A display at this year’s Calgary Stampede had a specific task – to tackle some of the myths about pig farming.
“This is the greatest thing to show the public,” said Doug Hall, who raises hogs near Acme, Alta.
While people attending the display pet piglets and scratch a sow behind the ear, they also ask about crates, ear notching and general hog care.
“People think they are smaller and more aggressive. One person thought the pig was drugged,” said Hall, who prefers an honest approach to dealing with the curious public.
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“The best thing is to tell it like it is.”
The Alberta Pork Producers Association has set up sow crates at the Stampede and other exhibitions for the last two years to show people how modern pigs are raised and explain why they are confined at certain times.
“There are very few concerned who go away mad.”
He said some people have other reasons for objecting to this method of raising pigs and their opinions are not changed.
Producers like Hall are available to answer questions from the throngs of people who crowd around the stalls. They are also willing to talk about pig husbandry, explaining how piglets are delivered, describing identification techniques and showing where cuts of pork originate.
Sows drinking from a water nipple arouse exclamations of amazement.
Others are surprised to see how piglets nose around for something to eat and quickly appreciate the safety that the crate provides in preventing them from being squashed.
