Winter has barely arrived, considering there have been below-average snowfall and above normal temperatures. This pig family is headed somewhere, maybe to warmer places or maybe just home in a nearby barn, as pictured on this early greeting card. Have a Happy New Year and enjoy whatever winter brings to your neighborhood.
Hogs are a big business in Iowa. In September 2023 there were 24.4 million hogs and pigs, about 2½ times as many as in Minnesota, the No. 2 state. Some of these pigs are “show pigs”, such as those raised on this farm in Mills County, utilizing an early 20th century barn designed by the Gordon-Van Tine Company based in Davenport. Raised under strict sanitary conditions, “show pigs” are sold in other states or bought on-site for 4-H projects, county and state fair entries, or other youth projects, when they weigh about 40 pounds.