4 January 2013 -Florence’s second litter

Florence pleased us all by hanging on until 2 January to have her second litter. She had a massive 14 piglets, all born alive. It looks like there are some good saddles so we might have more success with showing this year.

 

21 November 2012 -Our new boar

After a difficult six months when we tried to function without a boar, we have taken the plunge and bought a new one. We swapped a similar age sow from Florence’s litter with Hollington Rose Pigs and Pork, so he's a bit little now, but plenty of room to grow. He's a Golden Arrow and we voted at the AGM to call him Frank. Interestingly his maternal blood line relates back to our original herd (Starkhouse Belle). Visit ‘About our pigs’ to see a picture of him.

 

23 July 2012 -Modelling our new t-shirts

This is some of the group sporting our new Sussex Saddlebacks t-shirts at the Rare Breeds show in Singleton. We had a bit of a disaster at the show as Florence would not go on the trailer so we had to go to the show pig-less! Fortunately Neil & Michaela from Tedfold Cottage Farm kindly lent Freya a pig so she could enter Young Handlers - coming a very creditable 4th. If you are in a pen without a pig, no one comes and talks to you! Despite our fantastic new t-shirts.

 

09 July 2012 - Herd update

Anybody who has been to Aldingbourne lately will have noticed we have a few less pigs now. Our breeding herd was getting a bit long in the tooth so we’ve taken the opportunity to have a review of what we do and how we look after the land. We have decided not to keep a boar for the time being and are reducing the older sows over the year. Rosie, our boar, Burdock, and Elsie our Oxford Sandy & Black sow have already departed. Lavender has gone to live on the Open Farm at Aldingbourne. We will be keeping Isabelle, who is the daughter of Bella & Burdock and Florence who we bought in from Neil & Michaela at Tedfold Cottage Farm. We will continue to breed so there will still be piglets to see! Our continued success depends on people buying weaners and lovely pork from us. Then who knows, we might expand again.

 

 

14 May 2012 - Florence’s first litter

Florence had her first litter on 14 May – a very impressive 9 piglets!

 

 

21 April 2012 - Bella’s piglets

Bella had a very small litter this time and only 3 survive. There are some good markings on them.

 
 
 

9 July 2012- Old news archived !