BETTER-FED PIGS.

Putaruru Press, Volume XI, Issue 252, 18 May 1933, Page 6

BETTER-FED PIGS.

REPAY THE FARMER. Profitable Return for Labour. The efforts of the Waikato Pigrecording Club to demonstrate tin most profitable methods of raisinj pigs were related by Mr. Pierson t; a Morrinsville audience of farmers “ Success in dairy farming to-da; is contingent on the utilisation o the by-products, skim milk am whey,” the speaker said, after re lating instances where dairy farmer had increased their receipts by up t two pence per pound of butterfat b raising pigs successfully. “ Whatever a pig weighs at eigl

vvnaiever a pig wcigna au cigin* weeks old it will be 21 times that weight at 16 weeks old.” Recording- Weights of Pigs. The average weight at eight weeks old of the pigs recorded had been improved as follows : 1928, 251 b ; 1929, 311 b; 1930, 401 b. In 1931, when twice as many litters were recorded, many being new “ herds,” the average was 351 b. “In four years we had increased the weight of the weaners from 2§lb to 351 b,” added Mr. Pierson, “ and the average weight of those porkers was 881 b, which is just 21 times 351 b. “ There is an old saying, ‘ The smaller the litter the better the pigs.” The Pig-recording Club had

shown that all pigs could be made to . weigh the same at eight weeks old if the sows were treated right before and after farrowing. Returns from Sow and Cow. To those people who said there was no profit in pigs he wished to show the following figures:— A good average dairy cow producing 1501 b of butterfat at say Is per pound gives a return of £ls. A sow, living- on the by-products of the farm, rears two litters of say seven pigs a year, or 14 porkers of 80 pounds weight at three pence per pound, a total yield of £l4. Compare the labour for one with that for the other. The trouble with most farmers was that they were carrying 100 pigs to the acre, while they would not attempt to carry more than one cow or four sheep to the acre. Then they complained about the filth and mud. If pigs are run in sties there will be filth. If they are run in paddocks they can be one of the most interesting- phases of farm work. “ My experience is that everybody chooses the dirtiest corner of the farm for a piggery,” added Mr. Pierson. “ I choose the best situation on the farm.” Productivity of the Pig. Is there any other animal that can produce the same weight of flesh with such a small amount of food? A bullock needs 12 or 13 pounds of food to produce one pound of meat, a sheep needs six pounds. Feeding Milk and Whey. One gallon of skim milk equals one pound of food. Two gallons of whey equal one pound of food. If fed properly to pigs, skim milk could increase the factory cheque by two pence per pound of butterfat. The question was often asked, “ How many sows can I carry for a given number of cows ? ” It depended on the number of calves reared and on how the pigs were run. Feed trials showed that the same number of pigs on grass required only 4040 pounds of milk and meal compared with 5290 pounds for those reared without grass, a difference of 1250 pounds, or enough to feed another 4J pigs, worth £4 10s. That was the saving that could be made with the by-products of a farm, and at the same time the pigs would have better conditions.

Trials had proved that no matter what size the litter was all pigs would weigh the same at eight weeks old provided the sow was looked after and fed with meat meal before and after farrowing.