I have raised AGH for several years. As long as they have sufficient grass/pasture they do not root. If the grass runs out, they will dig up the grass roots and eat them. I raised my hogs on almost all pasture, only throwing about a cup of whole corn to them about three times a week to make sure they would come when called and also just as a treat. They also eat acorns and anything else they can find. I wormed with natural wormers. They make the best whole hog sausage you will ever taste.
I agree Joann. I've been raising AGH for about 3 years, I have 3 successful breeding sows, 1 boar, and piglets right now. They won't do much rooting when they have enough grass to eat or hay in the winter. If they're rooting like crazy they need more pasture/hay. The whole hog sausage is fantastic. If I wanted to raise a pig in a filthy pen, which I would NEVER do, I'd stick to a standard modern breed. Don't try shoving a square peg into a round whole. AGH belong in the grass on pasture with room to roam.
I am 100% with you Joann. You don't Tighten pipe with a claw hammer and you don't drive nails with a pipe wrench. AND you don't put PASTURE Pigs in a small pen. IF your Pasture pig ( in a good pasture) EVER starts rooting. Jest put out minerals, Free choice. They will stop rooting INSTANTLY. Like you, I give my pasture pigs a little grain two or three times a week, to keep them coming to me when I call them. Some times I call them and give them No grain, Jest back scratches and belly rubs.
My AGH's are not that small at one year, but I graze them. You acknowledge that they aren't meat pigs, yet you raise them like meat pigs in sloppy conditions. I think you need to reevaluate your methods. Any hog will root, these hogs would rather graze mostly, but once that grass gets low, rooting ensues. Thanks for sharing.
Dan, you have some of the best informational videos produced by the TH-cam homesteading community! I always look forward to them. Renee of Michigansnowpony has raised Kune Kune and Mangalitsa pigs and has numerous videos about them. Loved LB's comment on that "aggressive" creature lolling at his feet, lol.
Try tamworth pigs. They grow a little slower than traditional meat pigs and have incredible flavor. You can get them to market weight in 10-12 months . They produce good lard and bacon. Thanks for the video.
Great video and I appreciate the info. on the AGH. :) Lookin' forward to the upcoming videos on different hogs and how others perceive the different hogs. Just wanted to say Blue's wagging tail always warms my heart. I love Little Buddy's comment about Clara at the end. ;-) Thanks for sharin'.
Lol, Little Buddy commentary just melts the heart! Are my eyes playing tricks on me or do I see a bonding between Clara and Blue??!! That is so sweet if so! Great video as always Dan, thank you. I didn't realize the details of these pigs...I love the size but that is a long turn over. Yet on the other hand, all the really great things in nature take time. Looking forward to the next one! Hello to Mrs. Grass-fed and smiles and blessings to the whole homestead!
The Grass-fed Homestead LOL, now that doesn't surprise me, Clara is full on personality! Ya gotta love her! Blue is the sweetest spirit...I'm so pleased you all found a way to pull him into your hearts!
I raise mini pigs and definitely think you're doing this wrong. the only thing I do that is similar to market hogs is butchering them at six months and accept that they ARE SMALL PIGS. Perfect size for a smoker or grill or freezer. Perfect size for someone to butcher alone(which i frequently do). Perfect size to be handled and contained (mine free range...... I only keep my boar penned up because.... he's a boar and they tend to be grouchy and dangerous. He's NEVER done anything mean but it's a precaution I prefer to take. And he does perfectly well. The girls come visit when it's time and then they go back out. Everything works out just fine.) You couldn't give me a full sized farm hog. I've done that twice... the first time was my idea (the piglet was only 15 dollars and I was helping a 4H kid) she busted out of every pen I put together until we got an electric fence installed... at which point she proceeded to tear the metal off the side of the barn where she was housed.... ended up electrifying that whole wall - after we nailed it back down- And my mom apparently hadn't learned from my lesson. she bought a market piglet and it was just a repeat of the first experience. busted out of everything.... only this damned thing was smarter. She would find things to throw on top of the electric fence to ground it out. once it was grounded she would snatch ALL the wire off the posts. We were repairing the fence every other day. We kept the pen clean, she couldnt even have a food dish unless it was a short rubber pan. if her water tank wasnt kept full to the top she would shove it into the wire. she would dig up roots out of the ground to sabotage the fence. If a tree limb fell out of the tree she would carry it to the wire.... i was so happy the day she left. That damned thing cost me a lot of money - the electric fence she was using was hit by lightning and killed my appliances. it would have been avoided if my mom had sprung for a solar fence (so take note of that too, if you're new to the homesteading life!!!) So, getting back to mini pigs......... small is good. I have a march boar that is almost as big as his mother and his little brothers (june piglets) are catching up to him. I plan to put them all in the freezer this October. BUT we just had another litter born yesterday - little LITTLE brothers to the march piglet. I'll butcher them in December or January. And then the girls can take a break next year. So... yeah.... re-evaluate your set up. They really need to graze. if they can't graze then grow fodder or Mulberry trees if you can. Mine love mulberry leaves. they also go around eating acorns, wild persimmons, bugs, spilled feed from the rabbits or chickens as well as grazing in spring and summer. And.... they're not rolling around the place like bowling balls. Unless its a nursing mother they don't get grain. they don't need it if they can forage.
Great information as always but LB always steals my heart. Such a cutie!!! I do look forward to hearing what other farmers are saying about the breeds they’ve chosen. Getting a hog is definitely something I’d love to do. We are wanting to possibly buy a couple to be raised by the farmer (we don’t have space) and knowing which is best or better anyway would be great. TFS God Bless~ Lisa
Thanks for the information and I look forward to the information from the others who are raising pigs. I am just beginning the process of determining which breed I want to raise so the timing of this videor is great.
Good information on the American Guinea hog Cant wait to see/hear about the other breeds I like the breed Gloucestershire hog ( old spot ) rare breed ,excellent forager,and very calm Good-natured animals,devoted mothers.
What I did to address the mud issue in a small space like you have there. .. I threw in a lot of hay. In many cases, dead hay from the goat barn, re-using otherwise waste. They stomped the hay down and it kept the mud under control and created beautiful compost that I then ran chickens through and used for garden or sold by the feed sack full for another small income source. Joel Salatin uses pigs to turn his compost primarily amd only stayed selling pigs bc people wanted them. Some thoughts to think about. For me, the tradeoff of cheap pork and sellable compost is worth it to me for the extra grow time and smaller size. And I can handle the pigs better as a short woman. Big pigs are super scary sometimes. Another thing I have done is raise half breed little pigs mixed w farm hog for medium size.and little faster growout. Still tasted pretty good and the meat was deep red. Good stuff. I think the feed program makes a huge difference. Nice thing about any kind of pigs is that they are pretty easy to raise.and very small margin for error (except in fencing. NEVER skimp on fencing lol- chasing pigs SUCKS ).
You should try raising Mangalitsa hogs. They are lard pigs like the American Guinea Hog, but they grow to standard butchering weight. Also, they are known for having the highest quality pork meat.
I don't know if the Pratt Family Homestead is on your youtube homesteader radar, but I fell down a youtube hole of watching a series of videos they had on pigs where they raised four different breeds of pigs and compared and contrasted them on things like temperament, flavor, hanging weight, and cost to raise. Might give you some data points on tamworth, mangalitsa, old spots, and red wattles.
what the heck Dan!!! You got me hooked on Guinea hogs and now you have me thinking.....which is good, I need to do my own research as you and others have said. Great video, very informative.
Great video - thanks! Good information, nicely balanced. We're raising our first pair of Guineas this year - an interesting contrast to our Red Durocs last year. L
thank you for this coverage. i'd like to hear, if you can, more about the KuneKune & Mangalista...though i kind of doubt those are the ones you'll find. commercial breeds are probably what your neighbors have for quick meat production.
First I have to say you are an awesome awesome educator you should seriously going to teach him second I have a couple of questions and I was hoping you could answer the first one is do you ever use parts of the pig after harvest for example like the nose or the hoves they make great dog chews hope you had a great Easter thank you for all your education
Great video! There is some math in here that could help answer this question. Figuring out feed cost long term and comparing it to other breeds would give a clearer picture. There is also the bonus of putting the hogs to work for you. If I remember right from your early videos your pastures were not great. Using the hogs as a tool to disturb your pastures and then planting your desired forage behind them could decrease the cost of homesteading for you in the future. I think the biggest problem you had was you didn't have a long term plan. I am going to end this comment with a saying from your mentor Justin Rhode, "How can you turn a problem into a solution?"
I've wondered the same thing, they could be an asset in helping clear out the nettle (or was it ivy?) , tansy and bracken from your back acreage so you can sew more appropriate grazing and fodder for your lambs. I do realize, easier said than done, but I'm curious as to your reasons to try it out or not?
Ah, we don't have bracken here and I didn't realize it would also be toxic to the pigs, it would have been nice if they could clear it for your sheep :) Too bad, but hey, now I know why you didn't give it a try!
It would be nice if you could find you an old ford tractor or kubota with a loader on it. Many of them come with blade for plowing,bucket for loading and if your lucky a pto driven tiller. It might pay you,to talk your neighbor into hitting some farm and equipment auctions. Those loaders are the slick deal for butchering,and if you do get Dexter cattle a small tractor would still do the job. The other pieces are great for snow and manure removal. An old manure spreader is nice and in a small operation if you tidy once a week you just keep loading till its full then go out and fertilize your pastures.
AGH make an excellent city homestead pig. My pigs were at 120lbs at harvest in 13 months. 1qrt of grain a day. Dan, the next time I do pigs, I would like to try the Idaho pasture Pig which is a cross between a kune kune and AGH. I'd like to try and get away from the grain supplementation.
City??? They are noisy. My neighbors HATE my pigs, always wondering if they are dyin or something and I explain that no, they're just um... makin babies or fighting over food....
We got 2 in December to raise and they have been pretty good. They are only 7 months and look bigger than yours! I've got the butcher date scheduled for October. I feed scraps including extra eggs and whey from making yogurt and a non-gmo non-soy pig pellet plus hay and whatever they find in the woods...2 cups per pig per day on the pellets. I'm keeping up with every penny spent on this endeavor to compare final pricing.....that info will be a huge part of our decision to get breeding stock and continue on. I plan on using the lard for cooking and soap too which will be factored in to overall value.
Please let me know your results. I'm curious to see how it goes for you. I forgot to mention in the video that the piglets came from an unintentional breeding and their slower growth may also be from poor genetics
It sounds like an interesting collaboration. What are your primary goals for raising pigs? What are your primary disappointments in the AGHs? It wasn't clear to me in this video.
One of the reasons i want to get guinea hogs is to root and till up areas for me, while fertilizing it at the same time! Cover with a thick layer of rotted hay or straw and let nature turn that into the most fertile patch on the lot.
cuts were smaller because the guinea hog is considered a lard pig where as your standard pig for say commercial use is what called a bacon pig meaning it has more meat on it and bigger guts and less fat where as the guinea has shorter cuts but more fat
They are huddling together, in the snow section of this video. maybe cold? I read that pigs get cold. That makes sense ... No fur. People say goats get cold too, but that sheep are okay in cold sheds.
The Grass-fed Homestead I like them, for a lot of reasons you stated, especially size with the kids around. Selling the piglets has been harder than I thought it would be. I hope to butcher an almost two year old this spring, the results of which will play a big part into if we keep them long term.
I really like Salatin method deep wood chip beding with a roof over the pen wouldn't have to be that big for 4 pigs would keep it dry you could still turn them out to pasture if you have it , move them on and off, and turn the chips to compost but good info
I am thinking of building a greenhouse chicken coop and was wondering if you could do a video on how you built it and was worked and what didnt. Thanks
OMG to cute they'r auguwresive cuz this one white heyr was grumpy to me and didn't follow my orders. (with a 2yr old expression). hahaha to cute luv ur vids, and yes good info
I have AGH and I'm sorta with you on this. But mine are also much larger than yours and much less hairy. I'm thinking that mine may not 100% pure AGH though (if there is such a thing). Mine didn't get the memo on rooting either, so they are on moonscape presently. Today, I'm putting down a deposit on a young Red Wattle gilt piglet to breed with Brucie, my large-size AGH boar and hopefully have some AGHxRW for processing winter of 2019. I have 4 AGH barrows left for winter 2018. The RW is supposed to be a bit leaner and grow faster and taste great. I think they will be a good mix. RWs do get big though but might be a good fit for your feeder pig model.
Saw those Red Wattles yesterday. Some of them were BIG. Like 800 lb big -- as big as a small cow. SO BIG I don't think their butt would fit in a 55 gal drum. There was, however, a smaller RW mama that was bred to a smaller RW boar. She was just a little bigger than my AGH boar. Found a little gilt of hers with 14 well spaced teats. Put a deposit down on her to pickup next month. Hope little miss piggy doesn't turn into Pigzilla. But her piglets should grow faster and bigger than AGH. Maybe it will be a good mix. I'll know winter of 2019.
I have AGH as well. Mine are much less hairy, larger and are registered stock. My one year old pigs are significantly larger than his. Like twice as big. Also I keep mine is much larger paddocks with forage and use hot wire to contain them. I harvest anytime I need to for whatever reason. A big advantage is that I can do it at home fairly easily up until they are about 150#. I take them to the butcher when they are bigger. I think the pork is superior to the Tamworth I had previously. I find them to be easier to manage than 'full-size' hogs.
Have you done a comparison on feed? They may only take 1 quart of feed per day, but over the 1.5 year is it the same as 6 months for a larger breed? In my opinion I would rather raise for 6 months and be done and have more meat. Just wondering about the cost.
It just depends on how much access to pasture they have and the quality of pasture so it is hard to do a fair comparison but I think you're probably right in many cases... cheaper to do it faster and get a larger hog in the end.
What about their protein levels in their feed? Would they bulk up better on a higher protein feed? Something like a duckweed supplement to their natural feed
Are American Guinea hogs same as Kune Kune pigs? They are expensive to buy...and a smaller pig so how do you make up for it somehow when raising them/justifying cost for the meat?
Was thinking of picking up the AGH as a second breed but after more thought I think we'll stick with just the kune kunes.. Still trying to find out how they stack up against each other.. From what I can tell the AGH have more snout which in my mind would mean more rooting..
Yeah, from what you've said, I don't see how that growth rate is efficient for cost or your time, particularly in the winter. I've heard good things about red wattles (another threatened heritage breed), but I know very little about them.
Maybe a personal preference thing. I appreciate that my GH"S can be almost totally on hay. Winter isn't as much of an issue w an animal that runs to fat, easily. They use up calories staying warm, and/or you give them a big hay pile to snuggle in. The rotting hay pile is their favorite place. I like their thriftiness. Only time I ever had skinny pigs was when the mamas were getting nursed too much. I seperated the babies and fed up the mamas and in less than a month they were fat again.
Anyone ever tried raising them on acorns, walnuts and other forage? I am interested on an off grid animal I can actually raise without buying any store bought feed.
@The Grass-fed Homestead Dan, Get in touch with TH-camr Troy McClung at Red Tool House Homestead channel. He raises pigs on pasture for market sales and his own freezer. One of his girls just farrowed last week and I believe he tries to keep two or three breeding pigs at all times throughout the year. He does AI on his girls, he doesn't keep a boar for breeding.
Put them on a good grass or woods and grass mix with a lot more space and they probably wo t tear up yhe ground so bad . In a smaller pen any hog will tear it up.
You might check out Mangalitsas, There is a youtube channel . A guy named David Baker has it. The channel name is bakersgreenacres. He has lots of videos on pasture raised hogs and poultry .
I loved loved loved having ours. Ours must not have been pure guinea hog because they looked bigger. I think if you could have rotated them like the sheep they probably wouldn’t have rooted as much but I didn’t so I’m just guessing. I fed mine 95% hay and then food scraps adding in a dozen eggs when available and finished ours on corn. We’ve talked about getting some more or getting potbelly pigs and rotating them with the goats (I think I’ve talked Ashley into getting two freezer sheep too). This will be an interesting series to watch. th-cam.com/video/D5zlQonC6oA/w-d-xo.html my pigs. Combine weight was 200lbs got back 120lbs from the butcher.
I think part of the problem with these particular pigs is that they were the result of unintentional breeding between feeder gilts and a boar. Not the best genetics. The growth is painfully slow
I have raised AGH for several years. As long as they have sufficient grass/pasture they do not root. If the grass runs out, they will dig up the grass roots and eat them. I raised my hogs on almost all pasture, only throwing about a cup of whole corn to them about three times a week to make sure they would come when called and also just as a treat. They also eat acorns and anything else they can find. I wormed with natural wormers. They make the best whole hog sausage you will ever taste.
If I plant sweet potatoes around the yard, will they only eat the greens or will they smell the potatoes and root them up?
I agree Joann. I've been raising AGH for about 3 years, I have 3 successful breeding sows, 1 boar, and piglets right now. They won't do much rooting when they have enough grass to eat or hay in the winter. If they're rooting like crazy they need more pasture/hay. The whole hog sausage is fantastic. If I wanted to raise a pig in a filthy pen, which I would NEVER do, I'd stick to a standard modern breed. Don't try shoving a square peg into a round whole. AGH belong in the grass on pasture with room to roam.
@@jonb4763 How much space would you recommend per hog in order to keep them from rooting too much?
I am 100% with you Joann. You don't Tighten pipe with a claw hammer and you don't drive nails with a pipe wrench. AND you don't put PASTURE Pigs in a small pen. IF your Pasture pig ( in a good pasture) EVER starts rooting. Jest put out minerals, Free choice. They will stop rooting INSTANTLY. Like you, I give my pasture pigs a little grain two or three times a week, to keep them coming to me when I call them. Some times I call them and give them No grain, Jest back scratches and belly rubs.
My AGH's are not that small at one year, but I graze them. You acknowledge that they aren't meat pigs, yet you raise them like meat pigs in sloppy conditions. I think you need to reevaluate your methods. Any hog will root, these hogs would rather graze mostly, but once that grass gets low, rooting ensues. Thanks for sharing.
good information. thank you.
Thank you for being honest and educating us about this breed.
Dan, you have some of the best informational videos produced by the TH-cam homesteading community! I always look forward to them. Renee of Michigansnowpony has raised Kune Kune and Mangalitsa pigs and has numerous videos about them. Loved LB's comment on that "aggressive" creature lolling at his feet, lol.
Yes, Clara is vicious!! Ha! Thanks for the feedback and letting me know about Michigansnowpony. I'll check out her channel
Holy crapbaskets. I start butchering my AGH at around 9 months and have yet to let one go past 15 months.
18 months is crazy
Try tamworth pigs. They grow a little slower than traditional meat pigs and have incredible flavor. You can get them to market weight in 10-12 months . They produce good lard and bacon. Thanks for the video.
Great video and I appreciate the info. on the AGH. :) Lookin' forward to the upcoming videos on different hogs and how others perceive the different hogs. Just wanted to say Blue's wagging tail always warms my heart. I love Little Buddy's comment about Clara at the end. ;-) Thanks for sharin'.
:) Thank you for the feedback Jody. And Blue's tail wagging has the same effect on me
Lol, Little Buddy commentary just melts the heart! Are my eyes playing tricks on me or do I see a bonding between Clara and Blue??!! That is so sweet if so! Great video as always Dan, thank you. I didn't realize the details of these pigs...I love the size but that is a long turn over. Yet on the other hand, all the really great things in nature take time. Looking forward to the next one! Hello to Mrs. Grass-fed and smiles and blessings to the whole homestead!
Thank you Lisa. Clara bosses and pushes Blue around. Blue is VERY tolerant. I wouldn't say they are quite bonded.
The Grass-fed Homestead LOL, now that doesn't surprise me, Clara is full on personality! Ya gotta love her! Blue is the sweetest spirit...I'm so pleased you all found a way to pull him into your hearts!
great just what I am looking for before we get our hogs.
Yes!!! I just got two Berkshire piglets. So Im really looking forward to these videos!!!
I raise mini pigs and definitely think you're doing this wrong.
the only thing I do that is similar to market hogs is butchering them at six months and accept that they ARE SMALL PIGS.
Perfect size for a smoker or grill or freezer. Perfect size for someone to butcher alone(which i frequently do). Perfect size to be handled and contained (mine free range...... I only keep my boar penned up because.... he's a boar and they tend to be grouchy and dangerous. He's NEVER done anything mean but it's a precaution I prefer to take. And he does perfectly well. The girls come visit when it's time and then they go back out. Everything works out just fine.)
You couldn't give me a full sized farm hog. I've done that twice... the first time was my idea (the piglet was only 15 dollars and I was helping a 4H kid) she busted out of every pen I put together until we got an electric fence installed... at which point she proceeded to tear the metal off the side of the barn where she was housed.... ended up electrifying that whole wall - after we nailed it back down-
And my mom apparently hadn't learned from my lesson. she bought a market piglet and it was just a repeat of the first experience. busted out of everything.... only this damned thing was smarter. She would find things to throw on top of the electric fence to ground it out. once it was grounded she would snatch ALL the wire off the posts. We were repairing the fence every other day. We kept the pen clean, she couldnt even have a food dish unless it was a short rubber pan. if her water tank wasnt kept full to the top she would shove it into the wire. she would dig up roots out of the ground to sabotage the fence. If a tree limb fell out of the tree she would carry it to the wire.... i was so happy the day she left. That damned thing cost me a lot of money - the electric fence she was using was hit by lightning and killed my appliances. it would have been avoided if my mom had sprung for a solar fence (so take note of that too, if you're new to the homesteading life!!!)
So, getting back to mini pigs......... small is good. I have a march boar that is almost as big as his mother and his little brothers (june piglets) are catching up to him. I plan to put them all in the freezer this October.
BUT we just had another litter born yesterday - little LITTLE brothers to the march piglet. I'll butcher them in December or January. And then the girls can take a break next year.
So... yeah.... re-evaluate your set up. They really need to graze. if they can't graze then grow fodder or Mulberry trees if you can. Mine love mulberry leaves. they also go around eating acorns, wild persimmons, bugs, spilled feed from the rabbits or chickens as well as grazing in spring and summer. And.... they're not rolling around the place like bowling balls. Unless its a nursing mother they don't get grain. they don't need it if they can forage.
Emily Pollifax, what kind of pigs you got? How much pasture do they need?
This is fabulous information. Thanks so much.
Great information as always but LB always steals my heart. Such a cutie!!! I do look forward to hearing what other farmers are saying about the breeds they’ve chosen. Getting a hog is definitely something I’d love to do. We are wanting to possibly buy a couple to be raised by the farmer (we don’t have space) and knowing which is best or better anyway would be great. TFS God Bless~ Lisa
Great video! I definitely needed this video and I can't wait for the other videos on pig breeds!
Thanks for the information and I look forward to the information from the others who are raising pigs. I am just beginning the process of determining which breed I want to raise so the timing of this videor is great.
Great video! thanks for all the helpful info! Just got 2 AGH/Kunekune piglets, so excited - liked and subscribed!
Hi Clara, good to see you. Liked the video.
Great video. Lots of good information. Thank you. Blessings...
Good information on the American Guinea hog Cant wait to see/hear about the other breeds I like the breed Gloucestershire hog ( old spot ) rare breed ,excellent forager,and very calm Good-natured animals,devoted mothers.
LB is great. Smart little kid.
What I did to address the mud issue in a small space like you have there. .. I threw in a lot of hay. In many cases, dead hay from the goat barn, re-using otherwise waste. They stomped the hay down and it kept the mud under control and created beautiful compost that I then ran chickens through and used for garden or sold by the feed sack full for another small income source. Joel Salatin uses pigs to turn his compost primarily amd only stayed selling pigs bc people wanted them. Some thoughts to think about. For me, the tradeoff of cheap pork and sellable compost is worth it to me for the extra grow time and smaller size. And I can handle the pigs better as a short woman. Big pigs are super scary sometimes. Another thing I have done is raise half breed little pigs mixed w farm hog for medium size.and little faster growout. Still tasted pretty good and the meat was deep red. Good stuff. I think the feed program makes a huge difference. Nice thing about any kind of pigs is that they are pretty easy to raise.and very small margin for error (except in fencing. NEVER skimp on fencing lol- chasing pigs SUCKS ).
You should try raising Mangalitsa hogs. They are lard pigs like the American Guinea Hog, but they grow to standard butchering weight. Also, they are known for having the highest quality pork meat.
I have looked into them and they grow very SLOWLY like the AGH
I don't know if the Pratt Family Homestead is on your youtube homesteader radar, but I fell down a youtube hole of watching a series of videos they had on pigs where they raised four different breeds of pigs and compared and contrasted them on things like temperament, flavor, hanging weight, and cost to raise. Might give you some data points on tamworth, mangalitsa, old spots, and red wattles.
haha! They are one of the contributors to this series. You will see Mike on here soon. :)
Look forward to seeing the other breeds! Enjoyed this !
what the heck Dan!!! You got me hooked on Guinea hogs and now you have me thinking.....which is good, I need to do my own research as you and others have said. Great video, very informative.
Nice info. Looking forward to seeing other's thoughts and recommendations.
Great video - thanks! Good information, nicely balanced. We're raising our first pair of Guineas this year - an interesting contrast to our Red Durocs last year. L
thank you for this coverage. i'd like to hear, if you can, more about the KuneKune & Mangalista...though i kind of doubt those are the ones you'll find. commercial breeds are probably what your neighbors have for quick meat production.
I have a KuneKune video coming very soon! I'm working on getting magalitsa also
thank you Grass-fed...i'm sub'd to your channel so, hopefully, i'll be notified when they come out. thanks.
First I have to say you are an awesome awesome educator you should seriously going to teach him second I have a couple of questions and I was hoping you could answer the first one is do you ever use parts of the pig after harvest for example like the nose or the hoves they make great dog chews hope you had a great Easter thank you for all your education
I haven't used the nose yet but trotters are excellent for making stock because of the high collagen levels. Thanks for your feedback!
Great video! There is some math in here that could help answer this question. Figuring out feed cost long term and comparing it to other breeds would give a clearer picture. There is also the bonus of putting the hogs to work for you. If I remember right from your early videos your pastures were not great. Using the hogs as a tool to disturb your pastures and then planting your desired forage behind them could decrease the cost of homesteading for you in the future. I think the biggest problem you had was you didn't have a long term plan. I am going to end this comment with a saying from your mentor Justin Rhode, "How can you turn a problem into a solution?"
I've wondered the same thing, they could be an asset in helping clear out the nettle (or was it ivy?) , tansy and bracken from your back acreage so you can sew more appropriate grazing and fodder for your lambs. I do realize, easier said than done, but I'm curious as to your reasons to try it out or not?
bracken is toxic and can kill pigs and other livestock.
Ah, we don't have bracken here and I didn't realize it would also be toxic to the pigs, it would have been nice if they could clear it for your sheep :) Too bad, but hey, now I know why you didn't give it a try!
It would be nice if you could find you an old ford tractor or kubota with a loader on it. Many of them come with blade for plowing,bucket for loading and if your lucky a pto driven tiller. It might pay you,to talk your neighbor into hitting some farm and equipment auctions. Those loaders are the slick deal for butchering,and if you do get Dexter cattle a small tractor would still do the job. The other pieces are great for snow and manure removal. An old manure spreader is nice and in a small operation if you tidy once a week you just keep loading till its full then go out and fertilize your pastures.
AGH make an excellent city homestead pig. My pigs were at 120lbs at harvest in 13 months. 1qrt of grain a day. Dan, the next time I do pigs, I would like to try the Idaho pasture Pig which is a cross between a kune kune and AGH. I'd like to try and get away from the grain supplementation.
City??? They are noisy. My neighbors HATE my pigs, always wondering if they are dyin or something and I explain that no, they're just um... makin babies or fighting over food....
We got 2 in December to raise and they have been pretty good. They are only 7 months and look bigger than yours! I've got the butcher date scheduled for October. I feed scraps including extra eggs and whey from making yogurt and a non-gmo non-soy pig pellet plus hay and whatever they find in the woods...2 cups per pig per day on the pellets. I'm keeping up with every penny spent on this endeavor to compare final pricing.....that info will be a huge part of our decision to get breeding stock and continue on. I plan on using the lard for cooking and soap too which will be factored in to overall value.
Please let me know your results. I'm curious to see how it goes for you. I forgot to mention in the video that the piglets came from an unintentional breeding and their slower growth may also be from poor genetics
Perfect! Can’t wait for this info!
It sounds like an interesting collaboration.
What are your primary goals for raising pigs? What are your primary disappointments in the AGHs? It wasn't clear to me in this video.
so would you say they would be a good roaster,(BBQ) pig since they have small cuts of meat
One of the reasons i want to get guinea hogs is to root and till up areas for me, while fertilizing it at the same time! Cover with a thick layer of rotted hay or straw and let nature turn that into the most fertile patch on the lot.
Great video
cuts were smaller because the guinea hog is considered a lard pig where as your standard pig for say commercial use is what called a bacon pig meaning it has more meat on it and bigger guts and less fat where as the guinea has shorter cuts but more fat
Wow I Definitely wouldn't have thought they where 10months
yeah, slow growers
They are huddling together, in the snow section of this video. maybe cold? I read that pigs get cold. That makes sense ... No fur. People say goats get cold too, but that sheep are okay in cold sheds.
I had a very similar experience with our American Guinea Hogs.
What are you thoughts on them overall?
The Grass-fed Homestead I like them, for a lot of reasons you stated, especially size with the kids around. Selling the piglets has been harder than I thought it would be. I hope to butcher an almost two year old this spring, the results of which will play a big part into if we keep them long term.
Thx for the info. This year I'm thinking getting a couple of pigs. This breed maybe a fit. I was also looking at a IPP
I have a video on them, also
@@TheGrassfedHomestead thanks for letting me know. I'll check it out
Are you keeping Clara as a pet? I couldn't bear to butcher her, when she's so tame and lovely.
She won't be harvested
I have raised AGH for many years. My family and I enjoy the meat and. Lard. However, they are hard to sale in our area of Oregon. Any suggestions?
This might sound dumb, but how well would this breed hold up against breeds like durocs or hamps in livestock shows?
🤷♂️ I don't know anything about showing livestock.
I really like Salatin method deep wood chip beding with a roof over the pen wouldn't have to be that big for 4 pigs would keep it dry you could still turn them out to pasture if you have it , move them on and off, and turn the chips to compost but good info
I am thinking of building a greenhouse chicken coop and was wondering if you could do a video on how you built it and was worked and what didnt. Thanks
Here's a video of the build (part 1): th-cam.com/video/2ukep1PEQFE/w-d-xo.html
OMG to cute they'r auguwresive cuz this one white heyr was grumpy to me and didn't follow my orders. (with a 2yr old expression). hahaha to cute luv ur vids, and yes good info
You should really check out kune kune pigs.
I have AGH and I'm sorta with you on this. But mine are also much larger than yours and much less hairy. I'm thinking that mine may not 100% pure AGH though (if there is such a thing). Mine didn't get the memo on rooting either, so they are on moonscape presently. Today, I'm putting down a deposit on a young Red Wattle gilt piglet to breed with Brucie, my large-size AGH boar and hopefully have some AGHxRW for processing winter of 2019. I have 4 AGH barrows left for winter 2018. The RW is supposed to be a bit leaner and grow faster and taste great. I think they will be a good mix. RWs do get big though but might be a good fit for your feeder pig model.
I watched your suckling harvest video last winter. I was going to do one but circumstances kept getting in the way
Saw those Red Wattles yesterday. Some of them were BIG. Like 800 lb big -- as big as a small cow. SO BIG I don't think their butt would fit in a 55 gal drum. There was, however, a smaller RW mama that was bred to a smaller RW boar. She was just a little bigger than my AGH boar. Found a little gilt of hers with 14 well spaced teats. Put a deposit down on her to pickup next month. Hope little miss piggy doesn't turn into Pigzilla. But her piglets should grow faster and bigger than AGH. Maybe it will be a good mix. I'll know winter of 2019.
I have AGH as well. Mine are much less hairy, larger and are registered stock. My one year old pigs are significantly larger than his. Like twice as big. Also I keep mine is much larger paddocks with forage and use hot wire to contain them. I harvest anytime I need to for whatever reason. A big advantage is that I can do it at home fairly easily up until they are about 150#. I take them to the butcher when they are bigger. I think the pork is superior to the Tamworth I had previously. I find them to be easier to manage than 'full-size' hogs.
Have you done a comparison on feed? They may only take 1 quart of feed per day, but over the 1.5 year is it the same as 6 months for a larger breed? In my opinion I would rather raise for 6 months and be done and have more meat. Just wondering about the cost.
It just depends on how much access to pasture they have and the quality of pasture so it is hard to do a fair comparison but I think you're probably right in many cases... cheaper to do it faster and get a larger hog in the end.
Cheers, found a breeder within driving distance. My only concern is if they chew on fruit trees.
Nice video thank you 🙏🏼
What about their protein levels in their feed? Would they bulk up better on a higher protein feed? Something like a duckweed supplement to their natural feed
Nice looking critters what's their meat like
the pork is great but I haven't had bad pork yet from any pasture-raised pig
Are American Guinea hogs same as Kune Kune pigs? They are expensive to buy...and a smaller pig so how do you make up for it somehow when raising them/justifying cost for the meat?
they aren't the same. They are similar in some ways
Was thinking of picking up the AGH as a second breed but after more thought I think we'll stick with just the kune kunes.. Still trying to find out how they stack up against each other.. From what I can tell the AGH have more snout which in my mind would mean more rooting..
I think the kune is easier on a pasture but I have no personal experience
We are getting our first pair this weekend and plan to add 2 more every 6 months.
That's the way to go! Stagger it! Good thinking
Are you keeping Clara? Great video btw!
Yes unless she keeps up her grumpy attitude ;)
Hey Little Buddy do you think maybe Clara is just a little bit spoiled? Maybe she thinks she's the boss.
Yeah, from what you've said, I don't see how that growth rate is efficient for cost or your time, particularly in the winter. I've heard good things about red wattles (another threatened heritage breed), but I know very little about them.
Maybe a personal preference thing. I appreciate that my GH"S can be almost totally on hay. Winter isn't as much of an issue w an animal that runs to fat, easily. They use up calories staying warm, and/or you give them a big hay pile to snuggle in. The rotting hay pile is their favorite place. I like their thriftiness. Only time I ever had skinny pigs was when the mamas were getting nursed too much. I seperated the babies and fed up the mamas and in less than a month they were fat again.
Do you struggle shaving them? Or do you not eat the skin. I’m Mexican so we make chicharrones with the skin.
I scald and scrape or torch the hair off. I do save the skin. It's more work but worth it in the end
I’m torn between American Guinea Hogs and Mule Foot Hogs. Anyone have suggestions?
Gloucestershire Old Spots
I've heard from several people that the meat is a deep red meat like a steak not like most porks that are pink is this true?? Thanks
That wasn't my experience
Anyone ever tried raising them on acorns, walnuts and other forage? I am interested on an off grid animal I can actually raise without buying any store bought feed.
they can be finished on them but I don't know if it is balanced enough to give them as an exclusive feed indefinitely
Is there a farm to place an order ?
So fluffy 😍 , I would not be able to eat them .
My AGHs LOVE to root!
yes
@The Grass-fed Homestead Dan, Get in touch with TH-camr Troy McClung at Red Tool House Homestead channel. He raises pigs on pasture for market sales and his own freezer. One of his girls just farrowed last week and I believe he tries to keep two or three breeding pigs at all times throughout the year. He does AI on his girls, he doesn't keep a boar for breeding.
thanks, I'll check him out!
Someone could cross Mangalitsa with black mulefoot. A wool coated mulefoot lard cross.
I have mini pot bellied pigs and they’re our pets. I could never eat one.
Yes! New pigs.
Kune Kune are better for grazing and have fantastic meat.
How long does it take for them to reach butcher weight?
Sorry I should have been clearer. How long did it take you to bring yours to size?
I think mine were around 18 months old
Having to raise them 2x longer you are feeding more so in my mind feed cost to butcher be the same as if raising bigger breed
Put them on a good grass or woods and grass mix with a lot more space and they probably wo t tear up yhe ground so bad . In a smaller pen any hog will tear it up.
You might check out Mangalitsas, There is a youtube channel . A guy named David Baker has it. The channel name is bakersgreenacres. He has lots of videos on pasture raised hogs and poultry .
I reached out to them a few weeks ago but didn't have any success getting them on board
The pen looks too small for that many pigs
I loved loved loved having ours. Ours must not have been pure guinea hog because they looked bigger. I think if you could have rotated them like the sheep they probably wouldn’t have rooted as much but I didn’t so I’m just guessing. I fed mine 95% hay and then food scraps adding in a dozen eggs when available and finished ours on corn. We’ve talked about getting some more or getting potbelly pigs and rotating them with the goats (I think I’ve talked Ashley into getting two freezer sheep too). This will be an interesting series to watch.
th-cam.com/video/D5zlQonC6oA/w-d-xo.html my pigs. Combine weight was 200lbs got back 120lbs from the butcher.
I think part of the problem with these particular pigs is that they were the result of unintentional breeding between feeder gilts and a boar. Not the best genetics. The growth is painfully slow
Iowa pasture pig seems to be best all the way around.
Idaho
@@TheGrassfedHomestead predicted text changed it.
But everything I read and watched points to that. What's your experience with the breed?
So much of fur.
I couldn’t kill them way too cute.
Kune kune?
QUIET ON THE SET! 🤣🤣🤣
Is Clara a pet or dinner?
pet
So if I don’t want lard I don’t want American guinea hog ,waste of money
It is difficult when they don't follow instructions 😅😅😅
Akbaş dog ? No.
Akbaş (white head wolf) !
Akbaş = Kangal 🇹🇷
I am from turkey bro.