Today we had a heat wave here in Michigan. After a week off school due to icy roads and the polar vortex, today’s 50 degree weather feels like spring! I am enjoying the warmer temps don’t get me wrong, but spring on the farm, or should I say, a short thaw on the farm only leads to MUD!

That’s right, mud is everywhere! Just walking out to the barn this morning, I almost lost my boot in a couple inches of stickiness. For the farmers and most of the animals on the farm, we do NOT enjoy this season. We like winter to come, stay for a while and then leave. The cold weather doesn’t bother us nearly as much when it isn’t intertwined with constant thaw out periods. Unlike factory farms who keep their animals on concrete all day, our animals are outside in the elements either on the frozen ground, the mud or the nice green pasture.  Our pigs on the other hand are a different story, the LOVE the mud!

With this warm spell, we were able to kick the pigs outside for the day, and they LOVED it. Pigs do not grow a long furry coat like a cow or a dog so they need to have access to a barn when the temps dip down. Our barns are really big and they have plenty of room to run around. We give them lots of straw to make themselves warm comfy beds. It’s so funny, because they like to make a giant pile of straw and then burrow down in there to keep warm.

Here at John Henry’s we want to provide our customers with the best meats from the healthiest animals. That means when the weather is nice, the pigs go outside to do what they do best. Rut around and play in the mud. They live it up on our farm, enjoying the sunshine and fresh air every chance they get.