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We processed another one of the pigs this week. With each one that I do, it gets a bit easier and more familiar. The cuts are a bit smoother, and the process goes a bit faster.
The walk-in cooler is working out fantastically for hanging the meat and for cutting the pork into traditional cuts. Since the last update, I managed to find a 3 horsepower Biro meat-cutting bandsaw. It made the job of butchery significantly easier than using hand tools alone.
Over the last several months, we’ve been working on a major project around the farm. We drove down to Fort Myers and picked up a 24′ trailer from an ice truck.
We removed the existing freezer unit from it since we didn’t know how old it was and I wasn’t comfortable trusting it with thousands of dollars of meat.
I split the area into two sections: a freezer section and a cooler section. I then installed a 24,000BTU window unit and a Cool Bot in the front section that will act as a cooler. Using the Cool Bot, the A/C unit is able to achieve around 34 degree temperatures.
Once the freezer equipment was installed by Ian at HVAC Comfort Solutions, LLC, we got to work filling up the freezer right away.
The cooler is fantastic to hang and age the meat and to keep it nice and firm while butchering it into smaller pieces. We’re super excited for this new addition to the farm!
The first round of bacon turned out great in the new smoker so we decided to try our hand at sausage and make some more bacon (of course). I’m still getting the hang of tying the braids for the link sausage.
It’s pretty crazy how some animals develop a personality all of their own. This pig (Periwinkle, I think) acts just like a dog. She wags her little tail and loves being petted. In these photos, she hopped up on top of her feeder to get closer so that I could scratch her head.
Meanwhile, while her sister (Petunia) is nice and is friendly, there is a huge difference between the two. Periwinkle is more friendly and awesome in general.
We added three additional pigs to our flock, herd, whatever you call a group of pigs. The girls have decided to name them Poppey, Periwinkle, and Petunia.
Continue reading “The three little piggies”We took the plunge and purchased our first pig today. He’s a Yorkshire boar. He’ll remain un-cut and will be used to breed the other pigs (the ones that we don’t have yet, lol).
He’s small at this point, but it won’t be long before he’s big and strong.
Even with the ride home and the change of scenery, he was still friendly towards the girls and was very curious overall. Kaylee decided that one of the weeds around the pig pen certainly tasted better than the food he had, so she should feed it to him. He didn’t seem to mind.
Well, it may not be raining but there’s water flying through the air (courtesy of a sprinkler). The pouring is done as well. Thank God.
Continue reading “It’s raining, it’s pouring”