Tusks

BigUn Drinking Whey
That is BigUn, one of our big boars, sucking up some milk at the south whey trough. He and Archimedes^* are good buddies but he tries to stay out of his brother Spot’s vicinity. Spot is the dominant boar but not as secure in his role as leader as Archimedes was so he is prone to reminding BigUn, who’s actually taller, that he’s the boss.

Recently BigUn lost one tusk and Spot lost both of his main tusks. At first, when Spot lost the one I figured it was a break but now that three tusks, between the two of them, have come out I’m wondering if there is a seasonality to this. I’ve noticed their tusk length goes up and down but hadn’t connected that with anything before, just figuring they were wearing them out. Right now though there is no dirt to dig in since the snows are still deep here on the mountain. I googled but didn’t find anything. I have noticed that that the tusks grow back quite quickly. The tusk BigUn is showing in the photo above has regrown since October or so when he lost that one. That’s just a bit over four months ago and it is already over five inches long.

Sow Tusks
The tusks are hollow at their base but surprisingly heavy. Sow tusks are quite a bit smaller, just a few inches long and don’t seem to do the continuous growth like the boars. Both sex have tusks that are quite sharp. Note the serration’s on the sow’s tusks. Don’t catch yourself on one!

Basa and Longson Boar Tusks
These tusks came from some of our previous boars, Basa and Longson of the infamous boar fight.

Finding tusks is a bit of a sport. I know there are a couple more out in the snow of the south field right now playing hide and seek with me. Maybe I’ll find them this spring or summer in my field walks as the snow melts.

Outdoors: 36°F/12°F Sunny
Farm House: 32°F/32°F
Tiny Cottage: 65°F/52°F Had the door open, spring like weather!