ATTENTION TO PIGS IN THE WINTER

Sun (Auckland), Volume IV, Issue 1028, 19 July 1930, Page 27

ATTENTION TO PIGS IN THE WINTER

Proper Warmth Essential

If winter pigs arc to do well—fat* teners especially—they must be kept warm. Without a comfortable and warm bed to go to they cannot make the progress that they should, and may even stand still, so that the food they {consume goes for nothing. This is (simply because a pig must have a certain amount of food to keep up the heat of its body, and if its body 'always losing heat, so much more food will be required to put hack the heat that is necessary. A Dig in this rc.spact is very much like a cow. only in the case of the latter we call the food which the cow requires to keep herself goiug a ’•maintenance*’ ration, while whatever she receives over and above that requirement goes to the 'making of milk.

In the case of the fattening pig, the extra food beyond the maintenance (ration goes to the production of meat and fat. It is far cheaper, therefore, jto prevent loss of body heat by providing reasonable warmth than to hose to manufacture extra warmth by means <f additional food. The reason why winter pigs often fail to do well is that they are kept in cold and draughty sties, whereas if they were kept in warm and -comfortable quarters they would do far better on the same amount of food. It must be remembered, too. that a pig has a comparatively small stomach, aod that if its body happens to become chilled to a Jserious degree it is physically impose jsiblc for the animal to swallow enough food to make good the loss of heat and at the same time lay on flesh. Three or four, or even more pigs {together, if they are not too large or too many for their quarters, will always do better in winter than a single pair, and infinitely better than a single pigThey keep each other warm when there are several in one sty, and anyone may observe how important warmth is to them if he will take notice of the way in which a pig lying on the outside .of the group will after a time nose its [way in between a couple of its fellows. (This is a natural habit, and every pig Sets its turn. Litter should be provided with a (liberal hand in all cases, so that the pigs, if they wish to, can get right 'under it. In very cold weather they will sometimes do that. But the important point is to keep the litter as dry as possible, and to renew it at frequent intervals. In regard to that the situation is sometimes difficult. Some pigs are much more dirty in their habits than others, and quickly foul their bed. The most that can be done to teach them better habits is to make sure that they empty themselves at night.

Some pig-keepers go to the trouble »f turning their pigs out into the yard or a few minutes the last thing at night, and the labour is worth while if it only means the saving of litter; but since it also means that the pigs will lie warm and comfortable throughout the night, it is worth still more. If the pigs* bed is made up iu the warmest corner of the inner sty and away from the door, they will usually keep that part reasonably clean, though they may foul other parts of their '-deeping quarters. A slightly sloping floor to the sty is in any case aa» visable. so that any liquid may drain away instead of lying there to be soaked up by the litter. A sleeping datfomi, raised a few inches above th*. loor level, will sometimes teach even dirt? pigs to keep their bed clean.