Depth of body is also important so that the pig will adequate capacity for feeding and reproduction. Depth of body should be uniform from the fore flank to the rear flank. An excessively deep appearing hog will usually indicate a fat problem. A lack of depth, or a shallow body, takes away from the overall balance of the pig and will hurt the pig's placing in the class due to a lack of a production look.

The pig on the left lacks adequate depth of body, being especially shallow in its rear flank. The body depth of the pig on the right is unbalanced due to a rear flank that is too deep.

This picture shows a pig that is uniform in body depth. However, this pig is beginning to exhibit excessive body depth, and is likely becoming too fat.