This was a tough decision to make. We wanted to ensure that our hard work in raising these delicious (and expensive!) pig slaughter process What are the types of slaughter process? Consider butchering in the winter, as it will be easier to freeze the carcase. slaughter process design. Hang the pig by the gambrel tendons, which are located on the back of the hind legs, with the help of your partner. The water needs to be 62.8 degrees C before the pig is submerged. What did you do with the leaf fat? Shaye: Where can I purchase the gambrell like the one pictured of ya all butchering the pig? Brandon spent a good deal of time demonstrating and explaining how to properly shoot and stick the pig. We made lye soap from the not so pretty lard that was in the bottom of the pot. Today we're talking about how to butcher pigs. Seems to me you left the innards in for over 15 hours or more is that not a very long time to leave the guts in the carcas? So far we've killed, scalded, and scraped. The modern pig slaughter line is gradually developing towards automation, but the higher the degree of automation also means the higher the cost of the slaughter line equipment investet ，the later labor costs will be relatively low. To. Because this was our first year raising pigs, we elected to hire Brandon to come and teach a two-day seminar on how to properly kill and butcher the pigs. However, I have read so many things regarding pigs being toxic and carrying bacteria that can live in the muscle meat. Slaughtering a pig at home requires much preparation, the right tools, a partner or two, strength and a good stomach. I feel like I’ve learned so much here! They don’t have scours. Half of the pig was dipped at a time, for roughly 5 minutes or until the hair was easily pulled out of the skin. Give the hog one final wash with hot water and continue to cut it up as desired for easy storage or ready-to-cook pig. Use plenty of warm soapy water and rinse with clear water. Pig slaughter is easiest when you have room to move and have planned where you will store everything while you work through that large amount of meat. They would pull it in and out a couple of times to help get it evenly. When cutting the carcass, you should try not to damage the organs of the genitourinary and digestive systems of the pig, and not to spoil the quality of the pork. These pigs had been with us since early last Spring, when we picked them up from Farmer Steve's (just down the road from our own farm). That was a lot. If you have a ham with the shank in it. Back in the early 80″s we moved to upstate NY and took off on our own to homestead, both of us from small towns and our 2 children ages 9 and 12 we dove in head first and although we made mistakes when it came to butchering our pigs the first time we bought a book thinking it would give us all the answers, not so, after the second or third time we butchered we did get it right and butchering became just another chore that had to be done as a homesteader. It seems like an extremely long process and we didn’t feel the need to do it. If discarding the innards, bury them several feet below ground to avoid attracting predators. And it wasn't a fancy knife – just an old carbon steel knife that he'd picked up at a thrift store but had wet-stoned sharpened the blazes out of. We would like to give them to our dog, but I wasn’t sure if anything had to be done to prep them before we give them to him? I’m curious though, pigs being such social animals I would have thought it disturbing to pig # 2 to experience the death of its fellow pig. Here’s a guide on how to butcher a whole pig from the guys at Bon Apetit.There are so many different cuts that come out of a pig (over 30! Lastly, as you hold the knife near the pig’s throat, to make the final terrible tear, and spill the pig’s blood, which looks just like … Now, here's where some real magic started to happen because Brandon let me use one of his knives. My husband and I will be raising pigs soon and I was always weary about this processes. Carrie, if you raise your pigs yourself and know what they are eating, how their health was during the growing process, how they were wormed, what vaccinations if any were given, etc., then you know what you are eating. How to Process Your Pig. NOTE: This video is posted to YouTube for educational purposes. This support beam should be at least 7-feet high and ideally close to the scraping table and tub to easily transfer the carcase from its hanging position to the table and tub. Slaughtering a pig at home requires much preparation, the right tools, a partner or two, strength and a good stomach. We have an average of 40-50 people show up for the day and passer-bye’s sometimes stop and observe. You can perform this procedure in several ways. Insert the knife into your incision, and push it about … Your email address will not be published. Let the Meat Take Some Time Off. Use the bell scraper to remove the outer layer of skin and hair, using care to avoid removing usable meat. I just gave up pork from my Naturopath suggestion. A lot of the time if the ham meat isn’t cure correctly, bacteria can grow. Now, find the tip of the pig's breastbone and stick the knife in, slicing a 2- to 4-inch cut up to the centre of the pig's neck. Love your blog! Pastured pork or pork fed on natural ingredients other than corn is wonderful. But watching and reading this post doesn’t make me as nervous about it. Cut a small hole at a high abdominal point between the hind legs. Sure, I enjoyed their company on occasion and appreciated the fact that they made cleaning out my garden and refrigerator very easy, but since I was pregnant for most of their stay on the farm, I was never the one to carry the giant bucket of slop up to their home on the mountain. We butchered two pigs ourselves this past spring. We are getting pigs in the next year or so and this will be my go-to source when it comes time to butcher them. Hi About AR15.COM. The methods farmer take to sedate pigs before entering the slaughter process are not 100% effective and therefore leave the pigs to be tortured before their inevitable death (Foer). My many baking flops are your gain. How to Butcher a Pig: Killing. Be prepared for lengthy preparation, slaughter, scalding, scraping and gutting processes and always consider your own safety first. We use a .22 rifle. To do this, cut the skin between the feet and hock to expose the gambrel tendons, using care to not cut the actual tendons. The men would put the hog in and let it set to loosen the hair. If anyone can do it in one day I applaud them but, I cannot. Stick the knife deeply into the previously made cut at a 45-degree angle, starting at the neck with the blade facing the pig's bottom. There is a specific place to aim for (between the eyes, but slightly above). We live in Alaska and process a lot of wild game but have yet to tackle a pig, so I appreciate the in-depth look at how the whole process shakes out. I enjoyed your clips But I do have one question? Agh, I can not wait to watch the videos- I’m nursing an almost-sleeping baby right now so I can’t. Throw the rope over a sturdy rafter or tree limb and hoist the pig into the air, taking care to hang it high enough to not touch the ground. We began our first day with Chester, the less dominate of the two pigs. Wash the pig's inside out with hot water and use the hacksaw to saw down the middle of the spine. Continue cutting until you reaching 6 inches before the pig's sternum and twist the knife a bit before taking it out. Once you’ve butchered a pig, you’ll soon learn that it isn’t a lightweight task. Perhaps it was the giddiness of having Brandon in our home (he's kind of a celebrity amongst us homesteaders) and sharing in wonderful conversation about pork products over a breakfast frittata and puff pancake. Slaughtering a pig and butchering a pig takes more than one day. Move the intestines aside and allow the innards to fall out. Incredible! There are two bellies on a whole pig, one on each side, because the pig’s belly is always split down the middle at the time of slaughter in order to eviscerate its innards. The first thing you’ve got to do when butchering a pig is kill them. Continue cutting until you reaching 6 inches before the pig's sternum and twist the knife a bit before taking it out. Copyright 2020 Leaf Group Ltd. / Leaf Group Media, All Rights Reserved. Sometimes, I really love technology. Thanks for sharing. My husband and I are also raising our first round of pigs this year and are in preparation for their butcher date in about 2 weeks. This is such a great post! We try to to provide for ourselves and leave as small of a footprint on mother earth as possible. This video summarizes their findings and shows how the process looks from the inside. When stabbing the pig, use care to avoid puncturing the chest cavity and causing internal bleeding. We made cracklens. Every single part of a pig is delicious! The traditional pig slaughter in Croatia as well as the neighboring Bosnia and Herzegovina, Slovenia and Serbia is a widespread practice that involves pig slaughtering, processing, and butchery of pig meat, and is observed by rural families, usually in late autumn. And then, it was time for a quick lunch break and the entire process was repeated with Wallace – our second pig. We have only butchered small stuff so far and it was so helpful to see the thrashing about that they do. Notice his incredibly calm demeanor and patience. Open the skin down the middle of the carcass. I especially loved listening to Will’s newborn squeaks while watching your second pig be slaughtered. We just butchered four on January 3rd, 2105. The animal should always be treated respectfully before slaughter to ensure humane treatment and the best possible meat. However, there are people everywhere that don’t want to eat pork for whatever reason. If the slaughter is going to occur inside, ensure proper ventilation. Moving pigs are hard to shoot humanely. Then, remove the pig from the water carefully and place it on the table. Of course, both of these operations should be performed correctly. We all celebrated. My family still does this on an annual basis. Since pigs don’t have a filtration system for toxins (which is how they can survive snake bites) to exit their body, I’m sure if you take care in what they are fed it would make a huge difference in the nutrition of the meat. Dirty and hairy. For our first time we opted to hire out the deed, unlike our first time butchering chickens where I wanted to be sure I could do it. Place a bucket or tub under it to catch falling blood an organs. After the blood was drained, Chester was drug from the pen and the tendons that run alongside the bottoms of the hooves were cut open. ). The most important three variables are time, weather, and size of pig to be slaughtered. Thank you so much for taking the time to take and post the videos. Great post! Based in Providence, R.I., Myles Ellison has been writing professionally since 2007. Avoid puncturing the liver when removing it; its bile could contaminate the meat. Just one is enough to bear the entire weight of the pig. Make sure the animal you are going to slaughter is of the right age to butcher. The purpose of this is to prepare the skin and hair to be removed with the ball scrapers. This support beam should be at least 7-feet high and ideally close to the scraping table and tub to easily transfer the carcase from its hanging position to the table and tub.