Bacon seeds...start to finish!

This post is about harvesting your own meat. It contains pictures of animals that have been killed and dressed out to eat. Just a forewarning for those who have a sensitive constitution!

Many times I have seen the question...can you eat pot belly pigs? This is my answer. A resounding YES! I have had PBP as very young oven roasters all the way up to 135 pound adults. As with most home raised pork, it is richer and more flavorful than most of what you buy in the store.

Many small homesteads do not have the space or facilities for large hogs. Pot Bellies don't take up much space, even as adults and they do not take near the food that a full sized pig does. Not to mention that there is less risk of a hog taking you down and eating YOU!! The only real down size is if you don't harvest your own, paying a slaughter house the kill fee for such a small pig is not as cost effective as a large one. Still, being small. Pot Bellied are pretty easy to harvest yourselves. My set up is pretty simple. A small work table covered by a tarp for easy clean up.

Harvesting is done by placing a kill shot with a .22 in the center of an imaginary X drawn from ear to opposite eye. OR a shot right below the ear will drop them also. Once down... step in and cut their throat in order for them to bleed out. This one weighed aprx. 40-50 pounds pre-harvest.

Dressed I figure him at about 30. Many will tell you that pot bellies are a lard pig...that they are not good to eat. If you let them get older than yes...they are a very good lard producer. Harvested young like this, the meat is very tender and lean. One of the reasons I homestead is that I know the animals I consume were raised with kindness and compassion. They are harvested humanely while they are happy pigs. This fellow died with a mouthful of cookies! A happy hog to the end! I let the carcass rest overnight on ice and piece them the next day.

Some of my favorite bits of the pig are the heart and kidneys... sliced, breaded and fried on harvest day.

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Another much over looked favorite part is the heads. Slow roasted, they are loaded with sweet, tender jowl meat, and yummy bits like the tongue, eyes and brain. (Don't go EWWW til you have tried it!) We really do try and use everything but the squeal. I even boil the bones to make a delicious golden bone jelly for soups and gravies.

I believe that there are many single homesteaders out there who do not have the land or the means to raise and butcher large breed hogs. Pot bellies are a good fit when it comes to raising and harvesting your own meat in a micro-farm situation. I hope that this blog inspires you to plant and harvest your own little "bacon seeds"!![