Thanks buddy. It’s interesting how some videos take off and some don’t. Luckily this is just a fun way for me to share information with others and not a main source of any income. Appreciate you watching.
I just processed my first kune and you're absolutely correct....the rendered lard off of the one hog was not only the best I've ever seen or tasted, but there was so much of it that we're covered for lard for well over a year.
Aw man, I know it's way hypocritical to be revolted by your "processed my first Kune"...cus I sometimes eat pork or wild pig/boar but my first childhood pet was a Kune called Mr Miyagi cus he had whiskers like Miyagi's mo and he was so chilled out like an old man. Ugh...it's the one piggy breed i can't eat. Just can't.
@@SalznPfeffer658 my dad raised chickens as a child and would not eat chicken. He passed in 1980. He would be amazed at how much chicken is consumed now. I am going to raise a Kune Kune for meat this year. It will have the best life with a purpose to sustain my family. A steer is just too large for me to handle on a daily basis. I am on the edge of being 66 and female. Hopefully retiring in December.
@@SalznPfeffer658 And yet without the financial benefit of processing some of them for meat, there is no way most people could afford to keep and breed them at all.
Your video gave a lot of information..pros and cons. I just had my 65th birthday so I am too old to raise pigs. But if I was going to raise a pig I would want one with a calm personality making it easier to care for it properly. The Kune Kune would be my choice. There are times I wish I had learned about homesteading when I was younger. Chickens are my thing right now. I just hatched 4 little biddies. I purchased the eggs at a local Chicken Swap. I will have eggs coming out of my ears as they say. I remember my Mom having Shingles..she was miserable. I hope you heal quickly. Stay Safe and Cool and Have a Blessed Week.
Thanks, Happy belated birthday! fortunately most of it has cleared up, but I have one last little bit that’s taking a while. The pigs are such funny and chill animals. We love them.
Thanks for the info. Confirms that Kunekune pigs are the right choice for my wife and I. We will be expanding from just chickens this year and a breeding pair will go a long way to getting us self sufficient. One thing I picked up is that it may be beneficial for us to establish a good breeding practice/registration (which I know nothing about) especially if the market is favorable in our area.
I think to get a return on them breeding is definitely the best way. They’re too expensive to constantly purchase feeder pigs. I’m glad the video helped provide clarity. Appreciate you taking the time to watch
Thanks for the info! I’m picking up 2 tomorrow and your video was an excellent source of information. And I am looking to raise them for similar reasons. I really appreciated finding this video.
Yay, congrats on the pigs. I hope you enjoy them as much as we do. If I can be of any help, don’t hesitate to reach out. I’m not a professional or an expert but I’ve learned a thing or two
Thank you for explaining the kunekune pig. I want to expand our homestead from garden and chickens to pigs. I have been checking out different videos of different breeds. You explained greatly.
Excellent info!! Thank you! Just found your channel and look forward to learning more from you. We have been homesteading for over 12 years now and are looking to add pigs to the mix. I think that we are going to get kunes!! So excited!
We love them. I wish I had more room for them to roam and graze all the time. They take much longer to grow to a process weight, but if that doesn’t bother you, you can’t go wrong with them in my opinion. If you get some, I hope you enjoy them as much as we do.
My friends grandma owns Piney Creek KuneKunes and I fell in love with them helping her handle them. Doing a deep dive and super contemplating getting some😂
Come on RU-vid!!! Why is this video not trending on the homestead thread? You're slipping up. Great video. Thank you for making this video. I live in NZ where this breed is supposed to have originated from. I think we need to take this breed a lot more seriously and not just have them as pets!
Thank you for the well-presented info👏We love our KKs🐷"Ginger" gave birth last spring and is a great Mama (despite rolling on a couple babies😢) One thing that may be helpful: males can froth at the mouth and scratch at the ground😮 A LOT. It sorta freaked us out to see "Robinson" doing just that while in the pasture with my grandkids... until we researched it!
Thank you. The foaming is quite intense at time, especially when a new lady is introduced. The first time I saw it I was baffled but I reached out to the breeder we’ve gotten all ours from and she told me then it was normal. Thanks for sharing so others can know as well.
You've made a very good video Sorry for the shingles 😔. My dad who was a two time purple heart winner in the Marines, said that the shingles was the most painful ailment that he's ever had. It was even more painful than being shot twice. So I feel for you ! Good luck with your recovery. Try blending up and making ice cubes with "Jewelweed" it grows everywhere and it's easy to apply. Just rub the jewelweed ice cubes on the rash . It gave my dad instant relief. Take care.
Thanks for sharing the remedy. Fortunately it’s gone now and mine stayed contained to my waistline area. Ended up with a little bit of scarring but that’s about it. Thanks for watching and sharing your knowledge. Thank you to your father as well for his service.
Got my two pigs last month. $800 for the pair but they are less than 3% genetics and fully registered. Great piglets so far. Very friendly and easy with the kids. Plan on breeding to keep the pig around.
First time viewer, great informational video, thank you. I've been looking into and researching kunekune's. Won't be even considering buying till I retire in a couple years. I love the importance of temperament. I have raised several commercial breeds, and once they were over 100#s, I would not even get in the pen with them (I'm not very big). I have eczema, no more flares, since using goats milk soap!
Thanks for stopping in with us and spending some time. They’re a very cool breed and have great personalities. Each of my pigs have unique personalities but none have ever been aggressive towards me. I can’t imagine raising any others with my full time work schedule. Thanks again for watching and appreciate your time with us.
The only time I've had anything approaching a behavioral problem with my KuneKunes is when it was acorn season and I got in between them and the acorns. Do watch your feet lol.
Great advice..We raise them here in NZ on just grass and windfall fruit n nuts..for meat and land care ( lawn mowing ) run with a few Wiltshire sheep the team keep our 5 acres looking like a parkland..orchards clean of rotten fruit so no disease, free fert..we have 9..love them to death and beyond.
That sounds like an awesome system. My dream and goal is to eventually have a property that has more suitable pasture type land that I can allow them to enjoy life on grass. Thanks for sharing
Perry James: I’m in the US and I also raise them on grass and windfall fruit and nuts. In the winter I feed alfalfa, clover mix. Here in the US the feed companies apparently have a major influence and the majority believe you have to give them a pig feed. Now I only have 6 sows and a boar and I’ve only been doing this for 7 years so maybe I’m doing it wrong but it seems to be working for me.
@@dontfit6380 No not at all, I do give mine a small amount of pig nuts for the extra nutrients they offer. Here in NZ grass is lush all year long so we are spoilt for choice. I think you are doing a great job. keep it up kia ora
Welcome and thanks for hanging out with us. I actually originally planned to her AGH but after further research I decided to start with Kune Kune. I think I’ll always have Kune Kune but eventually would like to give a try at either an AGH or an IPP.
Such a good Video! I hope you find some long term relief for skin issues, it can make us so miserable at times, but man I envy your beautiful lifestyle.,.I hope it brings you out if the threat of any impending miseries. Kia kaha 💟🔥☮️🇳🇿
Thank you like you it going to be hard to butcher the pig because you fell in love with it after 12 months so again thank you and hopefully you feel better from your shingles
I’m adopting 2 male 5 month old Kune Kune and “mini” (who knows) mix. I haven’t earned a pig since my Vietnamese potbelly pig 30 years ago so this is going to be fun. They are not for eating for us by the way. Then again, neither are our chickens. But we hunt wild boar to eat so there’s that.
Nothing wrong with a pet pig, especially when you have wild boar around. We don’t have wild boars, at least not yet. They’ve been pushing our way so it may happen eventually. There are many people crossing Kune with pot belly varieties in hopes to get the gently temperament in a small size. Hope they work out well for you.
I enjoyed the video and information a lot. Never raised this breed so new to me. I have worked on hog farms and know a lot about durocs. i say harvesting any animal is hard for me because i strive to give animals the best life possible. by far pigs are smartest animal on the farm. they sleep, eat, poop in a spot for most part which would blow people away. i feed mine bread, produce from food banks tha was old utilize things what i am into. i am semi off the grid but anyways great video and i hope to watch more your videos because extra thoughts, new things is what i am into, god bless
Thanks for taking the time to watch and sharing your background. I’ve heard great things about durocs. They definitely are much larger than Kune kunes. I used to get extra produce from a local country store but unfortunately the owner of the company told the manager to stop giving them away. Stinks too because I’m pretty sure they’re just throwing it away now.
@@RockyCreekHomestead I am just a small youtuber make music, DIY stuff, misc current events ect. Sorry hear store stop allowing you to get stuff. i would say try local food pantry they throw so much away and it goes bad it hurts noone. it is all donated. here in missouri no joke more food, building materials is thrown away and misc it is impossible to understand. the world is odd at time like that. i support all farmers, ranchers, sportsmen, off the grid people, artist of all sorts. i have hardly any money but if the best i can give is thumbs up and subscribe that is what it will be. i have my mini farm on 4.9 acres. so all about utilizing space not much space for cattle but i raise pigs, ducks, chickens, goats ect. i never made videos but 4k camcorder thinking about it. i get little discourage at times lol sorry this is so long just bored and up late lol
Awesome video! I have a dumb question, though. Everything I’ve read says that these pigs eat mostly pasture. It looks like their paddock is mostly rock and mud. Do you ever let them out to graze or do you just do strictly feed and don’t worry about the pasture grazing? Thanks!
They do love pasture and I wish I had the space for the to do so. I provide them hay instead which I just put in as their bedding when it’s not winter and they lay and eat on it.
That fat ground in with deer meat, makes great sausage. I can only get excited about deer meat when I know it's going to get used and appreciated. Sausage ensures that for just about everyone in the family. So if the kunekune's lack of meat production can be subsidised with another free source of meat, I'd say we've got a win win.
Thank you. It took a while but thankfully it all went away. Slight scarring along my side where my waist band kept rubbing them. It was definitely an interesting experience I wasn’t expecting so young. Thanks again and appreciate you watching
@@RockyCreekHomestead I was 37 when I had it so I can relate to that sentiment. I also have autoimmune so maybe that makes us more likely to get shingles. Glad you are improving!
The best thing you could do for your psoriasis is go on the carnivore diet for a while, and the lard from your pigs would be a great asset on that diet.
I appreciate the tip, but I tried it for a bit and saw a very small improvement. Psoriasis is weird and effects everyone different. What works for one doesn’t always work for others. I have heard of people having success with it but unfortunately I didn’t see much improvement.
It all depends I guess on what you can grow and how long it will grow. Southern climates could probably graze them most the year. Because I have them isolated in pens due to lack of space, they love to eat hay when I have it and when I don’t I supplement with hay pellets.
It’s odd, the prices seem to vary greatly depending on where they’re at. I guess it’s just down to the quantity available in certain geographical areas.
Unfortunately I only have the video from when our first litter was born. I then have a follow up video where our sow became I’ll from a bad case of mastitis. We have only birthed piglets once and we had so much chaos that follow up videos we’re hard. Traditional heat lamp caught our building they were in on fire so I had to come up with a quick plan b to house them. Then the sow becoming sick with mastitis took a lot of time to heal. Although it sounds crazy, outside of those two major incidents the birth and overall raising was easy. Sow took a lot more feed to maintain weight than I thought. She was getting around 3x the feed along with hay. We didn’t have to give iron shots to piglets because they were rooting the ground early and getting iron from it. Otherwise 1/2cc at 3 days old if needed.
I’d suspect they could be used for such. Mine have been easy to contain so it may work. I think the greater thing would be wether or not they’d be over fed depending on the amount of food waste
I raise Berkshire Yorkshire and duroc I have 27 acres I have been thinking of switching to Kune Kune to raise for pasture pork. My idea is to continue to use the large breeds to clean up most of the under brush and make the switch to Kune Kune because of the rooting
I could see that being a good system. There is always the Idaho pasture pig which is a cross of Berkshire, Duroc and Kune. I’ve not seen them in person, but I know they’ve gained a lot of popularity over the last several years. Temperament of Kune but size of the other breeds. Since I just supply my family, they kunes are just fine though.
@@RockyCreekHomestead my Berkshire are very gentle as well I love having berks I have thought of the Idaho pasture pigs but the Kune Kune is actually alot easier to get here in Kentucky. My dad raised meat hogs but I changed it up alot and started raising them on pasture that alone was a game changer with pasture rotation meat breeds do good but I like the idea of a pig that can thrive on grass with less grain and still be used for meat for the family. I'm sure with a Kune Kune I could make my own IPP's with an extended breeding program might be worth doing I love having a homestead project I have enough land to bring in Kune Kune's and still not worry with them getting to my meat hogs I could have them on a different rotation maybe rotate Kune Kune's with the cows to keep away from my meat hogs I'm afraid my Berkshire boars would kill the smaller kune kune if in the same paddocks I run Berkshire boars their friendly and get along with one another maybe because I purchased 3 litter mates and raised them together. Thank you for replying and making a great video.
"Do y'all water your pigs like you water your garden?" Yes! Do your pigs do the "rain dance" under the hose like mine does? He especially loves it when I hose him while he's wallowing!
As long as they have shade, a pool or mud pit they should fair okay. We get temps in the 90’s with humidity and they do okay. I have one who doesn’t stay in the shad and is at risk of sun burning when her fur is thinner.
I couldn’t process a kune. They’re just too good of an animal. I prefer to keep kune kune as pets or breeding, and use a different, less temperamental breed for meat.
Subbed! We are picking up our first 2 pigs this week and they are KuneKune! They are 2 females but I want to find a boar from a different genetic line to breed one of the females and eat the other.
Awesome, welcome and congratulations on getting the new pigs. I’d have a whole farm of them if I had the space. I hope you enjoy them and they meet your needs. If you have any questions, just let me know.
@@RockyCreekHomestead would you suggest crossing them with a Berkshire boar to increase the time to process? I was also thinking about getting goats for vegetation control IF they can be controlled with an electric fence alone. I have a few large areas I wanted cleared and was thinking of just running a few strands of hot wire w/ at least a 5j charger to keep them in. I did have a wild sow about 30# but she pushed should an electric fence and jumped/climbed over the hog panels I had setup....so that's why we are going with domestic piglets lol
Oh wow that’s crazy for a pig to climb over like that, I’ve never seen that. If you cross it, it’ll definitely allow for a quicker growth and probably a bigger yield. That’s what people are trying to achiever with the Idaho pasture pigs. They want the Kune temperament but larger size pigs. I’ve never cross bred though. I raise just for our family and two pigs supply us with our needs annually. From my experience helping a friend I felt containing goats were harder than pigs. If it was me I think I’d attempt hot wire training the kunes kunes within a pen and once acclimated to the wire, moving them inside your area to clear using 3 strands of hot wire.
Polie; Berks are massive! A boar would squash a little Kune gilt or sow, and also note crossing would likley breed in rooting tendencies. We raised Berks for several years. Our boar was around 850-900 lbs....not raised Kunes but some things to think about
What is the sq footage you have for your Kune Kunes? I have about 900 sq feet here in SE Alaska that I would like to raise a couple Kune Kunes on, I don't know if that would be enough for them?? Any Advice?
2 of my pens are approximately 48 x 16 one is 48 x 32. I raise 2 in the 48 x 16 pens without any issues. They wear the grass down quickly which is why I supplement them with hay or hay pellets. The more you put in a small area will require more frequent cleaning of their pens. They are rather clean animals, but they do produce a fair amount of poop, so more than 2 in that small of an area will definitely require more frequent cleaning of their pens. I hope this helps.
We’ve been fortunate and according to our vet she hasn’t seen signs of heavy worm loads in our pigs when she visits. Based on her recommendations we just use ivermectin de-wormer injected every 6 months. So far in 3 years I haven’t seen any signs from the pigs that’s had me deviate. I hope that may help.
For the most part I did. I’ll notice certain pigs may vary slightly in how they’re growing and may adjust some slightly, but for the most part they all eat the same
A friend of mine has a son who showed a pig recently at a fair. He is thinking about raising a blue butt next year for the show. They seem like an interesting pig. Thanks for sharing
My two kunekunes root about 8 inches deep, and can tear up more than 100 square feet per day. And if anything, I probably over-feed them, so they're certainly not starving. My soil is the loose soil you get under pine trees, since most of my farm is pine woods. I'd prefer not to do it, but I guess I'm going to have to do nose-rings. They're also bad to challenge fences, but I think that's because they root so much, which means they roll up the bottom of the fence "by accident". A hot-wire fixed this.
Thanks for sharing your experiences so others can learn. I’ve heard of people having them root but I haven’t seen much of that for my kunes. They’re such cool pigs though.
It’s definitely not the pig for everyone which is why I wanted to share it. For us it works well, but for some it wouldn’t be the best fit. Thanks for watching
I’ve heard of people doing it. I’d personally wouldn’t hesitate other than my boar and that’s only because they’re tusks. I’d be a little concerned they could accidentally harm another animal. Other than that I don’t see any issues
Orchard mix is what I know of most people using and is the hay I buy. I will get alfalfa orchard mix at times as well but alfalfa can be expensive. Hope this helps.
Just got our first kunekune yesterday, paid $50 non registered, going to get 2 females out of the next litter. This is all new to me, but my wife wanted a pig lol have you ever cut the tusks? That’s my main concern
I have not cut them. Mater has gotten his caught in the fence twice which resulted in me cutting a small piece of fence to get him loose. Generally they’ve broke off on their own.
Ours aren’t registered because we’re using them primarily for meat. Registered breeder will often sell unregistered stock at a lower price. A knowledgeable breeder will generally only register the best of the litters unless someone asks for them to be registered. I think it just depends on what you’re planning to have them for. If wanted to breed and sell for most profit then registered will be your best bet.
We don’t get as cold as you all probably do but we do get a couple 6-8 inch snows a year and they do just fine. As long as they have a shelter to keep dry and block the wind they shouldn’t have an issue. I use straw bedding in the winter and they’ll push it into a pile and then burrow down in it while they sleep. The only issue I have in winter months is keeping up with their frozen water bowls.
How much should a 6 month kunekune eat a day? I woke up at near 2 a.m to my girl having babies. I didn't know she was pregnant. What do I use for farrowing home?
I’d suspect around 2 cups of feed a day would be sufficient if they have access to hay or grass. If no access to grass or hay, I’d feed that twice a day and evaluate their body condition. I’ve found some of mine put in weight more so than others and I adjust their feed according to their body composition. For a farrowing home, you’ll mostly need crush rails (2x4) boards mounted to the wall to create a buffer along the wall and prevent crushing of babies. Possibly a heat source for the piglets if in cold temperatures. The mother will need an increase in food intake to maintain milk supply for the piglets. I tripled the feed for my sow last time.
I’ve not made anything yet with the lard other than rendering it for cooking. The lard can be used to make soap though which is something I’d like to do one day. Psoriasis effects people differently and for me eating organic foods, using natural soaps / lotions and trying to reduce stress seemed to be the greatest contributors.
Have you had any aggression with boars when the sows are going into heat? We bought a family, boar, sow and 6 piglets, we have then all together in the pasture and I believe the sow is starting to go into heat and the boar has gotten aggressive (charged me and my wife a few times along with my son). Both breeding parents are registered purebred, the boar is double registered. Is there something different I should be doing? The last time I got in there my boar was coming straight toward me and wasn't even interested in the food. I had to climb up a gate to get away.
I have not personally had this issue. The breeding part is still newer to me so I’m not the most experience there. Since this video I’ve separated the boars from the sows in preparation to pair them in the coming months. I’ll have two breeding pairs going at the same time if all goes well and I can update then if I notice a similar issue.
I feed a swine feed that’s 15% protein at 2 cups a day. Morning 1 cup feed with 1/3 cup alfalfa pellets. Afternoon 1 cup feed with 1/4 cup black oil sunflower seed. Because of my work schedule, sometimes I have to feed both cups of feed in morning at one time. If I have access to hay bales, then I free choice feed the hay and eliminate the pellets. In summary daily 2 cups of feed along with hay or hay pellets and 1/4 cup black oil sunflower seeds. I like to wet the feed for easier digestion. The black oil sunflower seeds is something I try to have on hand but sometimes I got a bit of time without it based on availability or price. I hope this may have helped
Great content! So, I have a 5 acre paddock I plan on using for my 1st Kune Kunes, it will be 1 boar, 2 sows and 2 (two month old) piglets. Can I put them all together or do I need to separate these piglets? I know I'll need to separate the sows and piglets for farrowing. But at what age can they be in the herd?
I’ve not personally had to integrate yet but I am about to in a couple weeks. The 3 piglets birthed last summer I feel are at a good size to try it. I plan to put the 2 full gown ladies together, the younger boar with the full grown and leave the castrated younger pig and younger gilt together. I can update you once I see how that goes. Unfortunately I don’t have much experience with that part yet so I don’t want to give you bad advice just to sound knowledgeable
@@RockyCreekHomestead I spoke with the previous owner when we picked them up. They had been housing them all together from birth so, we are keeping them together. Makes things super easy! I am in love with this breed already!
How much in weight do you feed them? We have kune kune although I think their crossed with something as we have some small but also some tall ones and some really big like youbig boy I think I'm feeding too much good video
I’ve adjusted some the longer I’ve had them. For the last year or so I’ve settled on free choice hay along with 2 cups of grain. If I’m out of hay, I do 1 cup feed, 1/3 cup alfalfa pellet and 1/3 cup black oil sunflower seed in morning and then 1 cup feed in afternoon. I hope that helps
I really don’t know how to best describe the ratio. I know on chops I get a good 1” fat cap. Of course much of that is up to how I ask the processor to cut it. The Boston butts are probably 1/3 fat. It’s definitely a breed you’d only want if you plan to utilize lard. If you’re not planning to find uses for lard, I definitely would recommend a different breed. I feed mine items from garden and fruits from trees. I just do so in moderation. I’ve had them overeat on certain produces and become sick for a day.
Thank you. This gives me a much better idea of what to expect. I appreciate it. I think I was interested in the breed because of their temperament and laid back approach to being in a pen (things like the Mangalitsa, my other choice heritage breed are almost impossible to keep in a pen that isn't Ft Knox of the piggy world). The lard would be a bonus for us as I grow most of our food but do not have a reliable fat source other than sunflower seeds. @@RockyCreekHomestead
So they are a slower growing breed... When can the breed and what size litters should we expect. I found someone who's getting out of them and can get feeders for $25. But would like to try to raise my own from them and don't know much about them.
They can be mature enough for pregnancy as early as 8 months, but with their slower growth 12-18 is more ideal. Litter sizes can vary with the first litter often times being the smallest the sow will have. Average is 6-8 but I had a litter as small as 4.
@@RockyCreekHomestead thanks for the reply. Guy bought a property with them on it and sold them off to get rid of them. I was 3hr away by the time I called (30 min after posting) he said he had a guy coming for the adults and didn't know if he wanted the little pigs... 2hrs later the post was removed. Wrong place and time but got the idea stuck in my head. I don't think I've ever heard of a hog being a good mother until I heard of kunekune. My knowledge is limited but Berkshires seemed to lose 1 or 2 a litter... Even with escape boards
2 of my pens are approximately 48 x 16 one is 48 x 32. I raise 2 in the 48 x 16 pens without any issues. They wear the grass down quickly which is why I supplement them with hay or hay pellets. The more you put in a small area will require more frequent cleaning of their pens. They are rather clean animals, but they do produce a fair amount of poop, so more than 2 in that small of an area will definitely require more frequent cleaning of their pens. I hope this helps.
I just freeze it until I’m ready to use it. If I ever have the time to learn and experiment with soap making, that will be another way to use much of it.
I don’t see why not. I’ve seen them raised with goats without issue. My experience with sheep makes me think the sheep would be easier than goats with them since sheep tend to shy away more. Maybe the boar would be my only concern with his tusks.
Morning Sir I got a question, i got a friend who has a pot belly pig as an indoor pet that thinks hes a dog cause he was raised with blue healers so instead of oinking the pig kinda barks anyway with that pig being an indoor pet could a kunekune be kept inside as a pet cause my daughter wants one and she lives in an apartment
I have seen where people have kept Kune kunes as a pet indoors. My concern though would be the size they’d eventually get. They’re no where near the size of many pigs, but they’re certainly larger than a pot belly. Some people have crossed pot belly or Julianna’s with Kunes for that reason. Now there are various lines of Kunes as well and some are a little smaller than others. I personally would be hesitant to do so because of their size, but there’s people that have.
