Wordless Wednesday...

It's been a week since my B-I-L and I hauled the three remaining Daves to the processor.

Long (and embarrassing) story short, I got stepped on in the unloading process.  It was not a fun adventure and here's a picture of all the pretty colors my leg still is today a week later!

It's a pretty hot look if you ask me!

Until the next (hopefully more fun) adventure...

Trouble in Piggy Paradise

Hello everyone!  Sorry I've been gone so long.  I have a whole pile of stuff just waiting to be blogged, but I didn't want to put this one off.

I have a long story to tell today, but first off you need a bit of background.

#1 - It's hot here.  (And being from central Indiana, I can't hear the two words, "it's hot" without automatically hearing the Watson's girl complete the sentence with, "and you need a pool!")
#2 - no new pictures with this story because the story doesn't have the kind of ending you want to see pictures of.  Or I would have to include one of those disclaimers at the top of the blog *this blog is for mature audiences only.*

We're raising some freezer pork on our *little* farm.  If you don't remember how that all began, you can check back here.

This is the second year we've raised pigs, the Hubs and I.  Last year, we raised two and it went over so well, we bumped it up to four - 2 for our freezer and then one for Hub's sister's fam and one for Hub's brother's fam.  These other families have been pitching in feed money and help as we've asked for it.

Here are The Daves on their first night at their new home.  

Also, you may remember that I like to think of myself as being a farm kid.  I did 4-H with pigs and cattle and I have a deep, deep respect for the animals I raise(d) and I enjoy going and seeing the commercial operations with barns full of high tech air flow and temperature controlled barns full of buttons and dials and things that the farmers I am interviewing usually ask me to stay far away from.

Well, let's talk candidly for a moment -- these four pigs, the ones you see up there, are a big pain in my tookus.  They tip over their feed bowls, they dump out the water bowls, they lay in the water bowls they run around out in the lot when its hot out, they've rooted out two huge mud holes.... they just do things I wish they wouldn't.

Regardless of that, they are living, breathing creatures.  But one Saturday, when I went out to check on them in my pjs (yes, it was 3:30 in the afternoon, so what?!) I wasn't in the pen for more than five minutes before they had splashed water all over me, I had mud on my glasses, they stepped on my foot and squished mud into my fake-crocs and literally had just been a real pain.  But I still fed them, watered them and took care of them.

These pigs have it good, right?  They have a huge open lot with grass, they get to root around and do all the "natural" things a pig would do.

That's what's wrong with those big, nasty hog farms, right?  The pigs can't do what's "natural" for them, so the animals must be suffering, right?

The problem is, I'm not that competent of a pig farmer.  At least that's what I found out.

Now, before I go on, I want all you dear readers (yes, Mom, that's you) to think about the animal rights groups and the people who say we should all raise our own food because that would be best for the animals.  Those people who say that pigs shouldn't be raised in large temperature control barns with automatic feeders and fresh water supplies that the critters can't dump and lay in.  They ought to have mud holes -- that's how pigs naturally cool themselves.

One of Hub's and my pigs -- because two of the four are ours and should end up in our freezer -- got a bump on his belly a couple two or three weeks ago.  I told Hubs who was outta town at the time.  I pushed the bump, I squeezed and prodded at this Dave and he didn't seem to care.  My un-trained-at-pig-raising-mind thought, "If it's not hurting him, it must be fine."

Fast forward to this past weekend.  Bump is about the size of a softball in the Dave's sheath.  (that's the fancy word for the part under his belly where he pees from).

Add to the bump issue that it's really hot (and we DO need a pool).  Before leaving to go to the county fair for supper (because that's how we roll) the Hubs goes out to feed.  Dave with the bump wasn't looking too hot -- actually, that was the problem... he was looking TOO hot!

He drank a couple drinks, but had no interest in food.  Hubs sprayed him down with water and the Dave perked up some.  His tail curled back up and his ears perked back up.  But he still didn't eat or drink enough.  There was a storm blowing in and the air was cooling, so we left him alone to cool down and figured we'd check on him again once we got back.  But he wouldn't come out of the hot barn...

I asked my dad and several of the peeps at the county fair who are "pig people," including the guy we bought all the Daves from about the not-concerningly-large knot on this particular Dave's belly and the way he was acting.  The general consensus was it was no big deal.  Likely a rupture.  The game plan was to get him to the locker before it got too bad.

As you may (or may not if you aren't a blogger) remember the story my blogger-bud Katie wrote last week about her family's turkey farm and the problems they were facing with severe heat.

Well, when we got home from the fair, Hubs and I had to dig a hole for poor Dave to be laid to rest.  The heat got to him and he couldn't cool down.  From the way he was laying, I am sure, unfortunately, that he was in pain and/or suffering when he died.

So here's the question that keeps coming back to me.... how is that hot, painful, slow death better than the life he might have lived in a confinement barn -- where there is a steady cool temperature, clean water, fresh food and people who know what they are looking for in the way of signs of trouble?

How is is possible that us raising him on our own -- two people who have a relative idea of animal husbandry but who obviously didn't know how or when to ask for help -- was better than a guy or gal who is watching over hundreds of pigs per day and meticulously walking the pens to make sure all the pigs are healthy?

I will say one thing, while I have lost livestock in the past, I've never had to physically dig a four-foot hole, (ok, Hubs did most of the digging) by hand, in the dark, in the bugs, by the light of a truck's headlights and a flashlight  to put them in it.  I cried.  Not because of the hundreds of dollars worth of wasted money we were throwing dirt in on top of, but I felt bad that I thought I could do right by that pig and I didn't.

The old saying is if you're going to have livestock, you're going to have dead stock.

I think after this, I'll stick to letting the full-fledged pig farmers like Heather and Meggie's Hubs handle the growing of the pigs, and I'll gladly go pick up my bacon and sausage at the grocery.

I don't know that my heart (or my back) can take this again.

These boots were made for muckin'

I adore boots.  That's the bottom line.

The kicker to this is A.)I'm cheap and don't like to actually buy boots (and I'm not implying by the italics that I steal them!) and B.) Once you find a good pair and get them broke in, it's much more economical to just get them re-soled than to buy all brand new ones and start the process over again.

For Hubs birthday recently, I got his work lacers resoled for him.  (his bday is at the beginning of May and he asked me in December to get them done... then to boot, I used it as part of his bday present... aren't I a good wife?!) When he and I went to pick them up and the gentleman brought them to the counter, we had to double check the claim ticket because we didn't recognize the boots after they had been cleaned and conditioned!

As for tall black boots that go up over your calves (aka: hooker boots), I love those too!  But my calves are too fat muscular to wear them, so I just admire from afar.

But these boots were a steal.

I got them at The Christmas Tree Shops a year or so ago for $12.  (please note that when I bought them, they were clean and shiny.)

You must know that I have owned muck boots before, but none this pretty.  I couldn't for the life of me figure out why any gal would need muck boots that were pretty like these unless she was outta her muckin' mind.  

Apparently, other ladies that purchase cute rubber boots bought them to wear in the rain...not the muck.  Ha!  Who knew?!  I actually saw a bunch of teen-ish aged gals wearing some similar to mine when I went into town shortly after I bought mine!  (Yes, I go into town... its like a journey all on its own)

I had no idea I was making a stylish statement by wearing adorable boots to the pig pen!  And, as a bonus, these bad boys keep the muck (which is far more than just mud) and water off my toes!  

I'll have to make sure and tell the Daves that I'm in style when I go out to feed them!  I know they'll be impressed.... actually, that's a lie, they won't care in the slightest bit as long as I feed them while I'm there.  

But I'll know that I'm lookin' cute in my stylin' muck boots!  Anyone else do dirty chores in cute boots?  I can't be the only one...

Until the next adventure...

Pig Tails...

I've already talked about the biggest sign that summer's on it's way, the annual shaving of the dogs.

But last night, another sign was received.  Nothing written in the stars or anything weird like that, but more of a "special delivery."

This is the second year that Hubs and I will be raising some freezer pork in our back yard.  Last year, we raised a gilt and a barrow and named then Dave and Jodi (we won't go into why we named them that, just know that's what we called them.)

And, I'll be honest, they were/are delicious!  With two pigs, we had plenty to share with the family, but the problem is that everyone thought they were delicious and wanted more (Other than my ma-in-law who wouldn't try any of the pork b/c she met Dave and Jodi.... she's not allowed near the barn this summer... sorry ma-in-law!)

So we doubled up our production.  Meet Dave, Dave, their brother Dave and their other brother Dave.

 But before we could unload the pigs, Hubs wanted to make sure they would like their new home (and not try to get out of it), so he mowed the pasture.  After all, pigs don't eat grass, they root it up and waller in it.

 Yes, that's a monster truck tire in the piggy play-yard.  Last year, Dave and Jodi liked to rub on it and chase each other around it.  And, we found that if they have other things in their pen to rub on, they won't rub on the fence and damage it.

 This is one of the nipple waterers they have access to.  These pigs came from an operation that used the same style of waterers, so the barrows already know how to use them... and will prolly make a huge mess...

 More mowing....

 Me taking pictures to kill time while he mows...

 Finally, it's time to let the wild things out of the trailer!

 And they immediately begin rooting around in the mud -- they ARE pigs, after all.

 Wait a sec, Hubs thinks the waterer is leaking... turns out it sure was.  But he worked on it and patched it up until he can get the parts to fix it.  (That's how we do things out here... patch 'em till we fix 'em!  After all, pigs can't go without water!)

 The dogs were excited to see pigs again...

 I don't think the pigs were as excited to see the dogs...

 And so begins another summer!

Lemme say something though before I go... yeah, these pigs will be living outside - the barn only has three sides.  They have straw to bed down in, but it isn't that glamorous for them.  Like last night, their first night here, we had a hard freeze and they all huddled up together in the barn to stay warm.

I have NO problem with purchasing pork from the grocery that is inspected and labeled properly and all that.  Hubs and I are just raising these for something to do with a bit of our property.  We're feeding them feed store feed, nothing special.  And we'll treat them medically if they need it... just like the big producers do.

So while this looks like a cute, down-on -the-farm kinda project, it's not our way of making a statement about modern agriculture or saying that everyone should raise their own pork. This is only a fun project for me the first couple weeks, then they get ornery and stinky and I start counting the days until these little piggies go to market!

We support all kinds of agriculture at Slammin' Door farms  ;)

Until next time...