Lincoln County leader. [volume] (Toledo, Lincoln County, Or.) 1893-1987, 1894-06-07
WORK ON FARMS.
The Main Work Should Be
Planned Far Ahead.
CAUSE OF PIG.EATING sows.
Swine Are Grazing Animal, and Need
Grass and Hay the Same as Other
Domestic Animals.

A subscriber in Iowa is in great per-
turbation of mind, says Galen Wilson in
the New York Tribune, because SO many
OF his sows eat their pigs at birth; and
then when he watches and takes them
away he has very poor luck" in rais-
ing them by hand, as nine out of ten
die. In view of the high price of pigs
and prospects of pork ruling high next
fall he would like help out OF his diff
culties, if possible. He fails to tell how
his sows have been handled, on what or
how he has fed them. But this can be
readily surmised, for he is in corn
country and has corned" his pork be-
fore it was grown; that is, the sows have
been wintered probably y mostl Y on corn
diet. While this is not always the cause
OF pig-eating, it is usually SO. Hogs,
like human beings, are of different dis
positions. In very rare cases the pains
OF parturition frenzy the animals, and
then they are likely to fight and bite
everything near them. They would be
as likely to attack person as fowl or
their own young. One was known to
wrench an ear from another hog. Such
sows are extremely nervous, but they
are SO exceptional that there is little to
fear on this account. Generally the
cause is an exclusive grain diet or nearly
SO, and this is usually corn, the worst in
the list of grains. Swine are grazing
animals, and need grass and hay the
same as other domestic animals. Who
would expect his horses, cattle and sheep
to flourish if he gave them nothing but
grain? Yet this is consideration sell
dom taken into account in regard to
swine. The desire of a SOW to destroy
her young is directly chargeable to mans
mismangement of her. Pregnant sows
should have continuously an easily di-
gested but nutritious diet, not of one
material, but of several, as one may be
situated to furnish-a little of any of
the grains, grass or clover in summer,
and in winter chopped hay in wet feed,
bran, oatmeal, middlings, beets, turnips,
carrots, apples, potatoes. Surely here
is sufficient list of ordinary foods to
select from that will keep breeding sows
in normal, healthful condition and OBJ
viate their pig eating propensities. They
should be allowed to range for exercise,
have access to salt, ashes and coal, and
have warm, dry bed. Where one shuts
them in pen and gives them nothing
but grain, house slops or water, he may
expect his attempt to grow pigs will be
a failure. An exclusive grain diet keeps
the system in feverish condition, and
creates constipation, of which the off
spring also partake. This condition
causes the mammary glands Of the dam
to 5e sore and tender, and when the off
spring try to suckle there is immediate
"trouble in the family" and the dams
wrath is appeased only when one or more
of the young is sacrificed on the altar of
ignorant feeding. The milk OF sows
possesses a greater proportion OF sugar
and fat than the milk of cows. To bring
pigs up by hand the milk of the cow
should be made as near like that of the
SOW as possible. This can be done by
adding sugar and faxseed Jelly to the
former. The young things must be fed
with teaspoon at first, little and often.
They will learn to drink in few days.
Frequency OF feeding can be diminished
gradually. At two weeks of age five
times a day will be enough, and at three
to four weeks three times day. The
sugar may be dropped at two weeks and
middlings be added, and wheat bran
later on. Skim milk can take the place
of entire milk at two weeks. 1t should
be given sweet and warm until about
four weeks, when the temperature can
be rapidly reduced to ordinary cold milk.
Then the sweet milk can be changed to
sour If right from the skinner; but