In some countries – such as Great Britain – boar fattening has been practiced for years. It’s different in Germany: It’s not yet widespread here. Therefore, animal owners who want to farm boar should be trained to do so. Because certain prerequisites are important for boar fattening to work well from an animal welfare point of view. Genetics, feeding, group stability, space, enrichment materials, housing environment and management must be designed so that the pigs get along and do not injure each other. Boars are slaughtered when they weigh 100 to 120 kilograms.
In addition to the housing environment, the correct handling of the animals is also very important for reducing unwanted boar taint – not only during fattening, but also during animal transport and before slaughter. The animals must be transported in fixed groups (no newly mixed groups of animals). The groups should also remain stable in the holding stable to prevent fights. A light shower for the pigs in the holding pen has a calming effect.
All this leads to less stress – and thus to a lower content of substances that are responsible for odors in meat (skatole and androstenone). Boar fattening is therefore quite possible. In this way, the animals could be spared the painful castration of piglets.
Livestock farmers who find the management of boars too demanding can take the path of the Vaccination against boar taint go. Here a two or three-time vaccination takes place, which suppresses the testicle activity of the boar. It is an active immunization (vaccination) against the body’s own gonadotropin releasing hormone (GnRH). In this way, no sex hormones are formed in the testicles and the function of the testicles – and thus also the production of the undesirable boar taint androstenone – is blocked.
The first vaccination is carried out at the age of eight to ten weeks, the second four to six weeks before slaughter. In small farms that cannot switch to separate sex housing, a third vaccination may be necessary to rule out pregnancy of female animals with certainty. This should be between the first and last vaccination. The vaccine is administered with a safety injector that prevents the user from injecting himself. Pet owners do not take any risks.
Fattening pigs are vaccinated against diseases more frequently throughout their lives. Another vaccination is acceptable from an animal welfare point of view and would spare the animals the painful castration.