Balancing the Feeds

New Zealand Journal of Agriculture, Volume 68, Issue 5, 15 May 1944, Page 335

Balancing the Feeds

By

H. M. PEIRSON,

Acting Superintendent of the Pig Industry, Wellington.

IN' EVERY country of the world the first approach the scientist makes to the question of feeding is by way of the composition of feed-stuffs. The amounts of protein, fat, and carbohydrate determine accurately the value of a feed, and a knowledge of them usually accounts for the observed properties of the feed. The man who uses the feed, however, can make little use of the analysis, nor can he take any advantage of the advice so frequently offered that he must use balanced feeds. Not only has the animal a tolerance for a very wide range of quantities has an even greater one for a range of qualities. After a short time it can adjust itself to four or even six times' the amount of protein that is ideal, and can get along with about half the quantity it should require. Similarly with mineralsit can live and be healthy with just the minerals found in grain, or it can consume added minerals at the rate of ounces per week. This tolerance is most remarkable while the pig is “idling” and while it has a few reserves stored away in its body. As soon as these reserves become depleted, or when the pig is fed liberally enough to grow, then trouble . arises. This takes the form of any of the common ailments from lameness and rickets to constipation, worm infection, or pleurisy. Unsuitable feed that lowers the tone of the animal system is the opening through which most of the ailments of pigs find entry. Those whose pigs grow satisfactorily but still are subject to certain ailments may dissent from i the viewpoint stated

above. It is quite possible to get rapid growth on unsuitable feed, but it need not be healthy growth. With unsuitable feeds the more rapid the growth the more unhealthy the animal is—fact that is made use of in the production of experimental rickets. Even although it is “growth for feed used” that makes a feed supply valuable, growth and good health are a better combination than growth . and ill health. The signs of -health that are unmistakable are a sleek coat, a shining skin, a bright eye, energetic action,

and normal excreta. A feed supply that leaves pigs wanting in any of these, in spite of the fact that the pigs are growing rapidly, is unbalanced and would be improved by the addition of the missing ingredient. Missing Ingredient Most people can tell at a glance if their pigs are in normal health, but because of the interplay of many factors such as age, rate of growth, amount of sunlight, presence or absence of parasites, and all the variables that influence a pig’s health, it is often difficult to recommend with any measure of assurance treatment that will improve things. . Although the value of minerals, condiments, and vitamins is widely recognised, it is most remarkable how many healthy pigs there are in the country that get no added minerals or condiments and live sometimes on skim-milk, sometimes on buttermilk, sometimes on offal, and sometimes on a wide variety of homegrown feeds, plus milk.

The common thread that runs through these different places is the care of the owner. He feeds regularly, he feeds just as much as the pigs clean up. His pigs are always looking for more, but never really hungry. He is a careful observer. Any pigs that require attention get it promptly. He is careful to have just the right number of pigs that will use his feed supply at every time of the year, and generally he pays attention to all the details that require attention. As a result one can say with a good deal of conviction, and with no desire to be clever or offensive, that the best supplement that can be used with any feed supply, no matter what its origin, is understanding and care on the part of the owner. It is not everyone’s good fortune that he can take care; or put otherwise, things go wrong with some in spite of the best of care. In such cases it be-

comes necessary to find something that can be added to the ration in order to keep pigs healthy with limited care. Minerals, Vitamins or ? One of the most striking happenings associated with pig feeding is the wonderfully sleek appearance of pigs that are being fed on lucerne. Whatever their age or state, after weaning pigs that receive lucerne, . green or as chaffed hay, are always sleek and healthy, provided of course that lucerne is not their sole feed. Whether its value lies in the minerals contained in it, or in the vitamins, or the protein value, we will never know, because of the difficulty of separating these things, but the fact remains, that lucerne puts a shine on the coat not excelled by any . other class of feedstuff. Next to lucerne ordinary green, pasture, provided it is young, keeps pigs quite healthy, and although not so universally excellent as lucerne, it is quite valuable. ; Next the oil-bearing feeds, such as linseed cake, oats and meat-meal fed in small amounts make pigs healthy-looking, and here again it

is impossible to. fasten with any assurance on the ingredient that is most useful. Pigs fed on offal — meat scraps— always remarkably healthy, and one is almost forced to the conclusion that animal fat is most beneficial. Finally there are the wellknown benefits that so many have obtained from using mineral mixtures such as wood ashes, charcoal, slack coal, or licks of various kinds containing salt, sulphur, iron, iodine, lime and phosphates. It seems impossible to make any authoritative -statement on the question of minerals. The question was investigated by Sheehy in Northern Ireland some time ago, and over a period of five years after trying every kind of mineral mixture he found that salt and limestone, one part to four, used at the rate of 3 per cent, of the dry weight of feed, was the most useful mineral. A pig of 100 lb. weight, eating 4 lb. of feed or its equivalent, would want daily about 1J ozs. of minerals. A useful way to feed minerals is to have the supply handy and with a known measure, such as a bakingpowder or other tin, put the calculated amount in the trough daily. It sounds very complicated, but it can be done quite easly if it is worth while. Attention to Detail More Important Than Anything Else. lt is apparent that in spite of the supposed advisability of knowing how much a pig should;, receive per day and how much protein, fat, carbohydrate and minerals there is in his ration, it is seldom that the good results obtained by a feeder can be ascribed to this knowledge. More usually success is associated with attention to some or all of the following details: — 1. Feed regularly as to time and amount. 2. Feed just as much as the pigs will clean up. 3. Don’t leave stale food in troughs. Movable .. troughs can be conveniently turned over. Fixed ones could have a hinged lid that keeps the troughs clean. 4. If pigs fail to thrive after attention has been given to the above, then the quality of the feed supply is at fault or the pigs are unhealthy. It always pays to correct the trouble and the improvement of the feed supply is either a matter of adding green grass to the ration or I lb. of any grain or 1 lb. to 1 lb. of meat-meal; or perhaps 1 oz. of lime and salt mixture. Experience usually de- : cides which of these gives results. Quality Usually Good It is rarely that the feed supply itself is of such a quality that it can be blamed for poor pigs. On any - place

where pigs are kept there may be a dozen healthy pigs for every sick one. It is a fair assumption that the sick one is the result of some chill or setback, such as we humans experience from time to time, and that the dozen healthy ones are a striking advertisement for the excellent quality of the feed supply. This is generally correct for those months of the year when skim-milk is the chief source of feed supply. When skim-milk is in short supply it often happens that most of the pigs go to (the pack, either because they have too little feed or else because the quality of their feed is below standard. The feeds in use are . usually home grown, varying from grass through any kind of fodder crop to roots of all descriptions, plus at times a little grain. There is one addition, viz., meat-meal, that can be made to every feed supply (skim-milk included) that will always bring feed quality up to a standard that enables pigs to thrive.

Pig Industry Broadcasts UNDER the auspices of the District Pig Councils concerned broadcasts will be delivered in June as follows: Auckland, IYA—On June 15, at 7.15 p.m., “Litter Production,” by H. Preston, Supervisor, Northland District Pig Council. Dunedin, 4YA —On June 12, at 7.15 p.m., “Avoiding Losses in Pig Production,” by M. Roderique, Supervisor, Otago and Southland District Pig Council. Napier, 2YH—On June 8, at 7.30 p.m., “Litter Production,” by I. H. Owtram, Supervisor, Tairawhiti District Pig Council Palmerston North, —On June 20, at 8.30 p.m., “Breeding Programme, or Fitting Pigs to the Feed Supply,” by H. Marsdon, Supervisor, Wellington District Pig Council.