 In addition to quality
English Jack Russell Terrier's and
Australian Cattle
Dogs, we are a self sustaining, working farm. We specialize only in Heritage Breeds which are richer in flavor and much lower in fat and cholesterol than commercially grown meat and dairy. Today's food market is disturbingly high risk, and every day there seems to be another story regarding the
 recall of one food product or another. In addition, profit drives the market so growth hormones are used to feed livestock and enhance their growth, thus making them ready for market, sooner. Remember, you are in the food chain, so what they eat.........you eat.
Cattle,
pork,
chicken,
turkey..........all fed growth hormones and other unsavory chemicals which is passed on to you. Finally, there is the ethical issue on how these animals are treated until ready for slaughter. Most live lives of stark confinement. Again, to help enhance weight gain and growth. All too often there is the report of abuse in these animals. "Downed" animals, or those too sick to walk to the slaughter are kicked, punched and prodded to their death.
At Great Brook Farm, we raise lean, healthy,
Heritage breed
livestock: Registered Scottish Highland Cattle, Registered Tamworth Hogs, Registered Gloucestershire Old Spot Hogs, Registered Oberhasli Goats, broiler chickens, turkey's and laying hens. Did you know that 3 oz. of Highland beef has the same fat content as a skinless chicken breast!! Now that's steak you can feel good about.
Every bird and animal has plenty of green pasture to graze, sunshine, and exercise until, finally, the livestock that is used for food is humanely transported to a USDA processor where they are humanely treated and minimally processed. We occasionally have product for sale.
We hope that you will take time to enjoy the
pictures of our
farm, learn more about these Heritage breed animals, and perhaps try some of these delicious products for yourself by visiting your local Farmer's Market.
In a continued effort to build our Heritage breed farm, we are excited to announce that we have acquired the very rare, Red Wattle Hogs. We are so grateful to our friends, Marian and Jim Van Beever from Missouri for these beautiful animals. To my knowledge, we are the first in the State of Maine to have Red Wattle Hogs. The Red Wattles that you see here belong to Marian Van Beever of Five Ponds Farm. Please visit their site at
www.fivepondsfarm.com I will post pictures of my piggies as soon as they arrive. Keep watching as our goal is to have these special Hogs for sale right here in Maine in the Spring of 2009!
The following information is taken from, The American Livestock Breeds Conservancy. To learn more about heritage breeds, please visit them at:
www.albc-usa.org
Red Wattle Hog
 The Red Wattle is a large, red hog with a fleshy wattle attached to each side of the neck. The wattles have no known function. They are a single gene characteristic and usually pass to crossbred offspring. The Red Wattle comes in a variety of shades of red, some with black specks or patches, and red and black hair. Some individuals are nearly black. The head and jowl are clean and lean, the nose is slim, and ears are upright with drooping tips. The body is short coupled and the back slightly arched. Mature animals weigh 600-800 pounds, but may weigh as much as 1200 pounds and measure up to four feet high and eight feet long.
Red Wattle hogs are known for hardiness, foraging activity, and rapid growth rate. They produce a lean meat that has been described as flavorful and tender. The sows are excellent mothers, farrow litters of 10 –
15 piglets, and provide good quantities of milk for their large litters. They have a mild temperament.
 Red Wattles adapt to a wide range of climates. Their active foraging make them a good choice for consideration in outdoor or pasture-based swine production. Their gentle nature recommends them to the small-scale, independent producer.
The origin and history of the Red Wattle breed is obscure and many hypotheses have been put forward. What is certain is that the breed, as it is known today, was derived from the large, red, wattled hogs found in a wooded area of eastern Texas in the early 1970s by Mr. H.C. Wengler. He reported breeding two red wattled sows with a Duroc boar, then breeding the wattled offspring back to the original sow. Over several generations he developed what became known as the “Wengler Red Waddle Hog.”
In the early 1980s Robert Prentice located another herd of red wattled hogs. This line became known as the Timberline, named after its wooded origins of east Texas. He combined these with the Wengler Red Waddles to create the Endow Farm Wattle Hogs.
 During the early 1980s, a boom time in the hog market, both breeding and market hogs brought a premium. Crosses with the Red Wattle inherited a leaner carcass and showed good hybrid vigor. Three organizations served as registries for Red Wattle hogs and over 100 people were involved with Red Wattles. The breed, however, has never been supported by an active breed association. In the mid-1980s the American Livestock Breeds Conservancy facilitated a meeting of the breeders, encouraging them to unify their efforts to benefit the breed. The breeders preferred to continue with the three registry system. ALBC’s 1990 census reported 272 purebred registered offspring. In late 1999 Jerry Russell began to search for Red Wattle hogs and found only 42 breeding animals belonging to six breeders. None of the three registries had registered stock in years. At the breeders request, ALBC is maintaining a pedigree registry for the breed and providing technical support. Connected breeders are searching for others who may have Red Wattle hogs so that all eligible animals can participate in the breed’s recovery.
The story of the Red Wattle breed illustrates the problems associated with conservation of regional and local populations. Often poorly documented, even when common, these breeds can be rapidly lost when no formal network exists to conserve and promote them.
Status: Critical
Breed clubs and associations:
The American Livestock Breeds Conservancy, Box 477, Pittsboro, NC 27312, (919) 542-5704, email
albc@albc-usa.org,
www.albc-usa.org
Red Wattle Hog Association, Kelly Wendland, 21901 Mayday Rd, Barnes, Kansas 66933, (785) 944-3574
|
