Pigs Mangal – photo, weight, care

The Mangala pig breed is one of the best representatives of the meat direction. They are distinguished by their relative undemandingness to the conditions of keeping, they can find food on their own in the pasture, they are very hardy, and tolerate weather changes calmly.

History of origin

Photo:

Mangals are believed to be a breed of pig developed in the early 19th century in Hungary by crossing traditional Hungarian Bakony with Serbian Samady and wild boar.

Its popularity peaked in the post-war years, when demand for salami and bacon increased in Europe.

However, in the late 1970s, when products containing a lot of animal fats were recognized as harmful to health, the population of mangals in many countries of the Old World was sharply reduced, and these pigs were on the verge of extinction.

The situation was saved by the company “Jamones Segovia”, which found 90 females of this breed for reproduction. It managed to achieve great success in the revival of mangals.

In particular, today Jamones Segovia is the only company that owns all three types of these pigs and has large herds of these animals.

Mangalica is included in the program for the protection of native breeds of Hungary and is the pride of the state.

Every February, Budapest hosts the Mangalica Festival, where sausage makers compete, gastronomic competitions are held, entertainment programs are held, and national cuisine is tasted.

Habitat

The Mangal pig breed was brought to Russia in large quantities at once. Initially, it was bred in the Moscow region and the North Caucasus. Now this breed is becoming increasingly popular in our country.

As for abroad, it has become widespread in Spain, England, Hungary and Ukraine.

Breed description

Characteristic:

• The body is of medium size, squat and strong.
• The skeleton is strong.
• The muzzle is quite narrow, slightly elongated, the ears are medium in size, hanging over the eyes, covered with hair, like the rest of the body.
• The limbs are strong, powerful, with well-developed muscles, also covered with hair.
• The belly is large and hangs down strongly.
• The back is straight, the chest is wide.
• The tail is of medium length, also covered with fur.
• Teats and hooves are black.
• The neck is broad, cylindrical and rather short.
• Height at the withers is about 50 cm.
• The belly is firm and does not sag.
• The loin is wide.
• The color of the fur can be red, white or mixed. There is also a black variety of mangals. However, there are very few representatives of this species left, so we can say that they are on the verge of extinction.
• These animals have a calm and friendly character, but they are quite active and can wander around pastures and walking areas for a long time in search of food. They prefer to be kept outdoors; it is not recommended to close them in piggeries for a long time.

Thanks to their abundant hair, these animals are not afraid of either the cold or the bites of blood-sucking flying insects. Along the body, the hair is tight, and on the back it stands vertically.

This fur coat grows back in individuals by mid-autumn, and in the spring the pigs begin to shed, and the hair coat becomes thinner.

Thanks to such a warm short fur coat, animals can perfectly winter outside; they only need a bedding of hay or straw so as not to sleep in the snow.

Even the young feel great in the open air during the winter. This lifestyle was also inherited from their wild relatives.

Reviews

According to farmers, the advantages of the breed include:

• the meat of such pigs is juicy and tender with a small layer of fat;
• individuals of this breed get by well on foraged food during the summer season, but also in winter they are able to digest any food, so the cost of food for barbecues is low;
• Representatives of this breed have a very strong immune system, inherited from their distant wild ancestors, so they tolerate any weather changes well and practically do not get sick;
• the young animals are distinguished by their precocity, therefore, at a fairly early age, pigs are capable of reproducing offspring;
• Due to their high resistance to frost, these animals can be bred in northern regions;
• Despite the quality of the feed, individuals quickly gain body weight (mainly muscle).

The obvious disadvantages of the breed include:

• The population of Mangal pigs is not high, so they can be called a rare breed;
• Due to the small number of Mangals, their price is much higher than that of other meat breeds of pigs;
• Mangal females produce fewer piglets than other breeds of pigs.

Meat productivity

The slaughter yield of meat is 70-80%. This is a very high figure in comparison with other types of meat.

Mangalitsa, which belongs to the lard type of pig breeds, is known throughout the world for the value of its cholesterol-free lard and marbled meat with an abundance of fatty veins.

At the age of 8 months, piglets acquire a solid layer of subcutaneous fat – up to 5 cm. By the 10th month, the thickness of this layer can already reach 10 cm.

Due to the admixture of wild pig blood, the fertility of Hungarian Mangalitsas is not very high. During the first pregnancy, a sow gives birth to no more than 5 piglets, although later the number of piglets in one litter increases to 8-10.

Dried-smoked jamon is obtained from the meat of the Hungarian Mangalica. Mangals have a special feature at the genetic level: they actively build up muscle tissue rather than fat, which is why they get fat less.

In this regard, they are classified as a meat type as an elite breed among herbivores.

Breeding

Just like Mangalitsa, Mangals are a breed of pigs that reach sexual maturity early: at 5-7 months of age, the female can already become pregnant.

However, the owners of these breeds recommend mating no earlier than the expectant mother reaches a weight of 100 kg – this is required to obtain viable offspring with strong immunity.

Mangals are more fertile than their Hungarian ancestors of the lard type. So, if Mangalitsa can bring only 5-6 piglets in one litter, then for Mangals the appearance of 12-16 piglets, starting from the second farrowing, is considered the norm.

During farrowing, the female pig of the Mangal breed (according to the owners) is able to independently take care of the safety of her offspring: she makes a nest in a haystack and behaves carefully, despite her enormous weight.

Young piglets of Mangalica, Mangal and Wild Boar are very similar: their common feature is bright light or dark stripes on a contrasting background.

At the age of 1 month, the Wild Boar piglets stretch out in length, Mangalitsa become rounded, covered with curly wool, Mangals resemble Mangalitsa in body shape, retaining an elongated muzzle and wool quality, like wild ones.

It is recommended to wean piglets from their mother at the age of one month. By this time, young Mangals and Mangalitsas become hardy, have a strong immune system, are able to digest hard food and are ready to go to free pasture.

Content

Rules:

• The pigsty is made as spacious as possible. Inside, even in winter, it should be above 0 degrees. There should be several windows, artificial lighting, drafts are avoided.
• Walking is one of the most important moments of keeping Mangals. They are not kept without walking, they are simply not designed for life locked up. Therefore, it is necessary to provide a spacious enclosure, shade from the sun, a place for a trough with food and water.
• Cleaning is carried out regularly; this breed will not live in dirt.
• When keeping pigs free-range, it is important to ensure that the pasture is free of poisonous plants.
• The piglet pen must be fenced to protect it from predators.

Despite not very high productivity rates, the Mangalitsa pig breed is advantageous over others due to its extreme simplicity and low cost of maintenance.

Thanks to genes inherited from wild Carpathian boars, Hungarian pigs can live in completely unprepared conditions and feed on foraged food.

From the time the breed was developed until the middle of the last century, Hungarian farmers practiced nomadic grazing of pigs on mountain pastures.

Only in winter were they driven into hastily made shelters that provided the bare minimum of protection from the cold. And in such semi-wild conditions the breed provided excellent profitability, despite its relatively low productivity.

Nowadays, some pig farmers also practice traditional mangal methods of keeping pigs, in which the animals are driven to natural pastures in the summer and returned to the pens in the winter.

It is true that it is quite obvious that this method can only be practiced in areas where there is a lot of free land with rich grasses.

However, with free-range and nomadic management, high profitability of production is achieved, and pigs give the maximum of what they are capable of in terms of quantity and quality of meat products.

Since not everyone can afford the open method of keeping, some farmers practice the traditional method of keeping barbecues indoors.

Unfortunately, in such conditions, the main advantages of Hungarian down pigs are leveled. In order to maintain the quality of meat at the proper level, it is necessary to select the diet very carefully, which significantly reduces the profitability of production.

In addition, lack of movement provokes obesity in pigs, increasing the amount of cheap fat and reducing the amount of valuable meat in the slaughter yield.

When choosing the traditional method of keeping pigs outdoors, it is important to remember that pigs protect themselves from frost by burying themselves in straw. Therefore, a large pile of hay or straw must be present in the winter pen.

Feeding

In terms of feeding, Mangal pigs are very profitable. This is mostly a herbivorous breed, so pasture is quite enough for its growth and development. But, of course, the highest productivity can only be achieved by adding compound feed, mash, and premixes to pasture.

So, a complete diet for an adult Mangal pig should contain:

• forage (grass);
• branches of trees and shrubs (especially recommended in winter, when there is no greenery);
• fallen fruit (but not rotten);
• crushed grain;
• premixes, chalk, clay, bone meal.

Now a little about the peculiarities of feeding Mangals:

1. Mangals are fed 2-3 times a day.
2. 25-30 days before slaughter, it is worth transferring the animal to grain feeding. Individuals are given 300 g of good grain per day, this improves the quality of meat. Of course, in addition to this, it is necessary to continue to give mash, fruits, but in smaller quantities.
3. It is advisable to feed piglets with chatter from the 3rd to the 5th day of life, if the female does not have enough milk for all the piglets. It is made from roasted barley grains.
4. Water should be available in unlimited quantities, especially for piglets. Only clean water is given, as dirty water may contain pathogens.
5. At about 3 weeks of age, piglets begin to eat adult food.

Diseases and their treatment

The pigs of the breed variety we are interested in have a very strong immune system, however, they will not be able to resist various diseases without any help at all.

So, it is very important to vaccinate piglets in a timely manner against such diseases as:

• plague;
• mug;
• leptospirosis;
• encephalitis;
• foot and mouth disease, etc.

In addition, it is important to carry out antihelminthic cleansing of the pigs’ bodies in a timely manner by feeding them the appropriate drugs.

Breeding Prospects

Hungarian down pigs are attractive primarily because, if certain conditions are met, they provide very low production costs.

Accordingly, it is very profitable to breed them where there is enough free land suitable for grazing.

Taking into account the low population density in many regions of our country and the presence of huge unused land resources, the prospects for this breed in the Russian Federation are indeed very great.

First of all, the breed will be interesting to amateur pig breeders, that is, ordinary villagers. Having fenced a small plot of land, not even rented, but simply no man’s land, it is possible to successfully establish breeding of the Mangal pig breed without any expenses.

But farmers will have to take care to ensure that their pigs graze on the purchased or appropriately registered plot of land.