Killing pigs the Ukrainian way

I'm blogging about this because it was part of my week and thus needs to be shared with the world so they can experience it too. Not because I'm egoistical but because it is life in Ukraine.

My friend Yura (he's the big guy in all the photos below) invited me to come and be a part of a pig slaughter. He thought it would be fun for a foreigner to see how they kill pigs in Ukraine. Plus after they killing is all done they have a feast. So I showed up, camera in hand ready to see how they kill pigs in Ukraine. I'd heard it done numerous times as our neighbors regularly kill pigs in their yard but I'd never seen them do it and I kind of wondered why the pigs always screamed and made the sound of ultimate suffering as they were being killed.
Here is Yura about to go kill the pig, we found out a few minutes later that the way they do it is they stab it in the heart and it dies. We found out because Yura missed the main artery and the pig made the sound of ultimate suffering for about three minutes. Then as it died Yura explained to all of us foreigners who thought it better to knock the pig out first why they kill pigs that way and how it is the old Ukrainian way to save the blood for making blood sausages. He then went on to elaborate (pictured below) about how during the forced collectivization of the 1920's and 30's and the famine of '32-'33 people would suffocate the pigs so they didn't make any noise as they died and nobody would know they killed a pig because if the town/village found out the officials would come and procure a percentage of the meat. It is the interesting historical facts that make killing pigs so interesting.
Then after the pig finally died they got a flame torch out and burned off it's hair and skin. Magdala thought it was fun. I left about that time because I had lots to do and I didn't want to argue with Yura about eating the ear or something like that.