Change is in the air.....

Wurzel, Brother to Mangal, our Founding Boar

Pepper, brother to Ginger, our Founding Sow

      














   "All changes, even the most longed for, have their melancholy; for what we leave behind is a part of ourselves; we must die to one life before we can enter into another."
                 Anatole France
                 The Crime of  Sylvestre Bonnard (1881)



 
  Since 13 June 2007 this blog has enabled us to share with readers our experiences with the animals who populate this wild  woolly corner of Lincolnshire which we affectionately call RectoryReserve. Many of the stories have concerned our curly coated Mangalitza pigs. Ever since they first arrived here in April of that year they have framed and directed much of our activity. When the first two, Mangal & Wurzel, arrived we had no idea what they would lead us into. Even when we decided to "breed a litter" and brought Ginger & Pepper here, we were not aware of how our lives would be altered by their presence.
But altered they have been. From Mangal & Ginger we bred not just one but some 13 or 14 litters. They were joined by Samson and his wives and, later, Black Banana and his wives.  Many curly coats came and went, some to breeding homes elsewhere, some to 'show' homes in and out of the county and some to their final destination. We retained a herd of 3 boars and 6 sows which produced 12 litters a year - some 70-90 piglets between them. That is not many compared with commercial herds of 100's, if not 1000's, but for us it was A LOT.

Ginger with her 2nd Litter in May 2008

 We had a lot of fun. We tried very hard at the beginning to keep the piglets in with their mothers but after 3 or 4 litters we learned that we were battling against a strong force of nature. Piglets will always find a way to wander ..... 
After that it was piglet pandemonium as they free-ranged everywhere much to the astonishment of visitors, who encountered them wandering up our drive, and complete strangers who were disconcerted to bump into, or be followed by, piglets tumbling along the bridleway which borders RectoryReserve!!! 

Samson Nov. 2010 preparing a snow wallow

It wasn't just piglets who wandered! Older herd members would occasionally take it into their heads to go trotabout.... some were easier than others to persuade back 'home'. One memorable occasion was when Precious, a favourite sow, decided late one evening that she had had enough of Samson, her boar, and left him; via the high fence & ancient hedge separating our property from the bridleway. She found her way via a long and circuitous route back to the Church Field: where I saw her happily mooching about when I did my late night check! I doubt I shall ever forget the sight of her trotting happily back to me through the almost-dark night and made it clear she just wanted to get back to her own pen and ark!

Our drive Dec 2010

 More fun was had during the winter of 2010/11. Three horses, circa 80 pigs and 50 or so assorted poultry depended on us for every drop or water through I cannot remember how many frozen days and nights. 
The countryside looked moody, romantic, christmas card pretty but with livestock it was a nightmare! Well, almost!

Just a little mud!

The only source of water was the house. Three times a day we carried containers of hot - because cold would freeze before we reached the animals - water, on foot, to our 'family'.  Definitely character-building!!! At least the snow was pretty.  If you have outdoor pigs the other 'thing' you are going to experience is Mud. Not just ordinary mud. But serious mud. Curly coated pigs are active creatures. They rootle and mooch all day long. And they wallow. They are also very friendly! Throughout the wet months - which we do seem to have a lot of - they are experts at making, gathering and flinging mud everywhere.  I hadn't realised how exceedingly muddy one could become when dealing with livestock!!! For so long....... Mud affects everything else of course: walking is twice as difficult, vehicles get stuck so every task becomes 'manual' , mud sticks so everything is twice as heavy to carry or move.... etc etc. There have been times in the past 8 years when I have gone to bed at night dreading going out in the mud again the next day!

Food.....

Then there is the Food.
From the beginning we were passionate about bringing the delicious products from our Mangalitzas to the great British public. To that end we have marketed a vast range of goodies from the not-so-humble pork pie to the deliciously sybaritic air-dried ham. We have supplied famous hotels, attended small and large farmers markets, food festivals, game and country fairs and even a special Jubilee party for the Queen. It has been entertaining, gruelling, eye-opening, challenging, fun and hard work.     Looking back to 'life before pigs' neither of us would have guessed at the experiences we would gather  throughout our 'life with pigs'. We wouldn't have missed it for the world. 

...glorious food

Given 20 years in our favour we would have moved into a serious growth spurt last year. Mortality is a wicked teacher though; we realised instead that we no longer have that time, or its accompanying energy, to 'grow'.  
Last year was a difficult year in many ways; not least because we said goodbye to our boars and sows (except for Delila and Andromeda who remain). This has been the first year since 2007 that we have not been surrounded by piglets. It has been strange - and sad. 
 This winter will be our last with the curly coats, going to 'market', dealing with the admin., mud and all the activities we have grown accustomed to. 
Our goal of building a future for the Curly Coated Mangalitzas and their delicious 'products' has, hopefully, been secured. With luck, the next generation - at least in these parts - will recognise and appreciate this rare and beautiful breed.

RectoryReserve, and this blog, will continue without them. People ask us "what" we will "do" without pigs. How can we know? When the space is there, something will move in to fill it.....
Watch this space...................