SCOUR IN PIGS

Waikato Times, Volume 127, Issue 21200, 24 August 1940, Page 19 (Supplement)

SCOUR IN PIGS

SOME COMMON CAUSES PREVENTING LOSSES At a time when increased production of bacon is vitally necessary in .the interests of the Empire, every care must be taken to reduce losses among the young pigs. Waikato producers, therefore, must be on their guard more than ever before this spring to prevent undue scouring among their pig herds. Whether in suckling pigs or those independent of the teat, scouring is almost always a sign of indigestion, and to seek the cause and remove it should be the first aim of the pigkeeper. Young pigs are much more prone to diarrhoea than adults, especially while they are on the teat. A change of food on the part of the sow, chills, excitement, rank grass, ! and acid plants may not seriously afj feet her own health, but act upon her ■ milk so as to render it unsuitable for | feeding young animals, and they fre- [ quently develop diarrhoea as a rei suit. I The age at which the disease may : appear varies from the first day of ! birth up to several weeks. In some • cases the symptoms appear so soon i after birth that some claim the disj ease is congfaital—that the young i have it when born. In cases that | appear several days or even weeks | after birth, it is usually due to in- • flammation of the mucous membrane j of the stomach and intestines, and i faulty digestion. In some cases j diarrhoea is preceded by a few days j of constipation. Unsanitary Conditions Where the pigs are kept in close,

damp quarters, diarrhoea is especially liable to develop. The young pigs require light, airy quarters, with plenty of sunshine and ample room for exercise. In too many cases the farrowing pen is an over-heated, damp, dark building, and in such cases it is not surprising that the pigs begin to die at a few days of age. Diarrhoea is especially liable to develop if the weather be damp and chilly. Cold, rainy spring weather, especially if the pen be damp, or in any way the litter is exposed, is especially favourable to the development of the disease in a newly-born litter. The young pigs get damp and chilled, and as a consequence their strength and vitality is lowered, and they thus become predisposed to the actions of any poisonous substances that may be taken in the milk. Preventive treatment consists in keeping the pregnant sow in clean, hygienic quarters, giving clean, laxative food of first-class quality, and seeing that she gets regular exercise. No sour mash or mouldy grain should be given. Her quarters for farrowing must be clean, dry, roomy, and so arranged as to allow the entrance of sunshine. If the dam appears feverish after farrowing she should be given a laxative and fed lightly for the next twenty-four hours.

Other Considerations The sharp teeth of young pigs sometimes so irritate the teats of a young sow with her first farrow that it affects her milk and causes scour in her young. In those families where this trouble occurs the young pigs should be caught up and the nippers broken off, as they will be replaced by others before they are needed. The young pig, in order to be healthy, should have the milk of its mother. In cases where the dam dies, has not sufficient milk, or possibly none, or refuses to nurse her litter, and an effort is made to raise the young pigs by hand on cow’s i milk, the development of diarrhoea in ! a few days is frequently noticed. The ! milk of the cow is not suitable for j young pigs, unless it be diluted with j about one-half of its bulk of warm | water, and a tablespoonful of sugar | added to each pint of the mixture. | The same appears to be true, to a ! certain extent, in the case of milk : from other sows: The milk changes j and becomes stronger a few days ! after farrowing, hence the milk of a i sow with a litter two or three weeks 1 old is not likely to give good results ! if partaken of by a newly-born litter. i "