Appalachian KuneKunes

05/13/2023

Missing my sweet boys a lot today. 💕

04/15/2023

Yesterday was the first day in 3 years I woke up to no pigs. 🐷 it’s certainly different. When I start missing them a lot I remind myself that I hardly even had time to spend with them the past year. It doesn’t make me miss them less but it helps me feel better about taking a break.
Now I’m over here drawing out designs to turn my pig shelters into chicken coops. 🐓😂

04/11/2023

Got a hair cut for the first time since right before Adam and I got married. It feels so good. Lol. my sisters wedding is what encouraged me to do it this time. 😂

04/11/2023

It’s ironic that the last two kunes I have on my farm were from the first two litters born here. I’m enjoying their company while I can. Feeding only takes 2 seconds which is wild. Lol.

04/08/2023

One of my friends said their phone sent them this throw back of me in all my pig glory. Gosh I miss these babies! Luckily there all not too far away.

I had a dream last night that I had 20 pigs I didn’t expect and I didn’t know where they came from. Most of my pig dreams are chaotic and I am constantly trying to figure out what to do with them. They live deep in my heart and my psyche. Lol. I miss them a lot but I am so relieved to have a break and focus on obtaining that homestead I dream of for my family. ❤️

04/04/2023

We are down to 2 pigs now. 😮
They’ll be picked up by the end of April.

It’s wild going down to a pigless field. My moments of sadness have decreased as I begin to feel more and more every day like this was the right decision for us right now.
I’ve been walking through the field observing how it is all growing back. It is wild to see how lush and beautiful the pasture has become since we have rotated pigs in the field.
Here is a video of two plots side by side. The plot on the right had pigs on it during the winter of 2021 into spring of 2022. I did put a couple pigs back on it this summer for about 2 months as well. The plot to the left was tilled and had h**p growing in it during the summer of 2022.
Quite a difference in the affect of the two different uses. Pigs are simply amazing in so many ways for a homestead. Pasture maintenance and quality improvement, food, & therapy all in one. 😂🐷😍❤️

03/23/2023

This is going to be good! John is one of the original folks who went to New Zealand and started the preservation of this breed! Check it out!!

Fat & Round | New Zealand Type Kunekune Conformation with John Earney

Wednesday | March 29th 730PM EST

Join us for an amazing webinar filled with 45 years of KuneKune experience with John Earney of New Zealand as he teaches us about New Zealand type conformation of the kunekune pig. We will start the presentation with a big announcement concerning NZ conformation and the EKPA show series this year! You won’t want to miss this event as some of the best practices he speaks about can be applied into your show videos this year!

$10 for nonmembers

To register : https://www.ekpa.org/ekpacheckout/fatandroundwithjohnearney

03/19/2023

21 baby chickens hatched this week!
They’re so cute. We got a bunch of green fertilized eggs from our friends at Humble Horizons. They had an array of chickens bred by a Rhode Island’s Red rooster. We wanted to get some green egg layers so we are excited for this hatch! Some of our own chicken eggs are in this mix as well coming from our array of different hens bred by our Araucana rooster.

Next we’re hatching a bunch of our Pheonix chicken eggs.

We will have some fertilized eggs available as well!

-Starting next week we will have a couple dozen Pheonix chicken eggs per week.
- after our Turkey hen hatches her first clutch we will have hertiage Turkey eggs available.
- and of course we have our own hens eggs availble as well.

We will also do more hatching and will have baby chickens available. ❤️

03/18/2023

Our layer hen egg verses Phoenix chicken egg. They’re so cute! 😍

03/17/2023

Hey friends! I’m helping a local farmer friend of ours in Independence VA try and find new homes for their kunekune herd. They’ve been breeding for meat so they’ve got great stock for those who have this goal in mind. Mostly unregistered stock with one registered UK bloodline boar. She’s offering some killer deals. It would be a great opportunity to invest introduced into the wonderful world of Kunekunes or American Guinae Hogs.

They have the following

- registered UK bloodline boar who is about who will be 3 this August. I had his brother and his brother has shown one of the best growth rates I’ve seen!

- 4 sows, 1 is ginger/black and like 6-7 years old, the others will be 2 this summer, two ginger/blacks and a black/white.

- 18 month old black/white gilt.

- three Guinea hog gilts are maybe 6 months old.

03/14/2023

It is with a heavy heart that I am here to say I am stepping away from raising pigs for the time being.
These animals have brought so much love into my heart and passion into my life. They have been my therapy animal for 3 years now and will forever remain so.
The thing is we do not own our property, and are truly living the Appalachian way over here meaning, we broke as f**k. Lol. Not only that but we haven’t been able to travel and go have fun for 3 years now and it’s taking a toll on all of us.
I love breeding these animals especially to become more hardy in our mountain regions and for those who got piglets from us thank you so much for supporting our mission and family. I hope our pigs serve you well. They sure did serve us well.

I will absolutely come back to raising pigs once we have our own property but for now I will be helping fellow farmers and continuing to educate myself on pig raising and homesteading. My dream is to have a homestead that is as self sustaining as possible and honestly 30 pigs will never be necessary for that though I cannot promise I won’t have 30 again one day. 😜

I’ll be here and will try to continue to post on this page or maybe make another that is more encompassing to my entire goal of sustainable living and homesteading. If so I will let you know.

I will also be here if you have any questions or need any help with your pig ventures. I’d be more than happy to help you and guide you from the experience I’ve gained. I’ve experienced at least 30 farrowings and have been elbow deep in a farrowing sow before. I LOVE being part of the farrowing process so please don’t hesitate to reach out to me.

This is a picture of Sugar Snap. He was the 3rd pig I ever had. He was also the most cuddly and affectionate pig I had. No he is not a purebred kunekune. To be honest I never posted about my mixed breeds on here because of all the damn drama on social media yet my mixed breeds were the hardest for me to let go of.
Let me just say something here. F**K WHAT ANYONE ELSE THINKS. Stay out of the drama, find an experienced, honest mentor with no alternative motives especially one of getting rich. Find a mentor who loves their animals and spends time every day with them.
Every pig I have had has been incredibly loving and affectionate. The very boar in this picture has always been soft and sweet but once I had him separated from the herd to long and he began to charge me. I went in and had to put my foot down and show him whose boss and then I put him back in with the rest of his pig friends and it never happened again. He was angry he was alone that was all. No I did not have to hit him, just came in with a big presence, loud voice, and a long pole I slammed on the ground.
I Iove ALL PIGS and every pig wants to trust you, but sometimes you have to earn that trust. Once you do they will love you unconditionally. Yes purebred Kunekunes tend to be more docile but every pig is different and every pig is smart.
My favorite thing to do is put my hand over their hearts and just feel them soften into trust and love. It’s what we want as humans it’s just more complicated. 😜❤️

Love your animals and they will love you. Thanks for being with me on this journey. I assure you, it is not over. ❤️

03/02/2023

Happy national pig day!! To the animals that stole my heart, gave me passion and fire to keep going, and also provide therapy for me. You will forever be in my heart. ❤️