Monday 25 July 2011

The main breeds in Kenya

Large White
They are distinguished by their erect ears and slightly dished faces. They are long bodied with excellent hams and fine white hair. Very prolific, late maturing with good mothering ability and can be used for pork and bacon production. Fairly hardy animal. Large white are found practically in all crossbreeding and rotational breeding programmes. Sows have an enviable reputation as dams and form the foundation of the classic F1 hybrid gilt. They are the favourite breed in the country and the world over.
Landrace
It is a very versatile breed performing well under good management. They are white in colour, have dropping ears and a straight snout.  Sows produce and rear large litters of piglets with very good daily gain ( ADG) and high lean meat content ideal for either pork or bacon production.
Yorkshires
Many consider them the mother of all pigs. This breed has set the standard for large litter sizes, good milking ability, and strong mothering instincts at birth and through weaning. They consistently have high yielding carcasses. They have a long, big frame and are white with erect ears.
Duroc
Durocs are golden brown to black in colour with a thick auburn coat and hard skin. They have small, slightly drooping ears. Traditionally, Durocs have been use as terminal sires (traits associated with it are quick growth, deep body, broad ham and shoulder). Its tenacity in looking after its young, combined with its docility between times, makes it an ideal candidate for an out door pig either as a sire or as a dam. Its succulent carcass and heavy muscling makes it a very suitable pig for anything from light pork to heavy hog production. pigs are reddish in color with droopy ears. Duroc is considered, by many, to have the best tasting pork. It is also considered one of the hardiest breeds and they do well outside with simple housing. This is the red pig. These hogs, noted for their fast growth and good feed efficiency, are a reddish color with droopy ears. On the average, this breed needs less feed to make a pound of muscle than the other breeds.


Hampshire
The breed has been developed in the United Stares of America and is now one of the world's most important breeds. It is used extensively as the sire of cross bred pigs for pork and bacon production. The Hampshire is very prolific. It produces an abundance of lean meat and has more meat than the large white or landrace.

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