A round pig in a listing photo can still be a bad buy. Hernias sit low on the belly, a crossed jaw hides behind the snout, and a cough does not show in a still frame. On Occuin, pig listings range from weaners to breeding gilts. The price only makes sense if the animal in the pen matches the animal in the ad.
This check is for buyers who can stand in the pen, or who can ask for a short video before they travel. It is not a vet exam. It is the filter that stops you paying breeding money for a pig that will not hold condition or will not walk onto a trailer.
What the listing should already show
Before you book the trip, the ad should answer four things. If it does not, ask in the message thread and wait for the reply.
- Age or weight band, and whether the pig is a weaner, grower, gilt, sow, or boar.
- Breed or cross, and what the seller actually uses it for.
- Sex, and whether a male is still entire.
- Any known fault: hernia, lameness, poor bite, or a recent treatment.
A seller who will not send a walk-up video is telling you something. Ask them to film the pig from the side, then from behind, then a close view of the underline and the mouth. Thirty seconds is enough.
Watch the walk before you touch anything
Stand outside the pen and let the pig move. A sound feeder pig puts weight on all four feet and turns without hopping.
Look for:
- A short stride or a dropped hip on one side.
- Swollen joints, especially hocks and knees.
- Toes that roll under, or a hoof that is long enough to change the stance.
- Reluctance to rise. A pig that stays down while the others move needs a reason, not a discount you invent on the spot.
Breeding stock should move cleanly. A gilt with a sore foot may settle, but you are buying months of feed before you know. Feeder pigs with a mild limp can still finish, yet they are not worth the same as a pen mate that walks square.
The cough test
Move the group gently. A single sneeze is common in dust. A deep, repeated cough when pigs get up is a different problem. Ask what the seller has treated, and when. Do not mix that pig with your own group the same day. Isolation is cheaper than a shed full of sick growers.
Underline, hernia, and the bits photos skip
Roll or tip only if you know how and the pig is small enough to handle safely. On larger pigs, look from a low side angle in good light.
Hernias
An umbilical hernia is a soft swelling at the navel. A scrotal hernia sits in the purse of a boar or a recently castrated male. Small, firm scars from an old navel are common. A bag that swings, or a swelling you can push back into the belly, is a fault.
Many buyers walk away from any hernia on breeding stock. On a feeder pig, a small umbilical lump may be tolerable if the price drops and the pig is eating. A scrotal hernia is a harder no. It can strangulate, and it is a poor bet if you planned to keep the pig entire.
Teats and underline on gilts
If you are buying a gilt to breed, count the teats. You want an even underline, teats spaced so a litter can latch, and no inverted or blind teats in the main row. A gilt with a sparse underline will not magically grow more teats after you pay.
Testicles and castration scars
Confirm sex against the listing. Two even testicles for a boar you mean to use. For a barrow, a clean castration scar and no swelling. A pig sold as castrated that is still entire is not a rounding error. It changes handling, penning, and price.
Mouth and bite
Ask the seller to open the mouth or hold a treat so the pig lifts its lip. You are checking alignment, not counting every tooth.
- Incisors should meet, or sit close to even.
- A lower jaw that juts well past the upper, or an upper jaw that overshoots, is a bad bite.
- Broken tusks on an older boar are a handling issue. Note them. They are not the same fault as a jaw that cannot close.
A pig with a poor bite often grows slower because it cannot take feed cleanly. On breeding stock, that jaw can pass on. Treat a clear undershot or overshot jaw as a reason to leave the pig in the pen.
Condition, skin, and what the pen tells you
Body condition on a pig is easier to misread than on a ewe. A thick hair coat and a full gut can fake flesh.
Press along the loin and over the ribs. You should feel cover, not a spine standing proud, and not a pig so fat it cannot rise easily. Weaners should look even across the litter. One small, hairy pig in a group of slick pen mates is often the one that has been off feed.
Skin checks that matter on the day:
- Greasy, scaly patches behind the ears and inside the legs can be mange. Ask what was used, and assume you will treat on arrival.
- Diamond-shaped raised marks can mean an old erysipelas challenge. Ask. Active red patches and a dull pig are a reason to wait.
- Pale skin and a slow pig need a closer look, not a rushed deposit.
Look at the pen, not only the pig. Wet dung piled in the lying area, empty water, and a feeder the pigs cannot reach all travel home with the animal. A clean pen does not prove health. A filthy one with no water is a reason to doubt the weight the seller claims.
Match the tag to the pig you think you bought
If the listing names an ear tag, notch, or slap mark, read it before money moves. Tags get swapped in group pens. A yellow tag in the photo should still be in the ear, with the same number.
Write the tag, sex, and any fault on your note before you leave the pen. If you are buying more than one, mark which pig had the cough or the limp. Memory blends pigs together on the drive home.
A short decision list
Use this before you bid or transfer funds.
- The pig rises and walks on all four feet.
- No soft hernia you can push back, and sex matches the ad.
- Bite closes. Breeding gilts have a usable underline.
- No repeated cough when the group moves.
- Tag or mark matches the listing.
- Price reflects any fault you accepted, in writing.
If two of those fail, leave it. Another listing will show up. A pig that looks cheap in the photo is expensive once you have hauled it, treated it, and still cannot sell it on.
