National FFA Convention
Livestock Coaches Clinic
Swine Segment
Tammy Miller
Joliet Junior College
October 25, 2012
Swine Segment Overview
 Recent
trends in the swine industry
 Trend application to livestock judging
 Use of swine terminology in reasons
 Use of swine performance data in
placings and in reasons
1986 Illinois State Fair Open Show Champion Barrow
Recent Trends in the
Swine Industry
 Early/mid
1990’s – 2004 emphasis on:
– Larger framed
– Leaner designed
– Higher percent lean
$3,500 - 2002 National
Barrow Show
Champion Spot Boar
2002 Fall Classic
Reserve Champion Spot Boar
Freakish??
Prodigy
Former $100,000 Sire
Lean Value Sires
New Carlisle, Ohio
Trends in the Swine Industry
 Consequences
of the push for lean:
– sacrificed production traits especially
growth and meat quality
– structural correctness problems
developed
2004 Fall Classic Reserve
Champion Spot Boar
Trends in the Swine Industry
 Late
2004 selection focus switched to:
– Wider designed
– Stouter boned
– Bigger ribbed
– Overall more productive animals
2004 Fall Classic
Champion Spot Boar
Trends in the Swine Industry
2007 Champions
Body, Body, Body!
2007 National Barrow Show
Hog College Spot Boar
$11,000 Champion Boar 2007 World Pork Expo
Trends in the Swine Industry
How far is too far??
2007 National Barrow Show
Hog College Duroc and
Hampshire Boars and
Yorkshire Gilt
Trends in the Swine Industry
 Consequences
of the push for “body”:
– Too high of condition level – fat is not body
– Sacrificing percent lean
– Compromising some breeding traits
 When
is the end of this trend and what is
next??
2009 - Trend Leveling Out
Putting the
“look”
back in??
“Born Ready”
2009 World Pork Expo
$87,000 Champion Crossbred Boar
On stud at Real McCoy Genetics
2010 – Still Body & Bone
2010 Indiana State Fair
$60,000 Reserve Champion Senior Crossbred Boar
Shown by Ottenwalter Showpigs
2011 – Mass & “Flesh”
CDO0 Mighty One 76-2
Owned by Olsen Yorkshires
2012 – Still Body, Body, Body
2012 Indiana State Fair
Crossbred Classic $75,000 Champion Boar
Trend Application to
Livestock Judging
 Currently
still a higher priority on
width, mass, body and soundness
 However - do not single trait select!!
 Complete animals still win
 Focus on incorporating trends more
into reasons sets than in the actual
placing
Sound Like a “Hog Kid” Incorporating Trend Terms
in Reasons
Wider/narrower
chested
 More/less curvature
of rib
 More/less center
body
 Stouter/frailer
boned

More/less
productive
appearing
 Sounder
moving/more
restricted in
movement
 Bigger/smaller
footed

Sound Like a “Hog Kid”
Regardless of the Trend
 Market Animals
– At least one appropriate carcass term -
percent lean, value based marketing
system, backfat, loin eye area
– Not quarter, rib eye, quality grade, etc.
 Breeding Females
– Structure, underline, femininity
– Not ham, muscularity, percent lean, etc.
 Be
specific!!
Swine Performance Data
 Actual
data vs EPDs
 Understanding indices
– MLI – NBA, 21 day wt, days, backfat
– TSI – backfat, days, pounds of lean,
feed/pound of gain
– http://www.nationalswine.com/Genetic_Tech_pages/STAGE
S.html
– http://www.thejudgingconnection.com/pdfs/Swine_EPD_Ter
minology.pdf
 Importance
of the Scenario
2011 National FFA Livestock CDE
Performance Yorkshire Gilts
Animal BF
Number
Days Pounds
of Lean
NBA
LWT
TSI
SPI
1
-0.02
-1.6
1.3
0.18
2.6
110
108
2
0.04
-0.8
0.5
0.13
0.8
103
102
3
-0.02
-2.4
1.4
0.23
2.3
115
107
4
-0.03
-2.8
1.5
0.18
2.6
117
108
Breed
Average
-0.01
-0.36
0.22
0.03
-0.10
94.12
100.74
Scenario: Rank the gilts as they would be used in a purebred
York total confinement operation. The breeder focuses on fast
growing, sound gilts to make competitive hogs in the show ring
and good mothers in the crate. This operation markets breeding
stock to other purebred breeders and commercial producers. The
offspring that are not structurally sound enough, or of breeding
stock quality, are fed to 285 pounds and marketed on a lean grid.
Swine Performance Data
Importance of the Scenario
2006 National FFA Keep/Cull York Gilts
Purebred Yorkshire operation that markets
showpigs and breeding stock. Remaining
hogs are fed to 280 pounds and marketed on
a lean grid. Raised on confinement and
slats.
Priority on phenotype – especially soundness
 Utilize MLI and Days EPD’s on paper

Swine Performance Data
Keep/Cull York X Gilts
Gilts to be bred to Landrace boars for the
production of replacement females. The
gilt progeny sold to confinement facility
and bred to terminal boars for the
production of market hogs.


Priority on paper – Maternal Line Index
Phenotype – use to decide close pair and
confirm soundness
Incorporating Data into Reasons
 Talk
data where you used data
 Talk only the data categories
relevant to the scenario
 Talk actual vs EPDs appropriately
 Sound like a “hog kid”
– Littermates – Dam SPI
National FFA Convention
Livestock Coaches Clinic
Swine Segment
Tammy Miller
Joliet Junior College
October 25, 2012