO cute! We didn't get ours that small. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tracy in Ky Posted June 7, 2009 Author Share Posted June 7, 2009 http://harmonpfarms.blogspot.com/2009/05/pig.html See here to meat, I mean meet, :lol:, my DD17's fair project and our next freezer pork. This guy has turned out so friendly, he will roll over on his back so you can scratch his belly. You piglet is SO cute! We didn't get ours that small. What a pretty-piggy! Yes, she is small. It's fun for the kids. Boy does she squeal when you pick her up! :lol: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dirtroad Posted June 7, 2009 Share Posted June 7, 2009 To be technical, they are not piglets. It is a term for Pooh stories, but in agriculture they are just pigs. For some reason, they were never given a cute name like foal, pup or kitten. Don't know why. But if you are teaching with this wonderful, incredibly intelligent new member to the farm.... you may want to know the correct terminology. We always grew up saying "look at the cows in the pature".... but, if a bull or calves are present... they are cattle. PIGS are the COOLEST & SMARTEST of farm animals. Have a blast!!!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Girls' Mom Posted June 7, 2009 Share Posted June 7, 2009 Cute! I have to say, I've been stalking your blog. We hope to be able to do that someday soon...but for now I'm living vicariously through you.:D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tracy in Ky Posted June 7, 2009 Author Share Posted June 7, 2009 To be technical, they are not piglets. No kidding! I didn't know that. Well, I sound like the clueless person that I am when it comes to pigs! :lol: I'm glad you told me. I have thought of Piglet when I look at her though! ha. Tracy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tracy in Ky Posted June 7, 2009 Author Share Posted June 7, 2009 Cute! I have to say, I've been stalking your blog. We hope to be able to do that someday soon...but for now I'm living vicariously through you.:D Feel free to offer advice. We're just learning as we go, and I can use all the help I can get! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Girls' Mom Posted June 7, 2009 Share Posted June 7, 2009 No advice here, I know next to nothing (even though I grew up on farmland! lol) We are hoping to milk the inlaws for knowledge when we get started. ;) I just wish we'd started when we were YOUNGER! But at least the girls are old enough now to help. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crissy Posted June 7, 2009 Share Posted June 7, 2009 Oh, gosh, Tracy. She is adorable! I hear from Hunter all the time about how smart pigs are (he has read much about them over the years). He'd like to have one as a pet some day. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Amy in NH Posted June 8, 2009 Share Posted June 8, 2009 Can't you just keep her, breed her, and sell/eat her babies? Piglets (yeah, yeah) are so expensive, it seems like it would make sense to breed your own if you're going to do it every year. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Faithseed Posted June 8, 2009 Share Posted June 8, 2009 She's a cutie! Our first pig, we raised on milk. Very very tender! Yum! The next set, now 6 months old, or so, we are pastering and feeding clabber. The grow a bit slower on paster, but better quality meat, imho. Not to mention keeping those feed costs down! It was on the advice of another pig farmer that we purchased 2 instead of just one. He said that they keep each other company, as well as compete with one another on eating- making them both gain better. It seems to be working! We hope to get a boar this summer/fall. Stephen F Austin University is fairly close to us, and they raise and sell heritage breeds, full grown or shoats.We hope to be moving to our farm in the next 3 months or so. We are planning to build a rotational pasture for the pigs, allowing them to follow all of the crops as they come in. We're not yet sure if we'll be slaughtering one of our females, or keep them both for the time being. We certainly have enough beef at the moment, so we're not hurting for meat. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris in VA Posted June 8, 2009 Share Posted June 8, 2009 Tracey, I just love reading your livestock posts! You are the epitome of the lifelong learner so celebrated here. Your cow posts are so sweet, and now we get the piggy ones, too. Happy farming! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tracy in Ky Posted June 8, 2009 Author Share Posted June 8, 2009 She's a cutie! Our first pig, we raised on milk. Very very tender! Yum! That is what we hope to do--feed her lots of milk. I'm starting her on it slowly though, because she has never had it before. Right now, we're scrambling to keep her in her pen. Miss Piggy has escaped three times. Bad piggy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tracy in Ky Posted June 8, 2009 Author Share Posted June 8, 2009 Can't you just keep her, breed her, and sell/eat her babies? Piglets (yeah, yeah) are so expensive, it seems like it would make sense to breed your own if you're going to do it every year. Well, we could breed her, but we're just not ready to start raising pigs. We're tired :lol: She only cost us $20.00, so we aren't out much as far as expense. We're going to feed her lots of our cow's milk and surplus produce from our gardens, so I am hoping that will keep feed costs down as well. We'll see. You know about the best laid plans and all that. lol Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tracy in Ky Posted June 8, 2009 Author Share Posted June 8, 2009 Tracey, I just love reading your livestock posts! You are the epitome of the lifelong learner so celebrated here. Your cow posts are so sweet, and now we get the piggy ones, too. Happy farming! Chris, you are so sweet. Thank you for the kind note.:) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OHGrandma Posted June 8, 2009 Share Posted June 8, 2009 Veterinary Dictionary: piglet Top Home > Library > Animal Life > Veterinary Dictionary Baby pig from birth to conventional weaning age, usually 8 weeks. Called also erroneously suckler. "Piglet" is a correct term. Although we seldom used that term growing up on a hog farm. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
katemary63 Posted June 8, 2009 Share Posted June 8, 2009 No advice here, I know next to nothing (even though I grew up on farmland! lol) We are hoping to milk the inlaws for knowledge when we get started. ;) I just wish we'd started when we were YOUNGER! But at least the girls are old enough now to help. We were life long city dwellers and moved to a 160 acre cattle ranch at ages 42 and 40. :001_smile: It is hard and a lot of work, but we love it. Been here five years now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pamela H in Texas Posted June 8, 2009 Share Posted June 8, 2009 How do you even find a baby pig to raise for meat (not that I think I could do it. I'm definitely a Fern :) ). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HeatherLynn Posted June 8, 2009 Share Posted June 8, 2009 They ARE cute. we don't have any now, but always name ours a "food" name, so they are always labeled as what they are. "Bacon, Ham, Pork Chop", it works. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tracy in Ky Posted June 8, 2009 Author Share Posted June 8, 2009 How do you even find a baby pig to raise for meat (not that I think I could do it. I'm definitely a Fern :) ). I started asking around. We actually found three different farms with pigs that we could buy. We chose the one that had the cheapest pigs, and they are also a homeschool family in our area. The prices ranged from $20-$40. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Amy in NH Posted June 8, 2009 Share Posted June 8, 2009 Wow! That is a great price. They go for $65 each all over the state of NH. If they were only $20 here, we might get one. Of course, I'd also like a miniature cow, but I think I'd have an easier time talking DH into a piglet. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dirtroad Posted June 8, 2009 Share Posted June 8, 2009 "Piglet" is a correct term. Although we seldom used that term growing up on a hog farm. That is funny. I have a Masters in Agriculture (Animal Dairy Science) and we are taught quickly that it is an improper term. I also do not know a single large animal vet that calls them a piglet. It has become a cute, accepted pop-culture (POOH and movies) terminology but it really is not a true agriculture term. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tracy in Ky Posted June 8, 2009 Author Share Posted June 8, 2009 I have a Masters in Agriculture (Animal Dairy Science) Oh, wow. I wish I knew what you know:thumbup1:. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OHGrandma Posted June 8, 2009 Share Posted June 8, 2009 That is funny. I have a Masters in Agriculture (Animal Dairy Science) and we are taught quickly that it is an improper term. I also do not know a single large animal vet that calls them a piglet. It has become a cute, accepted pop-culture (POOH and movies) terminology but it really is not a true agriculture term. Tell that to the ag dictionary I linked to. Just because our educators are influenced by pop-culture does not mean that is where the term originated. I'm of an age and from a community where many of us only have to go back two generations to trace our heritage out of the USA. It seems to me that most of my friends that trace to England & Scotland used the term 'piglet', most of us who trace to Germany and surrounding countries just used 'pig'. It's still commonly used by a friend who runs a large finishing operation and a friend that had a large feeder pig operation. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chickenpatty Posted June 8, 2009 Share Posted June 8, 2009 How cute & how fun!! Now I want one! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dirtroad Posted June 8, 2009 Share Posted June 8, 2009 Oh, wow. I wish I knew what you know:thumbup1:. I didn't say that to brag only to explain why I had posted it. It is a common term to use piglet (but professors went nuts!), andit may be in some dictionaries (I see it in kid books often), but it is not a technical term. I had mentioned the same is true for cows. My Dad always said "I am going to check the cows" at feeding time or calving time, etc. However, technically, it was incorrect. They are cattle. Cows are females who have calved 2 calves. Add a bull, heifer, or calf to the herd & they are no longer "cows". He is also a cattle farmer of multiple generations (as other post mentioned). I just thought if you are using it to teach.... you might want that little nugget. Sorry to form a debate in the middle of you darling baby pig post. I have a 16 year old pot belly pig. However, she is here to stay and is just a pet. She only weighs about 45 lbs. I love pigs! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OHGrandma Posted June 8, 2009 Share Posted June 8, 2009 I'm surprised a respected resource such as the Merck Vet Manual would use the term "piglet", if your professors thought it was only a name of a character from Winnie the Pooh. http://www.merckvetmanual.com/mvm/index.jsp?cfile=htm/bc/140205.htm&word=piglet Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
unsinkable Posted June 8, 2009 Share Posted June 8, 2009 Happily, she won't be this cute as an adult. Babies are always cuter ;) Why did this post make me think: Soylent Green ? :lol: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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