...buying pigs, that is.
This week she purchased nine feeder
pigs from a new friend and pig aficionado located in the adjacent county to the
north. Matt is a good ‘pig’ confidant.
Becky committed to selling at the Staunton,
Virginia Farmers Market this upcoming season.
She has her beef and lamb to sell, and she wanted to sell her own
pork. Unfortunately, her first litter of
piglets (still unborn) will not be ready for marketing.
So, she opted, this first selling
season to buy some feeder pigs from a trustworthy and local producer, and finish
them, fatten them, in order to be able to provide pork as her third meat
offering.
All meat sold will have to be
processed at a USDA-inspected facility.
Becky has her appointments made.
Folks…this is one reason farmers market prices are high - USDA inspected
is an added and somewhat unnecessary cost for the small producer. But, it is the law.
Becky is a committed farmer who wants
to provide natural, local and exceptional quality meat to her neighbors.
She is on the right path to success.
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| Hmmm...which ones do I want? |
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| pigs coming out from the scales one by one |
We all went to view her pig purchase
possibilities. Once chosen, they were
weighted, paid for, loaded onto the stock trailer and driven back to her farm
for unloading.
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| nine pigs waiting to unload at Becky's farm |
By this time, late afternoon turned
into evening and the unloading took place after dark.
 |
| barn lights - notice the lone pig in the barn lot pen |
After a few seconds of roaming around to
familiarize themselves with their new facility, those pigs found their feeder
and enjoyed a snack.
 |
| some of the newest arrivals - Home Sweet Home! |
The next morning, Becky found her new
nine pigs spread out all over her barn lot.
A few had managed to get into the pen with the boar and two breeding
gilts. A few had managed to get into the
pen with her younger gilts. Those nine
were definitely not shy and made a point to announce to the rest of the
resident pigs that they had arrived.
Becky…she spent her, up-to-now,
well-planned morning separating and dividing pigs - OINK!
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