Why We Decided to Raise Pigs

I’m going to preface this blog by explaining a bit of personal history.

I was a vegetarian for over a decade. I decided at the ripe old age of 8 that eating animals was cruel, unnecessary and not something I wanted to be apart of. This lasted until I was in college. I am now an adamant Ex vegetarian. There are many reasons for this, all of which I can go into at some other time, if that is something people would be interested in reading. Just know that I do not take an animals life lightly.

Having said this, over the years, MrGillis and I have become increasingly aware of the problems with industrial mono-culture farming, whether that be meat, almonds or what have you. It all started about 2 years into us living together and watching a little show called “Eco Trip”. Then other documentaries followed.

It culminated in us deciding to use our time and energy to get as far off the “grid” as possible and still be a part of a small town community.

So, here are our reasons for getting into raising pork.

1. We love pork – seriously. And this last year my parents bought a pig from a local farm. It was without a doubt, the best pork we’ve ever eaten. It was lean, beautifully marbled, delicious stuff. We were eating some of the bacon, and both looked at each other and said we could not go back to store bought if we could help it. It also helped to know where it came from, that it spent its short life happily rutting outside in the mud and sun… happy animals are tasty animals quite frankly. (if you don’t believe me read about the effect of high levels of Cortisone hormone on ANYTHING. Stress sucks.)
2. We watched the NPR “This American Life” episode about pig farming in modern America. We were devastated to see this. We do not want to be a part of that in any way, shape or form. If you haven’t watched this show, specifically this episode, please do. It was… to see the way that farmer talked about everything was so many feelings. So Many Feelings Folks.
   

   
3. We have land to clear – and pigs are amazing at doing just that. They love to rut and wallow. They dig around with their very powerful snouts and eat everything in sight. We plan on hiring a neighbor to come in and cut the wood, running our electric fence and letting them loose. They’ll have ample room to roam, destroy and fertilize all at once. It’s going to be a beautiful way to spend their lives, and at the end we’ll have homegrown meat to be extra thankful for.
   

   

   
4. They’ll help us cut down on our “cooked food waste” that doesn’t go into compost for whatever reason. That is something we really believe in. Reducing our waste is so important to us.
5. The farmer we’ve been buying hay from has pigs- So we already know a guy, and his pigs are happy, healthy, rutting, outdoor living, well taken care of pigs. He’s already got litters coming in. They’ll be $100 per piglet but they come with a good start in life and that’s important to us.

These are the main reasons why, but also pigs are amazing animals and we feel like they’d be an excellent fit to our farm.

To prepare, I’ve been researching online thru pinterest and I read the book Homegrown Pork: Humane, Healthful Techniques for Raising a Pig for Food by Sue Weaver. I Loved this book – so much in fact that I started writing a review for it. I should be posting that one soon enough.

(side note- none of the pictures on this post are mine- Thanks Bing, Wide Open Pets, Science Mag, Wikipedia, Sugar Mountain Farm, NPS, MPR)

Until next time, have a wicked good day.