Wall Street Journal article about castration

RedHogs · #21 08/14/07, 01:11 PM

Quote:

Simply stated that a boar under the puberty age does not have this taint, basic puberty can start as early as five or six months of age. Or in some studies starting at an age of 100Kg or 220lbs. This is the early side of puberty, so the weights would likely be more (which puts the hog at slaughter weight). Very little chance of boar taint IMO.

This where I think the disagreement is, My boars are ranting and often breeding at 5 months old. At 100 -110 days old I can detect a boar odor or sexual musk.....My hogs are toped at 140 days......My durocs, or yorks on your feeding or on walter's farm may well have zero taint....if so the taint is not eliminated by such a farming method it is only delayed or masked. I have no doubt that walters males taste fine, I also have zero doubt that his hogs would not work on my farm, or meet my goals. A line of taint free hogs will remain taint free when given maximum high quality feed and pushed to reach their genetic potential. When this happens pratically all hogs will be grown from this new line...

beeman97 · #22 08/14/07, 09:18 PM

Why is every post on the pig forum that has any value always reduced to a spitting match between walter & redhogs.
frankly i've had about all i can take from the both of you.
We come here to learn, share & teach about pigs, not to watch you 2 argue over who has the better hog & why!!!
I would have thought that long ago 1 of you would have tired of the banter & moved on but that obviously isn't the case,,,, so ,,, given that neither of you appears to want to walk away , why don't both of you just find another place to go argue & leave us alone already , it's sad that with all the trouble in the world farmers of different views can't get along enough to make positive posts. Grow up , get over it,,,,,,,, or GET OUT ,,, enough aready!!!!!!

dezeeuwgoats · #23 08/15/07, 12:44 AM

Norwegian animal-welfare groups pushing to keep the 2009 castration ban in place say farmers should consider options including "immuno-castration," by vaccine. Since 2004, U.S. pharmaceutical giant Pfizer Inc. has marketed Improvac, a vaccine that suppresses piglet puberty, as a way to sidestep the castration debate while eliminating boar taint. Farmers in Australia, Brazil, Mexico, and some other countries already vaccinate. Switzerland approved Improvac in January. Pfizer is applying for entry to the U.S. and EU markets.

Does anyone else find this statement scary? I'll bet that meat is already entering the US.....another vote for raising one's own, in my book. As much as the parents of teenagers would probably LOVE to find an injection that would suppress puberty......

Niki

RedHogs · #24 08/15/07, 09:45 AM

I'm sorry beeman if it has offended you, and i'm not being sarcastic....it has taken over a year... but in that year, we have gone from boat taint dosn't exsist, to it's gentically in bad lines to where it is today.....He will remain slient and sulk away....He cannot back up what he has said, he is spouting off garbage that is not true and potentially harmful to newcomers.

beeman97 · #25 08/15/07, 10:35 AM

Redhogs,
My post was not an invatation to you to give excuses why you like to argue with Walter, which you have now clearly done, it was in fact an invatation for you to LEAVE this site if you cannot stop with the bickering. You appear to have not understood that by my 1st post so i will say it again, grow up, get over it or GET OUT.
It is very very simple, farmers do things differently, they always have & they always will,,, what works on your farm will not work for someone else, & vice versa LEARN to accept this & you will be far more accepting of other peoples views. Farmers learn by making mistakes, if 1 listens to you & it doesn't work for him then whose fault is it, his for listening to you or your's for giving the advise in the 1st place. The same can be said for Walters advice, we live & we all learn
What you have described as your operation does not in any way appear to be a homesteaders type operation. in the same token what Walter describes as his thousands of satisfied costomers also elimanates him from the homesteaders type operation.
TRY to get a grip on the fact that things are different on every farm, Take your bantering elsewhere or in private & leave us simple folks out of it !!!!!!!!

RedHogs · #26 08/15/07, 01:06 PM

I get tickled when people worry about me and walter, If there was a picnic of all the members...walter would be the first one i would like to meet and would enjoy every minute of the arguement. Walter loves to talk pigs, I love to talk pigs..I respect the heck out of walter....he is miles ahead of me on several fronts...his grainless and no castration hogs are shocking...it's so differect.

Confession Time: Walter's way will win out over mine in just a matter of years....Why...Regulation and Customer Demands...I am actively researching and trying to catch up with Walter on raising outdoors and castration....We knock heads because i think we both enjoy it....I laugh out loud when walter slams me and I'm sure he get tickled when i fire back....

I would rather be around someone that is argueminitive and bullheaded than a PC advocate anyday of the week. Me and Walter are miles apart on most issues, I can still learn alot from him and he can learn alot from my side of the breeding.

I've accused walter of being full of crap, I'm a Pro-salesman you know I'm full of crap all the time.

We fight all the time....I still like him, I enjoy the time here....

and beeman there is no need to say "simple folk".....pig farmers by definition have to be pretty laid back....I love every minute of my job and farming, I fill in luch breaks and downtime on here....I live an ulcer-free life and i imagine walter does too.

I will surely leave if walter does, he's the most fun on here.