Showpig News
Blue Spruce Show Pigs is owned and operated by Shannon Spielman and family in Taneytown, Maryland. The Spielmans currently have six show pig sows focusing on Berkshires, Yorkshires and Crossbreds. We caught up with Shannon to ask a few questions before The Debut!
Question: What inspired you to be a part of the show pig industry?
Answer: We have always enjoyed being around pigs, but once we were able to get some of our own, we fell in love and knew we wanted to do more with them.
Q: What is the greatest piece of advice someone gave you while starting your operation?
A: The greatest advice someone told us was it doesn’t matter as much what the sow has done in her show career as how she does in the crate and how her offspring do in the ring.
Q: Tell us more about your operation currently and how you got started.
A: We started out getting three pigs for two of our children to enter into our county fair as 4-H projects. They enjoyed it so much and wanted to do more with them than just a 4-H show, so we got them in more shows around the East Coast where we met some others who have the same passion as we do. We then began breeding with a goal to produce good quality show pigs. We live and breathe pigs! Our daughter researches boars and their pedigrees daily to help us choose the best match for each sow. We keep our operation small to allow us to focus more on each individual pig.
Q: What is the primary goal for your operation?
A: Our primary goal is to produce good quality & healthy pigs. We take our pigs structural soundness very seriously and believe it is an important start to get them to the top.
Q: How do you hope your brand is remembered amongst customers?
A: We want to be remembered as an honest and helpful breeder. We strive to get our pigs in the right hands and continue to help with getting them where they need to be and looking their best. Our connection with our customers and their pig purchases doesn’t stop at sale day.
Q: What do you consider to be your WHY in this business? What makes you most excited to get up every day and be a part of raising show pigs?
A: Having the opportunity to work with pigs from birth is very life changing and special. We look forward to waking up each day to see them and care for them. It brings joy into our lives knowing we are giving them the best care possible. There are ups and downs, but at the end of the day we are very grateful to be a part of this industry and hope we make an impact.
Q: Tell us a little about the pigs you’re are offering in The Debut – breeds in the offering, what are they targeted for, some of your favorite mating’s, etc.
A: We are offering a few pigs from our early January Berkshire and Yorkshire litters. We recommend them for early jackpot shows and July/August fairs. These two litters have especially been fast growers. The two litters being offered in this sale are our favorite matings.
Q: Before electing to consign in The Debut, how have you previously marketed your pigs?
A: We have previously used social media and word of mouth as marketing.
Q; What made you choose Showpig.com and why did you decide to consign in The Debut?
A: We wanted to get our name out and try to get some of our pigs into good homes across the country. We watch Showpig.com for potential additions to our farm. Macy was very informative about the different types of sales, helping us with choosing what we thought would be best for our first online sale.
Q: If you could tell the Showpig.com buying community one thing about yourself that defines who you are as a breeder and a seller, what would you want them to know most?
A: We would like the Showpig.com community to know that we care more about getting our best pigs in the hands of other kids and families than keeping them to show ourselves. It makes us happy to see someone reach that backdrop and know that we were able to produce a pig with lots of potential to help towards their success!