The Colfax chronicle. [volume] (Colfax, Grant Parish, La.) 1877-1981, 1896-01-25
FARMER AND PLANTER.
BREEDING SWINE.
Care Necessary In the Selection of the
Proper Types.

W Tic sciection OF their breeding hogs
This applies to those who are breeding
thoroughbreds to sell as breeders, as
well as to those who are breeding for
meat production only. The end of hog
is pork, and no hog is too good for even
the small farmer who produces merely
enough meat for home consumption.
VI course there will always appear ami
mails OF such outstanding individual
merit as to keep them from the butch-
er's block, but that is no reason why
stunted thoroughbreds and other
scrubs need be considered good
enough for meat hogs"
The long-legged, lank and thorough
bred or grade is not the most profit
able hog for the purpose for which a
hog is intended, viz, the production
OF pork, and If the farmer will count
the cost of making given amount of
pork from this sort of an animal he
will readily see that the increased cost
will more than balance any difference
which existed in the original cost of
the breeding stock. Good thorough
breds are neither too good nor too ex-
pensive for ''meat hogs" This must
be apparent. for the only use to which
hog can be put is to produce pork,
therefore if the thoroughbred has
any superiority over the razor-baclx,
1t must be in his greater value for
feeding purposes. A good pig at
i've dollars when two months old is
cheaper for feeding purposes than is a
scrub costing nothing. and any man
can fully demonstrate the fact by
counting the cost of feed in relation to
their respective values at slaughter
ing time. The idea that anything is
good enough for a meat hog is cost
ing farmers thousands OF dollars an
'lually.
The first thing to be done is to Sc
lect some one of the improved breeds.
1t is not very important which. and
our ticket is anything to beat the
scrub" Having selected the breed we
desire to raise, the next thing is to Sc
cure good representatives of that
breed. There are two things to
be considered in selecting an
animal for breeding purposes.
First, pedigree; and, second, individual
merit. 1t is generally thought that
the time which the farmer would spend
studying the pedigrees of breed of
hogs would be lost, but no greater mis-
take could be made. Certain families
in all breeds have become fashionab BILE
because they have shown superior
qualities, and it is evident that, other
things being equal, the animal whose
ancestors have shown excellence will
be most likely to produce progeny of
excellence. Therefore any person who
is going to put money into any breed
OF hogs should know enough about
the families of that breed to select
those most likely to produce COOL off
spring. To select an animal of high in
dividual merit requires knowledge of
what constitutes the best type of the
breed. This knowledge can only be OBJ
tanned by study and inspecting good
specimens. Because one has n better
hog and finer-loc<sing animal than a
razor-back is no proof that it is not a
scrub. There are number of men
who offer for sale what they claim to
be the best strains of the different
breeds who do not know the strains of
their respective breeds In honest
ignorance many of them are infiic ting
on their equally-ignorant customers
animals just little removed from the
razor-back. This is due to the fact
that they have bought their stock from
persons who,. like themselves. had
never seen the best of the breed,
or from breeders who, against
their own interest and the dictates of
Mteir consciences. sold them their
"culls" because they were not willing
to pay more than "cull" prices. Many
people place too small value on quail
ty in hog; with them one hog is as
good as another, and SO long as he is
thoroughbred and eligible to regisitra
ton they are satisfied. Scrubs of the
thoroughbred class are numerous, and
therefore an animal must be some
thing more than thoroughbred He
is worth good price and will bring
it. Most people in the south think $40
big price for boar pig three or four
months old. when in truth, il he is
good enough to save as a breeder he
is worth many times that in one
year to almost any farmer One
noted berkshire breeder in Mis-
souri, sold nearly zoo head in
1894 at an average of S45 each
Still / have known men to send him
SIS with the request that he send them
in exchange ''first-class pig" and
when they failed to get such were dis
appointed. Is it reasonable to suppose
man would sell frst-class pig for
about half the price he gets for his
average?
If the prospective purchaser has had
sufficient experience toknow what con-
stitutes frst-class animal, and can
make the purchase after personal in
spection of the stock, he may find some
young and unknown breeder who will
sell him first-class animal in breeding
and quality for from So. so to S25, but
if he has not had this requisite expe-
rience, or must buy by mail order,
then the only safe plan is to buy of