English Large Black
The
Large Black, also known as the Cornish or Lop Eared Black, originated
in England. This breed will only do well in an outdoor environment.
They are excellent foragers and make the best use of pasture of all the
pig breeds. They have large litters with outstanding milk production.
The
Large Blacks have very long, lop ears that actually obstruct their
hearing and vision. As their name suggests, they are extremely large
with a very wide body. They are a slow, docile pig and this can
probably be attributed to their size and obstructed vision.
This
breed has black skin and hair. Combined with the fact that they will
not do well in an intensive environment and that they are one of the
fatter pig breeds, they lost favour with the advent of intensive
farming. They are also very slow growing.
The Large Black sow is an excellent choice in a free range cross breeding program as the hybrid vigour produces a fast growing blue merle pig (pictured) with a good fat coverage and no black hair when crossed with a pure white boar.
Breeders
