I am considering different hog breeds for meat production. I am interested in comments about the Landrace and Landrace/Large White crosses. Any other information on breeds and their specific good and bad characteristics and any shared wisdom for a beginner on breeding or information on A1 would be appreciated.

Thanks, Sara

-- Sara Perry from western Washington (JPerry1218@aol.com), September 28, 2001

Answers

Sara, I've raised thousands of hog over the years and I would advise staying away from Landrace hogs. They were developed for factory farm enviroment. They do very poorly on dirt or in open confinement. You would be better off with a Yorkshire cross with Hampshire or Duroc. These breeds were developed on the farms of the midwest when most were raised on dirt. Most breeds have been developed for fast growth and lean growth. Good luck!!

-- Del (dgrinolds@gvtel.com), September 28, 2001.

Sara, I would also stay away from Landrace. They tend to be more skittish and harder to handle. We just finished our AI on seven hogs to get babies for next years county and state fairs. Any specific questions you can e-mail me and we will try to answer. To get a good lesson in AI go to Purdue University's web site. I don't know the address off hand but will find it if you want. They have great information complete with pictures.

We raise purebred Durocs and the rest are crossbreds. I would recommend a crossbred with lots of york in her for a first try. Yorks have some of the best mothering skills, although our one Duroc is a great mother also, the first few had to be pulled and she had the rest on her own.

Good luck, I am sure you will enjoy the pigs. Ours started out as one for a 4-h project and we have really gotten into the genetics ect. Joanie

-- Joanie (ber-gust@prodigy.net), September 30, 2001.

Sorry, I guess you can't e-mail me right now. I can send mail but not receive it. Hopefully will be fixed soon. Joanie

-- Joanie (ber-gust@prodigy.net), October 01, 2001.

Thanks for the info! Purdue's Pork Page is amazingly informative. Just what I needed. I appreciate the voice of experience and since both of you feel the same about breeds I will do some research on the ones you've mentioned.

Sincerely, Sara

-- Sara Perry (JPerry1218@aol.com), October 04, 2001.