Show Tips
Below you will find several tips to help you have a very good experience in the show ring. Keep in mind that showing a great pig is not easy and requires a lot of hard work and effort, but the rewards are definitely worth it!
General Facts about the Ideal Pig
Tips to Finding the Pig
Tips to preparing your pig (feeding, handling, etc.)
Tips for in the Show Ring
General Facts about the Ideal Pig
Click here to view the parts of a pig.
Ideal Market Pig
Weighs about 220 - 250 pounds |
| No less than
29.75 inches long |
| Less than
1.0 of last rib fat depth |
| Greater than
4.75 inches of loin eye area |
| Clean down
his top |
| Have an abundance
of muscling in the ham and loin region |
| Functionally
sound |
| Strong, bold
head and ear |
| Firm, trim
jowl |
| Deep, wide
chest floor |
| Heavy boned |
| Width between
front legs |
| Smooth, clean
shoulder |
| Deep ribbed |
| Correct set
of pasterns |
| Long bodied |
| Clean turn
of top |
| Uniform and
level top |
| A long, thick,
level rump |
| High tail
setting |
| Long, muscular,
deep ham |
| Muscular stifle |
| Correct set
of hocks |
| Cushion to
pasterns |
| Well framed
and well balanced |
| Full and deep
through center and lower portion of ham |
| Firm at base
of ham |
| Legs set wide
apart |
What you DON'T want in a Market Pig
 Excess condition
over the shoulder and through the neck (too fat) |
| No indentation
at ham and loin junction (too fat) |
| Excess condition
over tail (too fat) |
| Ridge along edge
of loin (too fat) |
| Short sided (too
fat) |
| Wrinkles along
side (too fat) |
| Excess condition
on elbow packet (too fat) |
| Deep, heavy middle
(too fat) |
| Sloppy jowl (too
fat) |
| Flat ham (too
fat) |
| Loose at base
of ham (too fat) |
| Thick and flat
over top (too fat) |
| Wider at hip
than at base of ham (too fat) |
| Soft and loose
at base of ham (too fat) |
| Fat and narrow
through center portion of ham (too fat) |
| Square shape
to body (too fat) |
| Too refined through
head (too thin) |
| Shallow, narrow
chest floor (too thin) |
| Shallow bodied
(too thin) |
| Cut up in flank
(too thin) |
| Light, funnel
shaped ham (too thin) |
| Tapering rump
(too thin) |
| Narrow, shallow
loin (too thin) |
| Tight ribbed
(too thin) |
| Narrow topped
(too thin) |
| Flat through
lower ham and stifle (too thin) |
| Fine boned (too
thin) |
| Legs placed close
together (too thin) |
| High topped |
| Straight shouldered |
| Too striaght
on front and rear legs |
| Walks "peggy"
on front legs |
| "Goose steps"
on rear legs |
| Bulging, tight,
round muscle |
| Low tail setting |
| Steep rumped |
| Pig seems constricted
in movement |
Tips to finding the right Pig
If you don't produce your own pigs, finding the right pig can be a difficult process. However, if you know what to look for, you will have success.
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Purchase your pig from a reputable breeder. A good breeder will be able to help you select a pig that is perfect for you. If you're having a hard time finding a good breeder in your area, contact your local extension office. |
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Look for a pig with the qualities mentioned above in the "Ideal Pig" section. Keep in mind that "bad" aspects in a pig will more than likely only get worse as the pig gets older, especially feet and leg problems. |
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Observe the pig standing and walking. You want a pig to be sound on their feet and legs. |
Tips to preparing your pig (feeding, handling, etc.)
Once you find the right pig for you, it's now time to raise him or her right! Here are some tips on how to prepare your pig for the show.
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When you bring your pig home, be sure to isolate him or her from your other pigs. This will prevent the spread of any diseases to your other pigs. It is recommended to keep pigs (from different farms) separated for 60 days if possible. | |
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Vaccinate and deworm your pig (only if healthy!) Vaccinate with PleuroGuard 4® or Pneu-PacR-E® to prevent erysipelas, which canresult in sudden death, skin disease and lame-ness; and actinobacillus pleuropneumonia(APP), which causes pneumonia,sudden death and chronic poor doers. Then repeat again about 30 days later. Use Safe-Guard® (fenbendazole) administereddaily for 3 days or Atgard® C (dichlorvos) to deworm your pig and then repeat again about 30 days later. Also to prevent porcine reproductive respiratory syndrome (PRRS), you can use amodified-live PRRS vaccine (Ingelvac®* PRRS MLV). | |
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Make sure your pig stays cool! This is very important because heat stress can cause decreased performance, decreased reproduction, diseases and even death. Make sure you have plenty of clean, cool water for your pig especially during warmer months. You might want to keep a fan on your pig or even misters (provides a light mist of water). This will not only help keep them cool, but also reduces flies and other pests. Also make sure there is plenty of shade available for your pig, especially if they are light colored. Light colored pigs sunburn VERY easily. | |
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Groom your pig regularly. This includes brushing with a soft bristled brush and shampooing/conditioning. | |
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You will definitely want to get your pig on a good feed program. Below are some examples for feeding your show pig: |
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When you first bring your pig home, give him or her free choice of feed. Your new pig has a lot to overcome such as weaning, hauling and other traumatizing events. | |
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When your pig reaches 150 pounds, begin feeding him or her around 5 pounds of feed per day (adjust accordingly to your target weight). If you see your pig becoming too heavily muscled, change to a lower protein feed. You also might want to begin top-dressing your pig's feed at this time. Try to use a top-dressing that includes chromium picolinate and L-carnitine. This will reduce the deposition of fat. | |
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When your pig reaches 200+ pounds, you need to evaluate where your pig needs improvement and then adjust your feed and top-dressing accordingly. | |
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Weigh your pig frequently. This will greatly help you in achieving your target weight. | |
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Work with your pig! When you first bring your pig home you might want to spend about 30 minutes everyday just sitting in the pen with your pig. This will get him or her used to you. When your pig becomes comfortable with you, begin to touch him or her and work with them gradually. You might even want to try giving him or her a treat such as Vanilla Wafers! Once your pig is used to you handling him or her, move to about 20 minutes each day getting your pig out of the pen and working with them. | |
Tips for in the Show Ring
If you have properly selected, fed and conditioned your pig, the show ring should be a breeze. Here's some tips to help get you in the Winner's Circle!
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Always look at and face the judge. This is especially important in showmanship classes. You wouldn't want the judge to look at you and your pig and you're off waving at Mom in the stands. |
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Know as much about your pig as possible. The judge could come over and speak to you about your animal and you definitely wouldn't want to NOT be able to answer one of his or her questions. Some of the questions could include: Feeding questions, basic anatomy questions, questions about your breed of pig, or even ask you to describe what you think are your pig's best aspects. |
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Never stand between your pig and the judge. If the judge is looking at the front of your animal, you will want to stand to the side so that the judge has a clear view of your animal's front, and the same goes for the other areas of the animal. Always try to give the judge the best view of your pig. Keep your pig between you and the judge at all times. |
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Dress nicely! Wear a long sleeve shirt and NICE pants. Wear boots because not only does this look more appealing, but if the pig were to step on your foot, their hoof would slide off of boots easier than they would a pair of tennis shoes - OUCH! Also, don't wear a cap. |
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Make sure your pig is spotless and shiny from head to toe to tail! Make sure you groom him or her well before entering the ring. |
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Use your show stick/whip to control your pig. However, NEVER hit your pig with the show stick. You might think you're punishing the pig, but it actually makes the pig more nervous and could even result in you losing the class because of that and because judges don't like to see that either. |
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If your pig runs away from you, DO NOT frantically run after him or her disrupting all of the other pigs. Walk quickly and retrieve your pig. |
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Keep a good distance between your pig and all the others and be curteous to the other showmen. Also keep about 10-15 feet of distance between your pig and the judge. You definitely wouldn't want to crowd the judge where he or she can't get a good look at your pig. |
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If you are not selected as champion when the judge first makes his selection (ESPECIALLY in showmanship classes) do not become frustrated or give up! The judge could change his mind or he might be curious as to how to react to not being placed 1st. This is a commonly used technique... so keep that smile on your face even if you're last! |
We hope the above tips can help you to Show success! And remember to have fun! If you have any tips or if you had success using our tips, please click here to tell us about it. We'd love to hear from you!