When we had just a few mini Jerseys, we were able to utilize all the resulting milk. But as our herd grew, so did the steady supply of milk. Even after learning to make yogurt, butter and even hard cheeses, we still had extra milk. What better to do with all that extra whey, buttermilk and skimmed milk than raise a few happy and well-fed pigs?
Gloucestershire Old Spots were always on our short list of preferred pigs because, goodness… aren’t they adorable? Once we learned that Old Spots were docile, easy to care for, enjoy foraging on pasture and make the most delicious pork, we knew they were the breed for us.
Luna, one of our first GOS sows, loves being a mom!
In the fall of 2021, we purchased a registered breeding trio, two gilts and a boarling, through Fawn Crossing Farm in Virginia, sourced from several farms across the southeast. It was a bit of a learning curve but these pigs truly are “beginner pigs”!
We were able to get a gilt out of our first breeding pair, Luna and Cosmo, and named her Aster. She farrowed for the first time in August of 2025, bred to a Berkshire boar from Shipley Swine. She had 11 piglets born, 11 live, and has been an amazing first time mom! We sold almost all the piglets before we could even advertise them – so thankful for all the wonderful feedback we’ve gotten from folks who have purchased piglets from us over the years!
We raise our pigs on pasture, in the fresh air and sunshine, and love to spoil them with extra fruit from our small orchard and milk from our cows!
Aster’s first litter of adorable Berkshire/Old Spot piglets
We will be breeding Aster again for spring 2026 piglets, and plan to use a Berkshire boar again, so the piglets will be Old Spot/Berkshire crosses. If you would like to be put on the waiting list for a piglet (or two), message me on Instagram or via email at stefanie@tinstonecattleco.com.
We’ve always fenced off the grapevines to keep the cows out, just in case they’d eat all the grapes. But so far this year the girls have been behaving themselves… and it’s actually become one of their very favorite spots to hang out since the vines provide so much shade. I may have to rethink this set up once the grapes start ripening, but for now I’ll let them get in there all they want 🍇 #honeybeetheminijersey #minijersey…
Eyre is the baby of 2026… and she’s already one month old ❤️ So fun to watch her grow, she is usually quiet and reserved, like her dad, but every now and then she likes to get a little sassy, just like her mama 🥰 #eyretheminijersey #minijersey…
All the calves love their alfalfa – especially all the little leaves 🌿 They also love their grain too! I’m so thankful they’re all such good eaters… makes my job so much easier 🥰 #beartheminijersey #elmtheminijersey #eyretheminijersey #easytheminijersey #evertheminijersey…
Tin Stone Jane Eyre ❤️ She is A1A2, hetero polled and will be available at weaning to an excellent home. If you’d like to be considered for her, please complete an inquiry form, linked in my bio. And if you’ve already completed one for Evermore, but haven’t heard back yet, we are working on it 🥰 Eyre’s dam is #ettatheminijersey – our oldest and smallest girl. Her sire is #magnitheminijersey who has impressive genetics as well, and I think Eyre inherited his sweet, easy-going temperament, along with the little white spot on her side 😍 She was 24” at birth so I think she’ll end up around 43-44” at maturity… a wonderful size for a family mill cow ❤️ #eyretheminijersey #minijersey…
Honey Bee and I feel the same way about the heat – I may be already counting the days to cooler weather 😅 She has been enjoying the daily afternoon water trough top off to cool the water down, and then I let it overflow to help cool her down through her feet 💦 She doesn’t like to get wet so it’s the easiest way to help her feel cooler without aggravating her more 🤣 #honeybeetheminijersey #minijersey…
One of the things we do to help our girls deal with the heat is turn them on their new pasture in the evening instead of the morning. Even though we milk at 6:30 am in the summer, by the time we get done and turn the cows out, it’s hot ☀️ So for now, we feed them their dinner at sunset and then let them out on fresh pasture for the night 💛 #crickettheminijersey #lottietheminijersey #ettatheminijersey #minijersey…
And then there were… six?! Well, yes *and* no 😊 So the sweet family that is getting Elm really wanted a second bull calf from us, so Elm would have a friend. But we didn’t have another. I really wanted to help, especially because I wanted to ensure Elm had a good friend on his new farm! He would need one that was easy-going, from a reputable breeder and who’d had a good, healthy start 🥰 Enter Bear 🧸 He came to us from Indiana, from a wonderful farm, and is just the cutest and sweetest boy! He is going to be the perfect friend for Elm 😍 We have another month before these two leave together, so we will be working with them both, encouraging their friendship and getting them ready for all the adventures that await them on their new farm ❤️ #beartheminijersey #elmtheminijersey #minijersey…
Essie is 3.5 months old… and just had her first heat cycle 🫠 Honestly, this isn’t unusual with our heifers, but I wanted to take a minute to give a PSA to newer milk cow owners: your young heifer can get pregnant at a ridiculously young age! We insist on two separate lines of fencing between any young heifer and a breeding aged bull (6 months or older) to make sure she doesn’t get bred before she’s mature. Not only could a super early pregnancy hurt her, but serious breeding injuries could occur as well 🥺 Okay, rant over… now, isn’t she adorable? 🥰 #essietheminijersey #minijersey #heifercalf…
Mamas and babies ❤️ The cows love to come around the calf pen and check on their babies from time to time… and the babies love to pretend like they’re all grown up 🥰 #elmtheminijersey #easytheminijersey #evertheminijersey #minijersey…
Still going through inquiry responses for Evermore, but we are always happy when folks help us spread the word 😍 The truth is, the more interest we have in her, the more likely we are to find a perfect fit ❤️ If someone you know is looking for an exceptional miniature milk cow, please send them my way 🥰 #evertheminijersey #minijersey…
Elm has a family ❤️ This cutie will be going to live in Tennessee at weaning… where he’s going to be so well loved 🥰 We will work with him between now and then to get him ready for his new family! #elmtheminijersey #minijersey…
BWT Summer Solstice, aka Sunny, has been busy this month trying to get our girls settled for 2027 💛 Sunny is a young bull, just barely a year, but seems to be taking his job seriously ✨ We chose him because of his genetics – his dam is a lovely pale fawn with an excellent, high udder and a beautiful head. She also comes from generations of grass-fed genetics and gives over 3 gallons a day with no grain inputs. We would love to improve our girls’ udders as well as their thriftiness… we don’t foresee being grass-fed anytime soon but are hoping to move more in that direction 🌿 No pregnancies confirmed yet, we will send off milk samples next month if the girls skip a heat or two! #sunnytheminijersey #minijersey…
