Bacon on the hoof

[RoadKingLarry]

After a two year hiatus I once again have bacon seedlings in my pen.
These two should be ready to go to piggy heaven about the 1st week of December.

Meat Hamlet and Cutlet.

[Viking]

Nice. You do your own slaughtering & butchering?

[RoadKingLarry]

While I could do an "acceptable" (barely, maybe) job of it, I take them to a small, local, family owned and ran, custom slaughter operation. They have all the fancy equipment to do things like make the sausage and slice the bacon and ham and they vacuum pack the meat.
I went to school with the guy running it now and I worked for his dad part time when I was in school. I know what I'll get back from them is done right.

I just don't have the set up to deal with the offal and mess of doing it myself, A deer is a different matter and sometimes I process them myself and sometimes I take them in and have it done.

This was from one of the last batches I raised, that is 1# of bacon in a big sheet pan.

[roo_ster]

How big do they usually get by the time you slaughter them?

[Viking]

While I could do an "acceptable" (barely, maybe) job of it, I take them to a small, local, family owned and ran, custom slaughter operation. They have all the fancy equipment to do things like make the sausage and slice the bacon and ham and they vacuum pack the meat.
I went to school with the guy running it now and I worked for his dad part time when I was in school. I know what I'll get back from them is done right.

I just don't have the set up to deal with the offal and mess of doing it myself, A deer is a different matter and sometimes I process them myself and sometimes I take them in and have it done.

This was from one of the last batches I raised, that is 1# of bacon in a big sheet pan.

That looks tasty.

[230RN]

Cute names.  

I was always evilly amused by Shari Lewis naming her sock puppet "Lamb Chop."  But that's just me.  I imagined the little critter magic-marker-labeled with "rack," "chops," "leg of.." and the like.

http://www.heggiesofhereford.co.uk/media/catalog/product/cache/1/image/9df78eab33525d08d6e5fb8d27136e95/l/a/lamb-cutout_1_1.jpg

  Terry

REF:
http://media-cache-ec0.pinimg.com/736x/d8/d3/14/d8d3144946b7494e445169f8d945a14c.jpg

[Tallpine]

That's some pig.

 

[Viking]

How big do they usually get by the time you slaughter them?

Can't speak for RKL, but the ones we slaughter weigh in around 100-110 kilograms IIRC. Sows are heavier of course, around 250-300 kilograms, and some old boars are even bigger. Had a boar this Friday that I'm sure was  close to half a ton. Biggest pig I've seen. Damned thing got stuck everywhere because we're not really set up to slaughter sows/boars. Thankfully it stayed hung up, because dragging that bastard back to winch it up and re-hang it would've been an absolute pain in the ass.

[RoadKingLarry]

How big do they usually get by the time you slaughter them?

I have a target weight of about 250# on the hoof but usually end up over shooting a bit.

[Angel Eyes]

Cute names. 

At least he didn't go with Napoleon and Snowball.  Then he'd have to worry about insurrection.

[RoadKingLarry]

I always name my meat animals and encourage the grandkids to play with them. I think everyone should have the opportunity to scratch their bacon between the ears.

At least he didn't go with Napoleon and Snowball.  Then he'd have to worry about insurrection.

With pigs, insurrection is easily quelled with a ride to the slaughter house.

[Perd Hapley]

Can't speak for RKL, but the ones we slaughter weigh in around 100-110 kilograms IIRC. Sows are heavier of course, around 250-300 kilograms, and some old boars are even bigger.

Next question: what is a kilogram? 


And do swine have hooves or trotters?

[Triphammer]

About what a quart plus a little of water weighs.

Hooves while they're walkin' around, trotters when they're hanging.

[230RN]

How do you weigh them before the slaughter?  Seriously.

I have a habit of asking dumb questions which usually have interesting answers.

Terry

[vaskidmark]

Next question: what is a kilogram? 

1,000,000,000.000555 Kilograms  = a 1-megaton pig.

stay safe.

[Triphammer]

Measure( inches) behind the front legs over approximately the heart for "Heart Girth" measure from the base of the ears to the base of the tail
HG x HG X E to T length / 400 = pounds.

[RoadKingLarry]

Easy way is to use a balance scale built for weighing large animals. The slaughter house I use has their's as part of the unloading ramp. Unload.the animal and weigh it.
All that measuring is well and good if the animal is willing to stand for it, then you'd have have to do all that math stuff.

[230RN]

Well, I'll be darned !  Now, that was interesting.

Makes sense that HG be squared... somehow I'm reminded of some calculations for body weight versus surface area... for thermodynamic reasons.  Little critters freeze faster than bigger critters.  

Looks like a function of heart "area" X length (sorta like a cylindrical "volume") X a conversion factor, in this case X 1/400.

Thanks, both.  Doesn't seem to work for me, though... (42 X 42 X 30) ÷ 400 = 132.3 lbs.

Either I'm not a pig (some would debate that), I've got to eat a lot less, my arithmetic is wrong, or the conversion factor should be about 240 for humans.  Or Terrys, anyhow.



Terry

[RoadKingLarry]

You probably didn't measure to the base of your tail.

[wmenorr67]

I always name my meat animals and encourage the grandkids to play with them. I think everyone should have the opportunity to scratch their bacon between the ears.

When I was stationed in Korea had a couple of friends that were married and lived in the local village.  Used to ask the kids in the "neighborhood" when I saw them playing with their dogs, "Didn't your parents tell you not to play with your food?"

[230RN]

^ roffle.

^^ Well, re-cypherin' it, using 200 lb as a known* and ear-to-tail (ET) as an unknown distance, ET would have to be 45", or almost to the back of my knees for human (or at least Terry's) measurements.  Clearly excessive for a "back of ears to base of tail" number:

(HG X HG X unknown ET) / 400 = 200lbs (known)

unknown ET = (200 X 400) / 42^2

unknown ET = 45.35" or 3.78 feet for back-of-ears to base-of-tail

(Of course, this all is just estimation, but used precise numbers just to check my 'rithmetic.)

I was wondering, is there an animal husbandry-type table of these formulae for different critters?

Seems to me there should be a sort of "standardized" table for this method of estimating animal weight with different correction factors for different 4-legged animals, e.g.:

Pigs = 400
Cows = ?
Buffalo = ?
Elephants= ?
Terrys = 240
Humans = ?

Just a curious transplanted city boy who played farmer for 11 years, raising geese, horses, ducks, chickens, alfalfa hay, prairie dogs (for a short while) --where in all of which, "market weight" was not important.

Terry

* For me, but perzackly 192 lb if anyone's interested.

[RoadKingLarry]

Beef cattle
https://www.tractorsupply.com/know-how_Cattle-Care-101_how-to-calculate-cattle-weight

Goats
http://www.infovets.com/books/smrm/C/C098.htm

Pigs
https://www.tractorsupply.com/know-how_Pig-Care_how-to-calculate-pig-weight.html

You've got the basic idea now so I'll let you see if you can work out a formula for "long pig"

[230RN]

^ Aha!  That clears that up !

You've got the basic idea now so I'll let you see if you can work out a formula for "long pig"

I did already, see Replies 17 and 20.  Factor = 240 for Terrys if using the pig measurements.

Thanks all, BTW. :D

Me go now.

Terry

[vaskidmark]

^ Aha!  That clears that up !

I did already, see Replies 17 and 20.  Factor = 240 for Terrys if using the pig measurements.

Thanks all, BTW. :D

Me go now.

Terry

It appears that you may have a slightly smaller girth to length ratio than pigs, which may be what is throwing off your calculations.  Goats may be more similar (except for length).

All kidding aside, why all the concern about figuring out weight on the hoof (or even dressed weight)?  Pick out the fattest, slowest urban evacuee and hope for enough bacon.

stay safe.

[230RN]

It appears that you may have a slightly smaller girth to length ratio than pigs, which may be what is throwing off your calculations.  Goats may be more similar (except for length).

Of course.  That's why I figured out the "factor" for all species of Terry using base of skull (sort of the "back of ears") to coccix times chest measurement squared.  (See Reply # 20.) Equals 240 for Terrys.  Makes me wonder if anyone else has figured that factor for their own bodies.

All kidding aside, why all the concern about figuring out weight on the hoof (or even dressed weight)?  Pick out the fattest, slowest urban evacuee and hope for enough bacon.

"urban evacuee" = grin.

But it's obviously practical in animal husbandry, since someone went to the trouble of figuring it out for beef cattle, goats, pigs, etc. with variations of where best to measure them --see Reply #21.

It's probably very useful to professional growers in terms of readiness for market or slaughter on the growth curve.  Obviously it's uneconomical to keep feeding a critter after it has asymptoted to its peak growth.  But I wonder if it isn't just as easy to wrestle them onto a scale (if you have one) as it is to  wrap a tape measure around their chests.  Some of them may be ticklish, after all. :)

Terry