Black Slavonian Pig

Facts about Black Slavonian Pigs. The Black Slavonian Pigs are an endangered Croatian breed. The Black Slavonian Pig breed is also called the fajferica breed, Pfeifer swine for the originator of the breed, Schwarzes slovonisches and Crna slavonska.
Black Slavonian Pigs are very intelligent, not like people think, that pigs are dumb animals. Black Slavonian Pigs are omnivores like humans, an omnivores, (definition-they eat both other animals and plants).
The Black Slavonian Pig breed is identified in the book "A World Dictionary of Livestock Breeds, Types and Varieties. Fourth Edition", which came out in 1996.

About the Black Slavonian Pigs

The Black Slavonian Pig snout is its most important tool for finding food. The Black Slavonian Pigs snout is used for their excellent sense of smell. The Black Slavonian Pig are an autochthonous breed native to Croatia. Its namesake black coat is a dominant trait. The Black Slavonian Pig have semi-lop ears.
The Black Slavonian Pigs have less intramuscular fat compared to other breeds of pigs but greater outer layers of fat. The Black Slavonian Pig lower level of intramuscular fat is not considered as tasty as modern factory raised pigs. Feeding management can alter the intramuscular fat from its natural 4% to 8%. The Black Slavonian Pig have high quality muscle and adipose tissue but limited ability to add fat than modern breeds. This type of meat is considered ideal for production of sausage, bacon and a local product called "Slavonian Kulen", a local dry sausage.
The Black Slavonian Pig has a greater life expectancy and better environmental adaptability than the standard factory farmed pig; they are adapted to outdoor farming systems with open foraging for food. The Black Slavonian Pig were raised on the fruits of the forest, feeding on acorns and pastureland's. The Black Slavonian Pig grow best on a mixture of green forage like field peas, grain and legumes. The Black Slavonian Pig can reach 330 pounds (150 kg) of weight at 20 months of age if the wild diet is supplemented with corn. Without supplementation with oats, barley or corn, one hectare of land can support up to four breeding sows and their piglets.
It has improved disease resistance over many domesticated swine breeds. The Black Slavonian Pig produce six to eight piglets per litter. two to three times a year. The fertility of the Black Slavonian Pig breed is lower than average because of inbreeding depression.

Piglets stay with the mother for seven weeks before being separated into a “weaners” group. The Black Slavonian Pig are typically fattened up for eighteen months before being slaughtered; at that age, they weigh between 285 to 330 pounds (130 to 150 kg).

Black Slavonian Pigs can carry a variety of diseases and can pass them to humans. Black Slavonian Pigs have small lungs compared to their body size.

Swine: is any variety of omnivorous, even-toed ungulates of the family Suidae, this includes hogs, boars and pigs having a short neck, thick skin a movable snout and a stout body.

Black Slavonian Pigs Feet

The four feet and four toes of the Black Slavonian Pig are called "trotters" that humans eat as a delicacy called pigs feet or pigs knuckles. A Black Slavonian Pigs foot has four toes that are pointed downwards when the pig walks, it walks on the tips of its toes, rather than its whole foot and only uses two of the toes in the middle and the outside toes for balance. The Black Slavonian Pig has tougher feet at the ends that are hooves. The two toes in the middle of the foot are slightly webbed, this helps the pigs balance for walking.


History of the Breed

The Black Slavonian Pig breed appeared during the 19th century. The Black Slavonian Pig were bred on the estate of Count Karl Pfeiffer near Osijek. This breed arose from the Lasasta Magnolica, Cornwall Black and Poland China breed. The Black Slavonian Pig breed was recognized in 1873 at an exhibition in Vienna.

The Black Slavonian Pig were popular through the 1800s but decreased in popularity as factory farming grew.
In 1996, Croatia signed a Biodiversity Treaty and included the Black Slavonian Pig as one of its breeds to be preserved. The breed’s numbers were increased to over 1000 in 2012. The current breeding population originates from a limited gene pool of 46 sows and 6 boars identified in 1996.

Status of the Breed

The Black Slavonian Pig are being crossbred with Great White and Swedish Landrace swine breeds to increase genetic vigor and quality of meat. There is discussion of introducing English Large Black Boars to add genetic variety and improve quality of meat without losing the Black Slavonian Pig genetic distinctiveness, since the English boars were a contributing source of the original genetic stock.

The other major native breed to Croatia is the Turopolje pig. However, this breed is not being considered for crossbreeding with the Black Slavonian swine. Black Slavonian Pigs unlike is said, happen to be very clean animals. Black Slavonian Pigs make sure their bathroom area is far away from where they eat, lie down and rest, even piglets (baby pigs) will find a place to go to the bathroom, far away from their nest.

Black Slavonian Pigs chew their food because pigs have a digestive system similar to a human digestive system and cannot digest food that is not chewed. Black Slavonian Pigs have 44 teeth when full grown, when they are baby pigs (piglets) the have 28 teeth which will fall out when they are 12 months old. Just like human teeth, the Black Slavonian Pig has an enamel coating that makes the pigs teeth stronger and helps it curb disease.

Black Slavonian Pig are raised for there meat such as ham, sausage, bacon and pork chops. A wild male pig is called a (boar)- meaning uncastrated male pig, that lives in the wild and can be hunted. Feral pigs (means wild) can be a very big danger where humans habitat.

A female adult pig is called a (sow) and the male adult pig is called a (boar).
A Black Slavonian Pig can drink 14 gallons of water in a day. The Mini Maialino is the smallest breed of pig. Truffle Mushroom hunters in France and Italy use pigs to hunt Truffle Mushrooms because of there keen sense of smell, the problem is that, sometimes if the hunter doesn't grab the mushrooms in time, the pig will eat it. Sometimes certain dogs are used instead of pigs. A Pig can make great pets. The scientific name for Pig (Sus scrofa), the wild swine (Boar) from the old world with a narrow body and prominent tusks is from where most domestic swine come from and introduced in the United States and bred to what we have as today's pig. The "fear of pigs Swinophobia".