Mineral Point tribune. (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1869-1938, 1883-08-23
Imnroyement of Pigs.

1t is not necessary for any farmer
to stock his farm with thoroughbred
swine in order TO secure improve
ment in making pork. Good result
NAV be obtained by raising grade
pigs, which are produced by crossing
the native stock upon thoroughbred
sire of breed calculated to meet the
conditions which may exist ON =
farm. or in a neighborhood where
chance in the character of the stock is
desired. This is the least expensive
way to improve the quality of the
pigs. rs one sire will answer for a
whole neighborhood, and perhaps for
a township, if too much is not requlr-
ed of him. If the females are small,
or of medium size, the sire should be
Of large and more growthy breed.
Such sire would increase the size of
the pigs at birth, giving them large
frames, and they would grow more
rapidly and attain greater weight
when eight or nine months old, at
which age pigs are usually fattened,
and also If kept over, than pigs
would attain if the sire was the same
as the mother. The mothers If we'll
bred would impart to the offspring
an inclination to make flesh and fat
ten more rapidly than the coarser
sires Chunky and smallboned dams
will not produce as many young at a
birth as coarser ones; neither will
they furnish as much milk. They
are apt to be too fat to make good
mothers. These are objections to
this manner of breeding, and for
these reasons 1 prefer dams of the
coarser breeds
The most profitable dam is one long
and deep in the body, with large
mammalian development. When
such dams can be obtained, either
among natives or thoroughbreds,
the most profitable pigs may be OBJ
tanned by using sire which is natur-
ally heshy, with fine extremities
Pigs from such a cross will be of good
size when born, and the mothers viii
possess the developments to make
them grow fast The litters will also
be large in number, and the mothers
will bear stronger feed, more of which
will go to produce milk rather than
flesh, as in the case of the smaller
and finer dams. Pigs from such a
cross could be fattened at any age,
and would possess strong constitu-
tons, good appetites, and an ability
to digest and assimilate their food to
a greater extent than if the mothers
were fine and chunky 1t must be
that these constitutional
peculiarities are impaired more by the
mother than by the sire, while the
sire imparts, more than the mother,
form and style. There cannot be a
larger consumption of food, which is
to make a large growth,
without proportionate capacity of
stomach; neither can there be an eX-
tensive secretion of milk without a
proportionate development of the
organs which perform this work and
of the udders to contain it. This rule
applies to sows as well as to COWS,
hence, those are the most desirable
which exhibit these qualities.
Several varieties of swine have
been bred so long for style and beauty
to please the eye of fancy--that
they have become so chubby and fine
that the pigs cannot be made to weigh
more than 1875 or 1870 pounds when
eight or nine months old, and their
flesh is so fat that they are not desir
able food. In the great pork produc
ing districts, as well as the markets,
such pigs are unpopular, Over-fat
pork is not desired. A large frame is
required with more lean meat. The
more growthy breeds, like Poland
China and the Jersey Red and Duroc,
two breeds of the Red BerkS hire,
which possess the same qualities as
the Poland China, are rapidly sup
all of the finer breeds, for
the reasons that they attain nearly
double the size in the same length of
time of the latter The large white
breeds Cheshire White, Cheshire and
Large Yorkshire-are also losing
favor because their skins are more
delicate. which makes them more
liable to be affected with mango and
in summer and scab in win
ter The want of good coats of hair
of the latter two also units them for
exposure and enduring the extremes
of climate. The NictoriaS, another
white breed, are medium in size, with
good coats of hair. They are well
adapted for farm and family use be
cause of the quality of their meat and
size. There are families of
medium size The latter
is also an excellent breed and makes
a profitable cross upon coarser breeds.
- II. d Curtis Kirby Homestead,
n. Y.
Bear vs.. Dog.