Fire Breaks Out Overnight at Illinois Pig Farm

Apr 17, 2023

A fire broke out at Cedar Ridge Farms, a seedstock swine operation owned and operated by the six sons of the late Fred and Betty Grohmann near Red Bud, Ill., early on April 14.

Multiple area fire departments from Red Bud, Hecker, New Athens, Baldwin and Waterloo responded to the blaze in a hog building that caught fire shortly after midnight, the Republic-Times reports. The fire resulted in substantial damage to the structure as well as the loss of several pigs.

The Grohmanns told local reporters that the cause of the fire and the cost of damages and losses are not yet known. However, they said things could have been worse. One of the barns was completely empty and the other had hogs they were getting ready to send to market, many of which had recently been shipped.

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Video: WARNING! Rough Start To Breeding Season!!

WARNING! Sheep Breeding Season Begins With A Bang! Breeding season is officially underway at Ewetopia Farms, but it didn’t exactly start the way we planned!

This vlog begins with us sorting through our rams to find the perfect match for a customer’s breeding program. What should have been routine quickly turned dangerous when one of our more nervous rams panicked. In seconds, Arnie’s knee was injured, and then I was slammed hard onto the concrete floor — both of us taken down by one ram!

Thankfully, it was just bruises, but it’s a reminder of how unpredictable and powerful mature rams can be. Once we recovered, it was time to get back to the real work — the start of breeding season.

We sorted the ewes into four breeding groups (two Suffolk and two Dorset), checking parentage as they ran through the chute, deworming those that needed it, and setting aside thinner ewes for session two of breeding season in a month’s time.This staggered approach keeps lambing organized and prevents overcrowding in the barns.

From rogue rams to the excitement of new breeding groups, this episode is full of action. Stay tuned for the next vlog, where we’ll share how we chose the rams for each group!