High On the Hogs

The April 2025 issue featured “ The Great Pig War of Matagorda County ,” which detailed a young couple’s battle against neighbors and local authorities over their hefty Meishan pigs on ten acres near Bay City. The story caught the attention of a reader who has real experience with small pig farms, and who had some thoughtful insights to share.

I was sad to read your article about the pig farmers in Matagorda County. I’ve worked raising ordinary hogs right up to the farmer’s fence around the house, and they don’t stink at all as long as a couple conditions are met.

First, don’t overload the land, and second, raise them on dirt. The farm where I worked was in Comanche County. It would be considered a small farm, but we would sell a trailer full of pigs about every three

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