Pigs are the ultimate pet. Prove me wrong

Pigs are the ultimate pet. Prove me wrong

We’re excited to introduce 9-week old Wessex Saddleback siblings Karen & Darren to play an important role on the farm.

Bred out of Sharron & Warren Squealer from Campbell Town, they exhibit exceptional qualities for a breeding pig. The Wessex Saddleback pig is a breed of domestic pig originating in the West Country of England. It’s a hardy breed and it is an adaptable breed of pig which are known for its ability to thrive outdoors. The breed has been managed on pasture traditionally. They have excellent foraging abilities and very good maternal qualities. The Wessex Saddleback pigs are regarded as an excellent eating pigs. They are traditionally used as a ‘baconer’, and raised for bacon and hams – which is largely the reason we have them on the farm.

The names of the brother & sister – Darren & Karen – were Covid situation inspired and, as with most of the pets of the place, were named by our three boys – who had a little giggle over the Karen sagas’ that have been popping up in the news of late *please note if your name is Karen (or Darren) the fact that we’ve named a pig after you shouldn’t be seen as a derogatory maneuver, in contrast its actually a term of endearment. We see it as a little laugh in a time were we all need to see the lighter things in life.

Kazza & Dazza are (I think) the 7th iteration of pigs we’ve had on the farm over the past 4 years or so, and they do an excellent job of eating spent grain, hovering up used fruit and turning over patches of land that we have big plans for.

This week we’ve jumpstarted back into a normalish production schedule after a quiet early winter period, and it means we’ll have ample spent grain for these two to indulge upon as they grow rapidly towards their peak weights in approximately November.

They’re certainly not picky customers, and will just about inhale any form of food/liquid (not beer) put in front of them – including yeast trub and dry hops from tanks (FYI it takes atrocious), but have you ever had a Mosaic and Simcoe flavoured pig? On the menu this week it includes kumquats, medlars, blackcurrants and Pinot grapes – which might give some indication of future beer releases….

Please note WE ARE NOT FEEDING THEM UNFAVOURABLE UNTAPPED USERS

They’re terrific gardeners, and The natural behavior of a pig is to root through soil for morsels of food. Their dedication to this way of life is something we make advantageous on the farm. We use the pigs as tillers, and the area of land we have the pigs housed on has an important future use, hence why we’re turning them out in those areas. Pigs are also useful when it comes to leveling uneven ground thanks to their ability to churn and turn soil so that it can settle in a more uniform manner – working smarter not harder here.

At the end of the day though, these balls of muscle are ultimately breed for their meat – specifically Xmas lunch 2020. It’s something we don’t shy away from, and the kids know from the outset that despite giving them names, they’re always destined for the dinner table and it’s a valuable education into what can be produced from on a small area of land given appropriate inputs – something from the brewery we have able supply of.

So Karen & Darren will do their thing over the next few months, and no doubt you’ll see them growing across social media (probs wont get their own handle like Barley however) and developing both themselves and the ground they’re housed on.

What other pets (loose term I recognise) can do this four-fold role of garbage disposal, gardeners, pets and ultimately meat. I await your responses.

Cheers, Will