farmerjan
Herd Master
- Joined
- Aug 16, 2016
- Messages
- 11,498
- Reaction score
- 45,336
- Points
- 758
- Location
- Shenandoah Valley Virginia
I have butchered older sows and gotten all the normal cuts off them... hogs do not get tough like beef can... I had several big sows when the prices were really bad... that weighed over 400 lbs.... that I had butchered and did ham steaks, pork chops, everything...
By the looks of the hogs when you got them, they were not being fed much or well, so were super lean to the point of almost being thin... they will put on more fat as they get older... and a hog that is over 300 lbs does not gain weight efficiently for the amount of feed consumed... they put on more fat.
A hog never really stops growing... not like a beef cow or a sheep or goat... that have an average size they reach and mostly maintain... although they will get obese if continued to be fed alot... but say on good pasture with enough normal exercise, they will not get obese. A hog in "captivity" will continue to eat and get bigger and fatter if not restricted... Like the feral hogs in TX and other places... they will not get fat much because they are restricted by what they forage and the amount of exercise on top of the "breed" they are...
By the looks of the hogs when you got them, they were not being fed much or well, so were super lean to the point of almost being thin... they will put on more fat as they get older... and a hog that is over 300 lbs does not gain weight efficiently for the amount of feed consumed... they put on more fat.
A hog never really stops growing... not like a beef cow or a sheep or goat... that have an average size they reach and mostly maintain... although they will get obese if continued to be fed alot... but say on good pasture with enough normal exercise, they will not get obese. A hog in "captivity" will continue to eat and get bigger and fatter if not restricted... Like the feral hogs in TX and other places... they will not get fat much because they are restricted by what they forage and the amount of exercise on top of the "breed" they are...