Selecting a Club Pig‚ a Wonderful Challenge!

Written by: Warren Beeler, Caneyville, KY

Article reprinted from www.showpigs.com  

Warren Beeler is a nationally renowned swine authority who has judged some of the top market swine shows in the country. Warren's experience with swine has come first hand as a breeder with over 1,200 sows at his operation today. He has developed a breeding program that produces lean, heavy muscled hogs for market. His breeding program includes Hampshire, Yorkshire, Landrace, and Pietrain purebreds as well as various crosses of these breeds.

When looking at a pig at 40 pounds, it is indeed a challenge to find the one that can help to get you to the winner's circle. There are, however, several key points that you can always keep in mind when you are judging pigs as potential projects. It is no coincidence that these important points in selection also follow the growth pattern that hogs go through. Pigs grow frame first, put on muscle next, and then begin to get fat.

 "Ground Up and Butt Forward"

It's critical as you start that you look at the pig one trait at a time, and that you look in the correct order. I believe that in market animals, we should always start at the ground and work up. Then, look at the rear and work forward. Anytime a hog gets more than 1/3 wider in their top than in the bottom 1/3 of their body, that is a red flag. In this case, he won't finish as good as he might appear.

First Trait - Muscle!

In evaluating muscle, we first look through the center of the ham. The thicker this center area of the ham, the better! Second, be sure to watch hog wide the pig walks from behind. You can also check when he's standing to see the width between the rear legs. The wider the better!

Finally, we look down the top at the loin shape. A heavy muscled hog will have a butterfly shape in his loin. A light muscled hog will be shaped in an upside down "V", kind of like a roof top.

Today, show hogs must be extreme in muscle yet extreme in production. Capacity is critical. Again, we evaluate them from the ground up. They should be wide chested, uniformly deep, and above average in length. Length has become more critical as we move to heavier weights to delay fat deposition. These three dimensions MUST balance. Any unbalanced look, in which one dimension is lacking or overshadows another aspect, will hurt your chances in the show ring.

Leanness is normally the result of degrees of muscle and frame size. We want a big framed pig with a log of muscle. Any deficiency in either muscle or frame will shorten the pig's maturity pattern, meaning the pig will begin getting fat at a lighter weight. Be careful, though, of super heavy muscled hogs that are low fronted and short bodied. This type of pig will get fat too early. Also, be careful of big framed hogs with no muscle. With this body type, pigs will also get fat early and also lack muscle. More fat and less muscle will get you defeated quicker than anything in the ring!

In order for pigs, even market hogs, to grow rapidly and efficiently, they must be structurally correct in sound. No matter how much muscle or frame that a hog has, you will have a hard time getting out of the placing pens if the hog has trouble walking correctly. Most judges review hogs from a negative perspective versus a positive standpoint. This means that if a hog is moving oddly off its front or back end, you get dropped from the running right out of the chute.

Pigs need to have big, square feet while taking a long stride. The length of a hog's stride is a great indicator as to the correctness of its hip and shoulder. Shorter strides mean less flexibility in these key joints in a hog, and pigs need to have flexibility in all of its joints. The pastern (lowest joint above the hoof) needs to be at a 45-degree angle with the hock at about a 22-degree angle for the best possible movement off a pig's back end. Again, we look at soundness ground up.

In closing, choosing the right pig at 40 pounds is a wonderful challenge for every FFA or 4-H member. To improve your ability in selecting club pigs, there is no substitute for looking at more and more pigs. Every pig is different and evaluating each one on its own merits is the key to successful evaluation.

Keep these key points in mind as you head to your next sale or to your local club pig breeder's farm. While these ideas are not everything there is to know about selecting pigs, following these guidelines will head you down the right road with your next project. Good luck with your show pig and maybe I'll see you in the winner's circle at the next big show!