Grimm's boar, "Big Easy's" big debut

Jim Grimm’s proven herdsire is now a rising star. JGR9 Big Easy 12-5, made his television debut in a cameo performance on the popular show Extreme Home Makeover. 

ABC’s Extreme Home Makeover builds community while building new homes for deserving families. While on location filming a show in northwest Iowa, the crew of Extreme Home Makeover invited the Grimm’s to take part in the show – by bringing some “pig power” on site. Before the show’s host, Ty Pennington, could shout his famous saying, “Move that bus,” Big Easy took part in the opening of the show.

Pennington cozies up with his "co-star," Grimm's Yorkshire boar, Big Easy.

The large, Yorkshire boar that lives at Grimm Quality Purebreds in Maynard, Iowa, was featured as one way the community could demolish the existing home. Although the crowd opted for a large tractor to level the house, Big Easy spent plenty of time in the spotlight and was a hit with the show’s cast.

Pennington even made a personal visit to “meet” Big Easy in his stock trailer. The show’s star snapped pictures with the boar, while other cast members commented on how “cute” and calm he was, say Pat Grimm, Jim’s wife.

The Grimms grabbed the opportunity to educate people about the industry and answered any questions they had.

“It was nice to educate people,” Pat says. She adds with a laugh, when they first received the casting call the producer asked if they could train the boar to lay down on request.

More than 1,000 community volunteers showed up to help with the project, and when the first day of filming concluded the Grimms were asked onstage to receive a round of applause for bringing Big Easy from the cast, crew and community.

“It was quite the experience,” Pat says. “We’ll never get anything like that again.”

Cast, crew and volunteers all visited with the Grimms about their boar and the swine industry.

The episode featuring Big Easy should air sometime after the first of the year. More details about the exact schedule will be released in the future.