Hampshire pigs have origins as far back as any of our domestic breeds of today. The Hampshire is a member of the belted breeds, so called because of the band of white skin and hair that encircles the body around the shoulders encompassing the forelegs to the feet. The remainder of the body being completely black giving the animals of this breed a striking appearance – perhaps one of the most striking breeds in the world. Hampshire's were developed in the U.S.A. from British Saddleback importations and other local strains and for many years known and registered as “The Thin Rind Hog”. The U.S.A. Hampshire Swine Registry was first formed in 1922 and the breed has since enjoyed wide spread popularity throughout the Americas. Having lost favor among European countries primarily because of it's skin color and associated problems with the RN gene. Hampshire pigs along with Duroc's were also utilized in the composition of synthetic breeds such as the Hamroc, QM Hamline etc.

The Hampshire Breed in South Africa
The first Hampshire Importations occurred during 1980. Mr Mike Benson, a stud breeder in Kwazulu-Natal, imported them. The reason for these importations and that of the Duroc was the same, namely to acquire a terminal sire for a cross-breeding program, especially in commercial herds.

The Hampshire is black with a white belt around the body and shoulders. In certain individuals the white extends down across the forelegs as well. In general the neck is longer than in other breeds. Although the sows give birth to large litters, they are not renowned for good rearing abilities.

Sows and boars exhibit a placid temperament. Hampshire boars are inclined not to have good libido and certain boars lack sexual aggressiveness. Offspring of this terminal sire should possess not more than 50% Hampshire genes because of the occurrence of colored hair follicles. At one stage (in the early 1990’s) the Hampshire F1 boar was a new development in commercial breeding. The use of Hampshire x Large White F1 boars on F1 sows (Landrace x Large White), were promoted. F1 boars possess a good libido, convey heterosis to the offspring and produce offspring, which carcasses possess a good percentage of lean meat.

Two pivotal aspects are imperative in such a breeding system.
■  All F1 boars should be performance tested for economically important traits, and only animals that are above average in comparison to their contemporaries should be purchased.
■  All the offspring of such a cross should be marketed and none retained for breeding purposes.

Numbers declined drastically during 1981 – 2010 and at present the breed is virtually extinct in South Africa.
 

Standards of Excellence for the Hampshire

General Appearance
Good symmetry, wide, well balanced with good lines and quality. The Hampshire is deeper in body than most breeds. Hair must not be excessively curly or coarse. The Hampshire is a thin skinned, fine haired pig.

Head and Ears
The head is large and conical in shape sometimes slightly dished. The nose should be of medium size and length, and the forehead should be broad. Erect ears, should be of medium size and thickness. The neck should be of medium length, clean, not jowly or collared or bristly on the crest or mane. The face of this breed is longer, straighter and narrower than most breeds.

Back
The back should be level with good length and width, not hollowed or excessively arched. At maturity the body must have good depth.

Front Legs
The front legs are well placed, wide apart not too straight. Shoulders should be well placed so as to allow for easy walking.

Hind Legs
Hind legs should be of medium length, well shaped – allowing for free and easy movement. Strong bones should be placed well apart.

Hams
The hams must be long and deep and smoothly muscled from the top of the rump to the hocks.

Bone, Pasterns and Clays
Should have strong bone development and strong gently sloping pasterns. The ideal clays should be of even size and the color of the clays can vary from black to amber.

Sow and Boar Underline
Sows should display a good underline of at least 6 functional teats on either side. These teats should be of good shape and quality. Boars should have at least six teats on either side with three teats on either side in front of the sheath. Very small or overly large teats should be avoided and attention given to nipple quality and texture.

Color
The head and neck should be black with a continuous belt of white hair over the forelegs and shoulders. The body and hindquarters should be black although white is permitted on the hind legs but not higher than the hock. The degree of white must not exceed more than half of the animal's body and at least one foreleg must be white.

Objectional Points
1.   Excessively coarse or curly hair or bristly mane
2.  White belt exceeding one half of the body or failing to form an unbroken band of white skin and hair around the animals shoulder including at least one foreleg
3.  Lop ears
4.  Blind or inverted teats
5.  Small pin nipples
6.  Uneven or small testis
7.  Extremely flighty temperament or over aggression in boars
8.  “Goose stepping” action or any other hindered action
9.  Less than six functional udder sections on each side. This applies to both boars and sows. Boars to have at least three teats on either side in front of the sheath
10.  Any visible deformities, congenital defects or signs of contagious disease

Disqualification
Animals with faults in categories 2, 3, 4, 6, 7, 9 and 10 should be disqualified.