WEANING OF PIGS

Manawatu Times, Volume LIV, Issue 6844, 25 February 1929, Page 10

WEANING OF PIGS

If there be one matter in Tegard to pig-breeding as to which no hard and fast rule can be laid down, it is that which concerns the time of weaning little pigs. The wise breeder does not pay much attention to the eight-week rule, but weans his pigs if lie finds they are ready, a week or so earlier, while in some cases he may keep them on the sow until very much later. A good deal depends upon the time of the year and a good deal more on the sow and the way in which she is fed. As mothers, sows vary very considerably, even when they are given every opportunity to do their families justice. And the number of pigs they have does not always matter. Some sows will make just as good pigs of a family of nine or ten, as others will of only six or seven. No Economy in Starving. At the same time you cannot expect little pigs to thrive as they should if their mother docs not get the chance to do them well. A well-fed sow of the right kind will be able to part with her pigs earlier than one which does not get enough food or food of the right kind. There is no economy at any time in starving a sow or giving her food that she cannot turn into nourishment for her pigs. That simply results in wasted time , for it means that her pigs have to remain longer with her tliau they should. Loss of time in that case moans loss of money. To decide when pigs are ready to be weaned many breeders adopt a, weight test, and that is the safest rule. What a pig should weigh at a certain ago depends on the breed, and to fix an absolute weight at, say six or eight weeks of age, may not always bo practicable, if only for the reason that you cannot expect every- litter to make progress at the samo rata. It is better to start early w-ith the scales—at the ago of four or five wcekss —and then note at the end of every subsequent week what progress is being made. If that progress is satisfactory-, then one may wean at tho sevontb or eighth week; if it is slow or uneven, then it will probably be wiser to wait until the ninth or even the tenth week. Some breeders, in the case of very special pigs, go even further than this and make it a rule to keep the pigs on the sow until tho twelfth week. But it is doubtful whether there is much economy in this, and it certainly means a waste of time for the sow, to say nothing of the drain upon her system. It may be justifiable when pigs are intended for show purpises, but even so there are many- little pigs which, during the last fortnight or so, would

get..,on just as well without tho snow as with her. “Dollies” Unprofitable to Keep. In most litters there is sure to be one or more pigs which arc undersized and which will never catch up their fellows. To keep the latter on the sow foi the sake of one or two wasters is never worth while, and it is better to ignore these when making a weighing test. It may be good policy to knock on tho head the “dolly” pigs of the lit/ ter when they are two or three weeSs old, for, although they are probably not getting their sharo of milk from the sow they are taking something all the time, and the rest of the litter would get on better without them, and so would tho sow. Little pigs that eannol average something like half-a-pound a day increase in weight at the age of seven or eight weeks are not likely to be profitable, and the “dollies” very often cannot dj as much as that. Pigs of the larger breeds ought by that time to be j putting on three-quarters of a pound a day, and there are some that will do even better than that. Little pigs often receive a cheek at weaning time if no effort has been made some time beforehand to get them used to the change of diet. If they have been allowed just to filch what they can from their mother’s trough, and have not been specially fed by themselves before weaning, they will feel the change more acutely. ~From the age of three weeks onwards they should have a trough to themselves, placed where tho sow cannot reach it, and at that time they will probably do better on dry feed than on wet. The 60-25-10 mixture suits them vary well, but the barley meal should be finely ground and the middlings of good quality. And when weaning time comes, remember that the sow should always be taken away from her pigs—not the other way about. A change of quarters at this period will do little pigs o great deal of harm, for fresh surroundings always add to their discomfirure. Pigs that arc fretful cannot thrive.