Berkshire weaners
16 10 2007
Delilah’s litter of Berkshire piglets are now six weeks old, which means they’ll be weaned in the next fortnight and then most will be off to pastures new. At the moment, we have confirmed buyers for all five boars and two of the six gilts, while we’re waiting for two more buyers on our waiting list to confirm they’re both taking a pair of gilts.
We’re still looking for buyers, however, both to cover ourselves in case any of the sales fall through or to join the waiting list as we have another two litters of Berkshires due in November and a third litter is due in December. Potential buyers can use our contact form to get in touch.
All our weaners are from pedigree lines with porkers being sold as birth-notified animals (which are eligible for the British Pig Association’s Pedigree Pork scheme) and breeding stock registered in the herd book. Delilah’s litter has been birth-notified while for people buying registered pedigree stock, she’s Styberry Mermaid 61 and the sire was Lammermuir Namatjira 2.
For buyers of pedigree gilts who want an unrelated boar, we’ll be joined soon (hopefully this Sunday) by a new sow, Dittisham Suzanne, which is in pig to Dittisham Ambassador 7. Both were bred by noted Berkshire breeder Sue Fildes in Devon, with the boar having won county champion titles. He’s currently a stud boar with the Bidgiemire Pig Company in Lanarkshire.
We’ll be keeping the best boar from Dittisham Suzanne’s litter, due in December, as a stud boar ourselves but with luck we’ll get get several pedigree quality piglets from that litter to give buyers a few more options. We’re holding pedigree weaner prices at £50 for Delilah’s litter (as that’s what we told those buyers when they went on the waiting list) but rocketing feed prices will push that up to £60 for future stock. Birth-notified porkers are currently priced at £45 - again due to feed prices - but we hope to hold them at that price for the current litter and the next one. After that, it depends on what happens with feed costs - and for a breakdown on what it cost to produce our pigs read the price of meat.
What happy pigs.
How many sows and boars do you have now? Do you still have your Tamworth boar? They are extremely rare in OZ, I have friends looking out for Tamworth pigs and they have only found one breeder so far in South Australia.
The same friends have just begun breeding Berkshires and have 8 sows and 2 boars. We went out to see the first litter last week and they are lovely, free range too, like yours. I can totally see now why you do it, it’s awesome to see pigs having the freedom to act like pigs in the sunshine,fresh air, mud etc.
Dear Stonehead
Sorry that this is such a basic question, but I understand what registered pedigree stock means as I keep registered pedigree Hebridean sheep. However, what does ‘birth notified’ signify and it what way is it different to registering pedigree animals?
I really enjoy reading your site. We got a (very, very) small croft on the West coast and kept two Large Black weaners this year for six months, and two Berkshires last, for the freezer.
Best wishes
Seon
Birth-notified indicates that the pigs are pure-bred and eligible for entry in the Herd Book. Birth-notified animals meet the conformation standards, are bred from registered animals (ones in the Herd Book) and their meat can be described as “Pedigree Pork”.
However, not all birth-notified animals achieve the standard required for pedigree breeding - even if they do meet the conformation standards. In our case, as we’re breeding for temperament as well, we don’t register any pig that’s anything less than amiable, easily handled and people friendly.
Also, there’s not much point in registering a pig that’s going for meat, especially when birth notification confers Pedigree Pork status on the meat.
Birth notification must be done by the breeder by eight weeks (or before mixing with other pigs), but registration can take place much later. However, registration can only be done by, or with the approval of, the breeder.
We’ve looked at keeping Hebridean sheep ourselves, but found it difficult to source registered stock and the Hebridean Sheep Society was of little help (especially compared to the British Pig Association - which keeps most of the Herd Books - and the Berkshire Pig Breeders Club).
So, we’re looking at Soays instead and, in the short term, swap the use of our big field to a neighbouring farmer to keep his ewes on through autumn and early winter.
Oh, and were your Berkshires from a breeder with registered stock? I’m always on the lookout for pedigree breeders in Scotland as I only know of three others (and one is getting out of Berkshires).
We’ve sold pigs to people on the West Coast a few times - Raasay, Scoraig and Skye - while others have found their way to Orkney, the Black Isle and other parts.
Thanks for the explanation, it’s much appreciated.
Sorry, but the Berkshires weren’t from registered stock. They were from a herd that contained Gloucester Old Spots as well as Berkshires, so they could have been crosses.
I’m sorry that you had difficulty sourcing registered Hebrideans. Surprisingly, there’s not that many flocks in the Highlands but they seem to be prolific in the Uists (and in England). When I started with them (about 3 or 4 years ago) I bought them from the Hebridean Sheep Society Sale in Oban. It’s an annual sale at the end of September - cancelled this year because of FMD restrictions. If you are still interested in them, I could put you in touch with a good breeder who may have stock to sell (he’s in the Western Isles) or who could perhaps suggest someone nearer to you. He’s got a fairly big flock and is very helpful. I find them great for our place - much easier for me to handle than the Cheviots I used to have. But there again, you need a lot more Hebs than Cheviots to make a sandwich.
Thanks again for the info.
wheres the best place too get infor on berkshire.would b interest in starting small ped herd, thanks
The British Pig Association has a good background article on the Berkshire.
There’s a wealth of information to be found on the Berkshire Pig Breeders Club website (and they’re very nice people as well).
The Rare Breeds Survival Trust has a short backgrounder.
If you’re outside the UK, there are several other sources:
In NZ, try New Zealand Rare Breeds although I think they’re wrong in saying “historical information suggests that Berkshires do best when well fed and housed rather than run on pasture, the New Zealand experience is that they do very well as an outdoor pig”. All the old accounts I’ve read describe the Berkshire as a free roving, active and independent pig that was well suited to the outdoor life.
In Australia, try the Rare Breeds Trust of Australia, although they don’t yet have a breed profile for the Berkshire.
In the US, try the American Berkshire Association, although many of the US Berkshires are noticeably different to the British Berkshire.
In Canada, have a look at Rare Breeds Canada - although I can’t get parts of their website to work.