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The Duroc swine breed has an extensive history in the United States. Once known as the Duroc-Jersey, the original history of the breed has been said to come from everywhere including from slave trading ships and even Columbus' second voyage to the Americas. Other theories as to the originality of the Duroc breed include the claims of red hogs coming from the coast of Africa and De Soto may have brought red hogs from Portugal or Spain.

The development of what we know as the Duroc today comes from the breeding of the Jersey Red of New Jersey and the Duroc breed originating from New York. The red hogs known as Jersey Reds are the development of Clark Petit. These hogs were known for their huge size but were long and lacked quality bone structure. The Duroc breed began by Isaac Frink when he purchased some red hogs from Harry Kelsey. Mr. Kelsey was also the owner of Duroc, a famous Thoroughbred stallion. Mr. Frink gave the red hogs the breed name "Durocs" after this famous stallion, making the Duroc the only swine breed named after a horse.

The Durocs were smaller then the Jersey Reds but showed a better bone structure and were more compact. During the 1830s, William Ensign crossed red pigs from Connecticut with those developed by Isaac Frink. Most red hogs from Connecticut at that time were known to be Red Berkshire and not Jersey Reds. The "Jersey" portion of the Duroc-Jersey breed was dropped as the Jersey history was debatable. The Duroc breed name was given and the United Duroc Swine Registry was formed and became part of the National Swine Registry.

The Duroc is a popular swine breed for hog farms as it tends to gain weight on a less amount of feed compared to other breeds. The body is of medium length but is considered large in overall size with boars known to reach up to 400 pounds in weight. The ears droop and the face is noted to have a slight "dish". It is quite common for the Duroc breed to be crossbred in hog farming productions.

The Duroc breed seen today can have a variation in the color from a golden color to a deep shade of mahogany but is typically a solid color. Considered one of the most popular pig breeds, the Duroc can be seen in hog meat production and in the show ring. Due to the solid coloring, proper markings are not a concern for breeders.

The Duroc is known for having an aggressive behavior and sows typically do not do well with maternal parenting. For hog farming practices, purebred Durocs are typically not used except in crossbreeding. The White Durocs are the result of crossbreeding the Duroc with Large White or Landrace pig breeds.

The American Duroc-Jersey Association was established in 1883 with the United Duroc Swine Registry forming in 1934. The first Duroc Hog Show was presented at the 1893 Chicago World's Fair and the popularity of the breed has grown ever since. Due to the overwhelming positive qualities of the Duroc, this breed has been established as a top terminal sire choice by hog farmers and breeders.

References:

HOW TO RAISE PIGS, by Philip Hasheider, copyright 2008.

http://www.ansi.okstate.edu/br eeds/swine/

http://www.nationalswine.com/i ndustryreference/indrefswinebr Duroc.html

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