All about the Tamworth Pig
Appearance
A very distinctive red coated prick eared pig with a long snout. Tamworths are hardy and resilient thanks to their thick, coarse coatmaking them ideally-suited to living outdoors all year round.
Character
The Tamworth is the pig with personality! They are very vocal and lively and have good mothering qualities.
Meat Quality
It’s an excellent dual-purpose pig, suitable for pork or bacon.
History
The Tamworth’s history is subject to much speculation. There are those who feel that because of its unusual colour the Tamworth must have had an exotic past, but the truth is that most of the scientific evidence points towards the Tamworth being the closest match to the old British forest pig. All native breeds are descended from the European wild boar, which had a long snout and came in a variety of colours (including red). In an attempt to improve these breeds Asian pigs were introduced about 300 years ago. These pigs had much shorter snouts and therefore the level of Asian influence can possibly be quantified by looking at how short and squashed the snout is. Using this basic guide the Tamworth, with its long pointed nose, could be said to be the purest indigenous pig.
Numbers
Despite its indigenous credentials the Tamworth pig is listed by the Rare Breeds Survival Trust as vulnerable. There are currently less than 300 registered breeding sows left in this country.
A very distinctive red coated prick eared pig with a long snout. Tamworths are hardy and resilient thanks to their thick, coarse coatmaking them ideally-suited to living outdoors all year round.
Character
The Tamworth is the pig with personality! They are very vocal and lively and have good mothering qualities.
Meat Quality
It’s an excellent dual-purpose pig, suitable for pork or bacon.
History
The Tamworth’s history is subject to much speculation. There are those who feel that because of its unusual colour the Tamworth must have had an exotic past, but the truth is that most of the scientific evidence points towards the Tamworth being the closest match to the old British forest pig. All native breeds are descended from the European wild boar, which had a long snout and came in a variety of colours (including red). In an attempt to improve these breeds Asian pigs were introduced about 300 years ago. These pigs had much shorter snouts and therefore the level of Asian influence can possibly be quantified by looking at how short and squashed the snout is. Using this basic guide the Tamworth, with its long pointed nose, could be said to be the purest indigenous pig.
Numbers
Despite its indigenous credentials the Tamworth pig is listed by the Rare Breeds Survival Trust as vulnerable. There are currently less than 300 registered breeding sows left in this country.