In part one of this series I provided an imaginary tale about what is all too common. Someone will go out and buy a rare heritage hog only to find out that it wasn’t what they expected and end up with a bad impression of the breeds and heritage hog breeders in general. In the final part of the series I hope to point out the mistakes that were made and help you avoid the same. I also hope to educate some breeders on the responsibility they have, not only to their customers but to the breeds and other breeders.
The paragraphs below that are in Italics are from Part 1 of this series and used to highlight the mistakes made by our fictional person.
1. Do Your Research
“So you want to buy some heritage hogs, do you? The really rare ones? You’ve heard that the people raising these are making tons of money off of them, selling eight week old piglets for hundreds of dollars! And they are easy to raise; just let them go on your pasture and they will do fine! Sounds like easy money…”
I cannot overemphasize the importance of doing your research before trying to find a pig for sale. If you assume that all heritage hogs are the same or all breeders are responsible and knowledgeable folks you will most likely be disappointed.
The first decision you need to make is what kind of pig you want. There is a lot of information on the Internet about the different breeds. Pay particular attention to whether a hog is generally docile, good sows, long productive lives and it’s size at maturity. Some folks like small hogs, some like big hogs, make sure you know what size yours will be.
If you plan to raise and sell pork then decide whether you want lean pork, lots of lard or marbled pork.
Learn what traits can be inherited. Aggression and litter size is not very heritable; these traits depend on how a hog is raised and fed. Color, conformity, size, number of teats, environmental hardiness and ability to convert forage into nutrition are highly heritable.
Decide whether you are going to raise them on pasture or in a pen. Most heritage breeds will do well on pasture but there are important differences. Some can be successfully raised in a pen but others will become fat, unproductive, well…pigs.
2. Compare the Breeders
“So, off you go into the wonderful World Wide Web of Google and type in, “really rare heritage hogs for sale”. Here we go…
…you start looking down the list and see that these hogs are really expensive and everyone is taking reservations for future litters. Most of them cost $300 or more per piglet! Then you see this, “Really rare heritage hogs for sale! Only the best bloodlines! All of our pigs come from our excellent hogs that we searched the whole world for! $200 each! We have several ready to go!” YES! This is the one!
Why pay more than you have to? Why wait for piglets that aren’t even born yet?
You talk with the farmer on the phone and he tells you that, yes indeed, these are the real thing, purebred registered really rare heritage hogs and his are the best. He keeps his price low because those other guys are just greedy and he is not in it for the money.”
You can’t tell much from an ad about the breeder. You really need to speak to each potential seller and get a feel for who they are and how they raise their herds. Start looking at breeders that are close to you but don’t limit your search to that. Some of the best breeders are located coast to coast and it is worth the added expense to drive to their farm or have the piglets shipped to you; the quality of piglets available varies significantly and you want the very best you can find. Start with lousy pigs and you will have a lousy experience.
If most breeders have a waiting list but one doesn’t then you should consider “why?”. If most breeders are selling for about the same price but one is “the low price leader”… why?
A long waiting list may be due to several reasons. The first reason is because the breed is rare and there just aren’t lots to choose from. Another reason may be that the breeder simply doesn’t have many breeding hogs and can’t produce many piglets. But perhaps the most important reason is that lots of other people trust that breeder and have chosen him or her to provide their pigs. On the other hand if one or two out of ten breeders don’t have a waiting list that may be because they just haven’t attracted many customers through marketing or because they aren’t a trustworthy breeder. If there are some rare pigs waling around someone’s farm, unsold, while others are sold before they are even born, there may be a problem. The market for these hogs far outstrips the supply.
As to prices, breeders generally price their pigs to the market. There should not be a lot of difference in the prices if the breeders are comparable in the quality of their pigs. A breeder that offers really inexpensive pigs either is having a problem selling theirs or is not concerned with covering their costs.
So choose your breeder carefully. This is not just a one time business transaction. Your breeder should be available at any time to help. When it’s late evening and your gilt is having its first litter you want to make sure that the breeder has given his or her telephone number to you and told you that you can call them when needed.
3. Pasture hogs should be found on pasture.
“When you arrive on his farm (which is six hours from your place) at first you are a bit disappointed. You can’t see any hogs running around although he does have some really nice pasture out there. You meet the farmer and mention that it doesn’t look like the hogs have been on his pasture since you have read that hogs will root up the place. He tells you that the wonderful thing about really rare heritage hogs is that they don’t root! How cool! He says that, although they are usually out on pasture, right now he has all of his hogs in the barn as he wanted you to be able to choose.”
Pasture raised pigs live on the pasture. That’s where you should see them. If the pasture is pristine looking then there probably haven’t been any hogs there.
All hogs root. That is part of their natural behavior. If someone tells you that their hogs don’t root the either they have ringed their hogs, are naive, lying, or their hogs don’t have noses.
The Large Black hog breed was seriously damaged a few years ago when a rumor started that “Large Blacks don’t root”. One breeder used this for marketing and, although she sold a lot of pigs, this distortion of the truth cause a lot of dissatisfaction and bad feelings about the breed. Given the right conditions Large Black hogs will root the heck out of a pasture. So will any hog breed. Now, the condition of the pasture and soil will tend to discourage Large Blacks from rooting but the breeder didn’t explain that part.
Some breeders will say that their hogs are “pasture fed”. This often means that they live in pens and barns and eat hay. This is not the same as being pasture raised. One of the most valuable traits of heritage hogs is that they retain their ancestor’s ability to convert grass, legumes and forage into usable nutrition. Not only does this make them healthier but it makes a big dent in the feed cost of raising these hogs compared to hogs raised in pens on feed. If you want your hogs to live on pasture then choose piglets that were weaned on pasture.
All heritage hogs breeders have a responsibility to manage their herds in such a way that they protect the traits that make heritage hogs valuable. Putting a heritage hog in a pen and throwing food at it will, over time, breed out the ability of that hog’s ancestors to live on pasture and endure the harsh conditions of living outside the warmth of a barn. A responsible breeder know this and manages his herd properly.
4. If something doesn’t seem right it probably isn’t.
“He has you drive your truck around to the barn and gives you a look at his marvelous hogs. What you see is one boar, two sows and several piglets laying around in mud mixed with hay. Hmm…something seems not right. He tells you that, well, they had a lot of rain lately. Besides, hogs love mud! Okay, you think that’s probably right since you’ve always heard that. But why only one boar and two sows? “These things are in such high demand that I sold off several before you got here. But I kept the best!”
One of the sows, with pretty full teats, lays down and the piglets start nursing! Aren’t they weaned yet? “Oh yeah” he says, “They are all weaned but still like to take a nip or two when they can. They are all eight weeks old and have been weaned for weeks. They’ll do just fine out on your pasture.”
Then you mention that the boar’s legs look kind of funny. They are crossed! “Yep” the farmer says, “he tripped over a log when he was young. Don’t worry, that doesn’t get passed on to the piglets. Besides he isn’t the sire of your pigs.” Your excitement increases and you stop worrying about the conditions in the barn.”
First of all, hogs do love mud but they don’t like living in their own filth. If given proper space a hog will choose one area as its toilet. All hogs need at least enough space to sleep, eat, drink, exercise and defecate in separate areas.
Secondly, one boar, regardless of how many sows are around, means that all of the piglets from that farm are siblings. That’s fine if you aren’t planning to mate them with each other. But if they are meant as breeding stock you should never mate closely related hogs. High inbreeding causes significant problems including physical deformities (like crossed legs) and low herd performance (fewer piglets). Now, a three legged, one eared, cross eyed hog can still make good pork but causes unacceptable problems if mated.
“Weaned” means that the piglet is gaining weight without mom’s milk. Responsible breeders remove the sow and watch the piglets for at least a week to ensure they are gaining weight. If you accept a piglet that isn’t weaned then it will suffer a setback when taken to your farm. All piglets have some weight loss or lack of growth when first moved to a new environment and new food but unweaned piglets will have significant problems adjusting.
There is one other thing to consider. Responsible breeders do not let visitors actually go into the area where hogs are raised; this is a violation of biosecurity rules as it allows for the potential introduction of bacteria and viruses from other farms. If he allows you to go where the hogs live then he probably allows everyone including the people that have just left the livestock auction where all the sick pigs go…
Lastly, physical deformities may be due to environmental causes or they may be due to high inbreeding. Rare hog breeds are especially susceptible to the bad effects of inbreeding. Some breeders may say that they practice “linebreeding” to identify and remove bad traits from their herds. That’s simply impossible to do effectively unless there are dozens of hogs and multiple bloodlines in a herd. The average rare hog breeder may have three breeding hogs and one or two bloodlines. If they say they are linebreeding such a small herd, and therefore the high inbreeding numbers in their stock is fine, well, that is hogwash. They are creating inbred hogs and are trying to BS you to get rid of them.
Multiple large scale studies have shown that herds with high inbreeding have lower performance; they have fewer piglets and their piglets have less desirable traits (size, growth, etc.) While a high inbred hog may look good it carries the very great potential to harm future generations.
Let me be very frank. A rare hog breeder that tries to justify creating high inbred litters is harming the breed. They either have not done the research and don’t understand the harm or they are deceptively trying to sell their hogs because they can’t create low inbred litters. They are choosing personal profit over the health of the larger herd.
When you are looking at buying rare hogs be very selective. Do your research. Ask lots of questions. Make sure that your choice is helping to improve the herd (not just your herd but the larger U.S. herd). Avoid breeders that don’t make you feel comfortable; they may just be trying to dump their problems on you.
BTW, the goal for rare hog breeds is average inbreeding of 10% or less. It is easy for any breeder of registered pigs to calculate the CI for every hog and their litters. There are websites that will calculate it, inexpensive software, and the HHBC will do it for their members. Remember too that, while the CI of each individual pig is important, it is more important to calculate the CI of the offspring of any potential breeding pair.
When interviewing sellers of breeding stock ask them how they feel about inbreeding and how they are managing it in their herds. Also ask for the CI of any piglet you are considering. If the breeder thinks that inbreeding is not important, tries to justify their high CIs, or won’t provide you with at least the expected CI of the piglets they are offering, walk away…
5. Caring breeders do not stop caring when the piglets are transferred to you.
“The farmer asks which ones you want and you choose the two largest piglets. He asks you to help him catch them and so the two of you walk in, grab the piglets and load them into the back of your truck. You ask if they will jump out and he says, don’t worry, we’ll make a crate from a couple of pallets and some rope.
…You do ask him if there is anything you need to do while driving the six hours home, you know, like food and water (it is, after all, eighty degrees out)? He tells you, “Naw! Don’t worry, they’ll be fine! They are really rare heritage pigs and all heritage pigs are much better at handling heat than other pigs.” He then says goodbye and off you go, heading home with your really rare heritage pigs.
When you arrive home you look in the back of your truck and see the two piglets laying down. You think they are asleep so you shake the crate. One of them opens its eyes but the other remains still. You reach in and shake the still one only to find out that it is dead.
Oh man…”
During transport, piglets need a safe environment for the trip to your farm even if it is just a short distance. They must be protected from injury and excessive heat or cold. Young piglets can quickly die if they get too cold or hot. A good breeder will ensure that you have adequate protection before you even drive to their farm and will not let you leave unless the piglets are in a safe container.
6. If you are buying registered pigs then don’t leave the farm without some formal registration paperwork.
“Once the piglets are safely corralled in the back of your truck he asks for the $400. So you hand over the cash and ask for the registration papers for the piglets. He says that he actually doesn’t have them yet; the registry hasn’t got around to sending them back but, don’t worry, he will mail them to you as soon as he has them. You think, well I should get something, so you ask for a receipt. The farmer hems and haws, talking about how he runs a cash business as he doesn’t trust the Government with his money, but if you really want one, okay. So he asks if you have any paper and a pen. Okay…you find an empty envelope and he writes on the back of it, “Two really rare heritage hogs – $400″ and signs his name. He then says that it has really been pleasant meeting you but that he is late for something and so has to get going.”
It is true that some registries are very slow in providing papers back to breeders. (That’s one of the reasons the Heritage Hog Breeders Club was created and has become popular; the HHBC is responsive.) But not having the final papers should not be a reason for you to leave with nothing. A receipt is good but you should at least have an official copy of the piglet’s pedigree, either a copy of its litter certificate or copies of the parent hog’s registrations.
A breeder that cannot provide you with something official from the registry has either waited too long to apply for the papers or simply cannot get them registered. The bottom line is don’t leave without some type of registration.
7. Know a vet that knows hogs.
“A few days later you notice the piglet has diarrhea and is looking skinny. You desperately call the farmer but get no answer. So you call your veterinarian but he says he knows nothing about pigs; he’s just a dog and cat vet.”
Long before you bring new piglets to your farm make sure you know a good hog veterinarian and that he or she is available to you at all times. There are a dwindling number of vets with hog experience so you may have to find one that is not close to your farm. But at least find one that will consult with you over the phone.
While some online hog discussion groups can provide good advice they are not sufficient for emergencies. Get a good vet.
A good breeder will also become your advisor for life. Everyone needs a mentor and this should be part of the deal. Choose a breeder that seems to know what they are doing, will answer any questions you have and will be there whenever you need them.
8. Contracts matter.
“The one really rare heritage hog you have is not looking like the pictures you have seen. It’s supposed to have floppy ears but it’s ears are standing straight up. It’s also supposed to be all black but it has some white hair growing under it’s belly. It is still only about sixty pounds and has always been pretty skinny. Shouldn’t it be a couple hundred pounds and real fat by now? And you’ve seen that it has a hard time walking; its legs are crossed…
You still have not received the registration papers for your one remaining pig. So you call the farmer to complain about not receiving papers and your remaining pig not looking like the really rare heritage hog it is supposed to be. After telling you that perhaps the pigs you had were not the ones he sold you, or telling you that he sent the papers to you long ago, and being really defensive, he said, “What do you want me to do? You chose the pigs that you got.”
“Well, you could give me my money back!”, you say.
The farmer tells you, “Did we sign a contract? Sue me!”
The result of this whole adventure is that you have decided that really rare heritage hogs are a bunch of crap. Never again! You sell your pitiful little pig at the auction for fifty bucks…”
While buying a heritage hog is a great emotional and spiritual experience it is also a business transaction. These hogs are not cheap and a handshake agreement means nothing when things go wrong. Responsible breeders will provide a written contract that clearly outlines their and your responsibilities. If they don’t have a ready contract then either choose another breeder or write up your own and make sure the breeder is willing to sign it.
I know that this takes away from the fun of buying livestock but the farmer in our scenario is right. If you don’t have a written contract then you have no rights. The fact that a breeder is willing to sign a contract indicates that they are willing to stand behind their pigs and most likely indicates a breeder that you can trust.
There is one thing to understand, however, about the current condition of some rare breeds. You will occasionally encounter a registered hog that shows traits of not being purebred. It looks great as a piglet but then grows up to look like a crossbred hog. This is due to the history of some breeds in the U.S. At some point in the past the registry may have not been strict about its standards for registering hogs, in some cases it disappeared altogether and then the breeders had to recreate the herd books and some crosses slipped in, or some greedy person actually lied about the hogs when they applied for registration. No registry can actually prove that all of its registered hogs are purebred; they all have to trust the breeders. If you end up with a hog that doesn’t meet breed standards, contact the breeder immediately. It may not be the breeders fault since we all start with stock from someone else. Responsible breeders will refund your money, cull the bloodline and notify the registry to rescind its registrations.
9. Be the breeder that you want all breeders to be.
Assuming that you have done your homework, selected a trustworthy breeder, raised your hogs and now have piglets for sale, be a responsible breeder. Do all the things that give people confidence in you and your pigs. Soon you will become the person that people come to for their stock and advice.
Hopefully this three part series has provided some insight into the pitfalls that are out there and how to avoid them. I also hope that it will help some breeders become more responsible breeders. We are all in this together and these wonderful hogs deserve a caring group of people to ensure their long term success.
Buyer’s Guide
