Bradford reporter. [volume] (Towanda, Pa.) 1844-1884, 1865-11-02
A1rienltmral.
Rearing and Fattening Hogs.
BY BATES HENRY, scHUYLkrLL CO., PA.

belongs to the same class OF animals as the
elephant and rhinoceros, the thin-sklnned
or Pachydermata.
The utility of the hog is in great meas
ure owing to its very remarkable fecundity,
reproducing at one year old, and bearing
from eight to ten young at time (some-
times even more) and that twice year.
Some man-of-igures has estimated the pro-
duct of a single SOW, with only six young
at time, in ten generations, to be about
$500, 900
The hog was the animal which the An
clients sacrificed to the goddess of the har-
vest, Ceres.
1t has been estimated that there are
raised, in the United States, yearly, about
forty million Of hogs, which, at 81 per
head, amount to the immense sum OF TWO
hundred and eighty millions of dollars II
then, the hog could be so improved as to
raise his value one dollar a head, an I'M
mense amount Of money would accrue to
the farmer. As you say III your prospec-
tus that YOU wish farmers experience
with raising the hog, killing, curing, etc,
in preference to his acquired knowledge Of
the brute, will be candid enough to ac-
knowledge that | do not know the breed Of
my own swine They are only Of moderate
length, with broad, square shoulders, and
hams, short legs, and great depth, medium
sized heads and straight snouts.
Hardly day passes that we do not hear
the remark, as dirty as a hog" This |
consider, vllifcation Of the animal which
Frdnklin's colored servant said was the
"only gentleman in England" from the fact
that he was the only animal that did not
work III that country believe that the
filthy habits of the hog are in very great
measure owing to his domesticatl0n, tor III
all this State he is cribbed up III small
pen, aud is fed upon the otl'al Of everything
upon the most disgusting tood-and Is
considered as much an instrument for con-
verting filth into compost, as source Of
wholesome and palatable food. He has the
propensity of wallowing i'll the mlrc COM
mon to all animals of his order, but gen
orally for the purpose Of rdding himself Of
vermin, ana of protecting his thinly covered
skin from the attacks of insects In this
respect the hog is no more dirty than the
elephant or the hippopotamus. No animal
displays the changes arising from domestl-
cation more tnan the hog, which may be
observed by contrasting the long-legged,
wild and savage boar, with the short
shanked, docile, fat and plump Pennsylva-
MIA hog, which with difficulty walks rapidly
across the confines of his narrow pen.
BREEDING AND REARING.
In selecting my breeding hogs, l always
pick out the best shaped, most thriving
boar pig to keep over for a breeder, For a
SOW | select a healthy shoat, well shaped,
but thin and lank, in preference to fat
sleek one my reasons for this are, that
the lean SOW will produce more pigs, and
raise them better, than one in high order
the sleek one converts all her food into fat
and flesh for her own sides and back, while
i'll the lean one it is converted into food for
the young. This rule is applicable to all
animals \ COW which shows every rib
when in milk, will bring forth larger and
better calves, and give more and better
milk, than the one which always looks fat
enough for the slaughter. My experience
fully sustains my theory. My mode Of
raising hogs which are intended to be kept
over, is to have them pigged about the lat
ter part of August or first Of September,
and after allowing them to run with the
SOW from four to six weeks, cOnline them
in separate pen. When first taken from
the SOW they should be fed from six to
eight times day, OF else they will fall off
in flesh, and it will take them weeks to re-
cruit Their usual allowance, at first
should be about pint of milk to each pig,
and in order to facilitate the properly at
tending to them, the milk barrel should be
kept standing very near the pen, from which
it can be dipped with pail with very lit
tie trouble, being replenishcd night and
morning with fresh skinned milk from the
dairy The quantity for each pig should
be gradually increased each day according
TO the growth of the pigs, until they have
attained to the age of three or four months,
when regular allowance should be made
them and the number of times feeding
may be diminished At this time in the
pigs life little grain fed night and morn
ing, will not be thrown away on him a
little oats or rye if the pig is in a healthy
condition, followed by about pint OF corn,
which may be subsequently increased to a
quart This addition of grain will tell am
azngly in the growth Of the animal, as well
as have tendency to keep him in such a
condition, that when fattening time arrives
he will be ready for the knife much sooner
than hog fed only on slops without the
daily quota of corn, to say nothing of the
saving of a good deal more corn than has
been used up to this time in feeding. The
milk from the dairy, when weakened by the
slops from the kitchen, should occasionally
through the week be enriched by the add,
ton of rye bran.
sTY AND BEDDING.
There is no greater mistake made by far
mers than allowing swine to run about out
of the pen. To say nothing of the immense
destruction which they are liable to do
they SO completely run themselves down
that it takes almost double the amount oi
feeding to get them in condition for butch
ering.
The pen in which hogs are kept should
consist Of two apartmentsa covered anC
an uncovered one An excellent manner il
which to construct a pig-sty, is to erect q
two-story frame building, having part o.
the under story boarded off for place il
which to keep the slop barrel, reserving
the rest for a dry pen for the hogs, anC
have pen constructed outside, and com
municatinn with this covered one. The
feeding trough should be in the outside
pen. In this manner, if the pigs are giyer
suthcency of rye straw III the inside pen
and the outside one is kept we'll supplied