bye-bye bacons

today was a sad day. you see, we took bacon and bacon to a nearby little butcher who does such things for people with small holdings like ours. it was time for them to become the bacon they were named for. their joyful little countenances have given us happiness since the beginning of april, but it was time. if we let them get much bigger, the roasts and pork chops would have been quite unmanageable for us.

they had a very good life here with us and we thoroughly enjoyed them. but what it was about in the end was that we would know the source of our meat supply. we would know what they ate, whether they had space to explore and whether they were allowed to root around and be pigs. and they had all of that. plus, we really did fall a little bit in love with them. they are friendly and curious and happy. and we will honor them by preparing them lovingly for our table over the coming months.

they were so curious, it wasn't at all difficult to get them interested in hopping right up into the trailer. we just used some boards and blocked off and opened the ramp. curiously, it didn't feel like we were tricking them or leading them to their death (tho' we sort of were), it felt right and it was a big relief that we could load them without any struggle at all.

it helped that it was late afternoon and time for a snack anyway, so they were very keen to check out what was in the buckets we placed in the front of the horse trailer to coax them in. it was important to us that they didn't feel stressed out by the experience.

they were a little unsure of the footing on the ramp at first, but the clean, fresh straw inside and the sight of their buckets helped them overcome their fear and they were soon inside, happily munching away. it was a stress free experience for all of us, which was a big relief. i didn't go along to the butcher (they will actually be slaughtered tomorrow), as that would have been too much for me, but husband said that one of them was so relaxed when he got there that she was lying down, relaxing and didn't want to get out of the trailer.

we've not yet finished our smokehouse, so we're just having them cut up in a traditional way, into roasts and pork chops and such. i will try to make some fresh sausages, because that's something i want to learn, but we will leave the ham-making to next spring's pigs. because we are definitely doing this again. this is why we moved out here to the countryside. and even tho' i will miss them, i also know that they are fulfilling their purpose and they are helping us move one step closer to our goals of being at least partially self-sustainable and when we eat them, we will definitely be eating local.

little pigs

we are getting such a kick out of the pigs. they come running up, curious and sweet, when we come out. bacon here had to snuffle up to my shoes to see if they were something to eat.

they run up, but then they also run away, squealing if you make the slightest movement, so they're both drawn to us and repelled. it's really very cute. sabin ran laps around their fence and they followed her on the inside, a bit like dogs, actually, squealing and kicking up their heels in absolute delight.

sabin crouched down and they immediately came up to her.  my favorite is the one with red around her eyes, just because she looks so cute. i'm thinking of changing her name to truffle and teaching her to find them so that we can keep her forever and ever. the one with the black spot on her side is the alpha pig, despite being slightly smaller, but overall, they get along great.

it's amazing how quickly our resolve to eat them come fall weakens in the face of their sweetness, curiosity and intelligence.

we're already discussing letting them be our mama pigs that we keep and raise piglets to eat from. i suggested that to husband and a look of relief flashed across his face. he's falling for them just as much as sabin and i are.

here truffle had to run away from sabin because she got scared of nothing at all. they run a little ways away and then turn and look and immediately start cautiously to come back.

truffle. i think that's a good name for her, don't you?

meet bacon & bacon

this is bacon & bacon. we decided to name them that so that we don't get too attached and so that we remember what it's all about.

but i suspect it's going to be awfully hard not to fall in love with them. just a little bit. they're curious and funny and make all sorts of cute pig sounds. and just look at those little ears! and that expression. *sigh*

they are just so cute, one with ginger spots around her eyes and the other with a big black spot on her side.

they're as happy as can be in their new pen. there's lots and lots of weeds and even a few old potatoes to dig up and eat. i'm sure they'll have it cleaned up very nicely by the end of the summer. at least we hope so. it must have been a pretty stressful day for them, being taken from all of their friends, loaded into a trailer and brought to our house, because they've been napping all afternoon in the straw in their little pig shelter. poor little dears.

we got them from a nearby farmer who raises organic pigs that get to live their lives out in fields. we paid a little bit more for them than we would have from one of the big indoor pig operations, but we wanted to know they'd already had a good life, just the few weeks they are into it. and we definitely intend to let them continue that good life, at least until it comes time to make bacon.