Need help, I'm back on the fence about AI(ing) after I got off the phone with 2 very knowlegable hog guys. I was told if I wanted to breed Ruby I needed a boar that was older then her. Okay I really don't want to purchase a Jan 2010 boar, in which I never had my hands on since he was 8 or less wks old. Besides I really don't want to transport and hogs with our heat index being over 105 degrees.

So I'm looking for option and know that AI(ing) is one.

We no longer have a stock tank for semen and was told that we did not need one. Is this true?

Where can I learn how to AI? We have time since our son doesn't want to breed Ruby until March 2011.

New at this, is 6 mths the age for a gilt to have her 1st cycle?

I was told to let her cycle 3 times? Is that to many times (cycling) before breeding her?

Thanks.

and also you want to let her get to about 300 lbs and bred her to where she will farrow out about the time she turns 1 year old.. gilts start to cycle at around 150 lbs

In pigs, does it depend on their weight when they have their 1st cycle?

Like I said we are so new at this...LOL...I'm thinking we should of stayed with barrows.

But I don't take change that easy.

well from what i was told that a gilt will not cycle till she is at least 150 lbs so i am guess yea.

So I have nothing to worry about until Ruby reaches 150 #'s, good to know.

So how old should a boar be or at what weight should he be for his 1st go at breeding?

Have you every AI(d)?

well i bred my gilt for my first litter with a boar of the same age. this year i am going to bred her to a boar that will be younger than her, in fact i am breeding 2 that the boars will be younger. BUT if there not tall enough i will teach them to collect first anyway.

Do you know where I can go to more information on AI(ing)? I've only read about it in the books we got for our son about how to raise FFA pigs and 1 Storey (sp?) book on pigs.

I dont i dont AI nothing because i cant get anything bred that way soo somebody else will have to help you on that lmao

Like I said before, still on the fence here, our son isn't looking for a hug litter but then again some babies in the near future is better then none at all.

So what would be about the right height for a 1st time boar and does it depend on the breed of the animals?

Our 1st set was a land/york cross (barrows) and now we have 3/4 red wattle and 1/4 hampshire (gilts).

well they are still considered cross pigs and i mean you can go with another wattle boar or cross boar. something at least the same age .. and on your first time boar i had to go out and "help" my boar bred the gilt after that he got it himself

So if I can find a boar that was born in May...we "might" be okay when we allow Ruby to go through 3 heat cycles. I just need to read up more and see what time I have to spend on this "project."....LOL

In October, Ruby will be 5 mths for the fair so if we go another 3 mths that puts us in Jan. I'm guessing in an ideal world she should of went through at least 2 cycles by the end of Jan. So we breed Ruby in Fed...are we looking at a mid-July litter (provided everything went to plan)? We are not looking for babies to fit for a show, we are just looking for babies on the ground for our son to raise and see if he wants to do this all over again.

Got another question, do we rebreed her when she comes back in or can we skip a cycle or 2 to try to have babies when we want them to be born? With this (skiping a cycle after her litter) mess with her system?

well again i wouldnt bred her until she is at least 300 lbs or close to it. you will need to keep boars and gilts seprate untill then. and also boars can be very aggressive.

well on the breeding i bred my gilts for spring litter march - april and then again for august-september litters. i am not sure about skipping them? i have been wondering my self. But gilts will cycle every month ( i think every 18-20 days )

Okay so through the timetable out the window and I need to get better at reading the weight tape. Once she gets over 150 #'s we can pull out the old calf scale that goes up to 800 #'s.

Working on extending the pig pen as the days go by. I was thinking about putting the walk pen between the boar and the ladies. Got the ladies, don't have the boar (yet). Our son's walk pen will be 14x28 and then the boar pen 14x14 with the shelter inside the pen about the same set up as the ladies just the shelter will face a different way. We are extending down hill and the last pen shelter needs to be at the far east side. Gate opening (still working on that), I know we need 2 gates one to the walk pen and the other on the outside south side (maybe).

So if we get a boar, how can we keep him from being so aggressive? Are is it just their nature?

My boars pen is 8ftX16 ft not counting the house that makes up the end of it. and my 2 shows pigs are in a pen that is 8x16 as well. the panels i welded square tubing around them and i can bolt it to there house.

well i mess with mine every day and they are all diffrent. i had a york boar that he loved the kids when they would get in there and pet him he would just lay day and oink and wag his talk. i raised him... But i have a cross boar the i didnt raise he was shown at duncan when i baught him weight 360, well he is alright to mess with in the pen he does try to bite and when you get him out of his pen he runs away lmao (thanks god he runs slow!). my york i bought him when he was only 40lbs and spent a ton og time with him. BUT no matter how tame they seem to be they do have there bad days. right now i am raisein another york boar along with a duroc. so far the duroc is freindlier than the york but i have heard horror stories about duroc boars. so i will find out lmao