Color
White
Physical Appearance
A large, white animal with a characteristic weaving gait, upturned snout, and pendulous floppy ears.
Characteristics and Genetics
The Old Yorkshire White Pig was closely connected to the Cumberland, which was a very old breed that most likely evolved over several hundred years in Cumberland and Westmorland.
Its robust constitution allowed it to resist Northern England’s inclement weather.
The final Cumberland pig, a sow belonging to a Mr. Thirwall, perished on Bothel Craggs farm in Bothel in 1960, marking the end of the species. Based on DNA research and selective breeding, a Penrith animal conservation centre “recreated” the Cumberland pig in 2008. Farmers who had worked with the few remaining originals felt that the new pig’s appearance was a good match.
The Middle White and maybe the Chester White breeds in the United States both share genetic ancestry with the original Cumberland pig.
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