The Houma courier. (Houma, La.) 1878-1939, 1897-01-16
PoRTABLR HOG PEN.

PORTABLE HOG PEN.
without protection they soon become
chilled through and may leave their
food to again seek warmth in the
nest. Hogs that are subjected to such
conditions soon begin tt cough and
suffer from lung trouble. They be-
come gaunt, with arched backs, and
have every evidence of a "humped up
and unthrifty condition. Many farm
eTs allow their hogs to work in straw
stacks for shelter from the cold. Icon
slider such q place a regular death trap
for swine in large numbers. Another
bedroom that is bad is the hog house
with a floor two or three feet from the
ground. Many such buildings are
open on n or more sides, so that q
cold draft can get under the floor. And
again, I would not allow hogs to lie
against a stone wall. The earth itself,
with a little straw, makes the best bed
IN the world for a hog if it is dry. In
that n word, dry, is the great secret
of successfully wintering swine. Di-
vide the herd into small lots of not
more than ten each; and in the case Of
matured brood sows five or six together
are better than more. Keep them as
warm as possible, and have them dry.
/ would much prefer to have my
hogs to sleep in cold and dry than
in warm and wet. 1 am not GO
ing to advise nyone who has a
nice permanent hog house to ADAM
don its use, but l certainly do advise
any farmer who contemplates building
one not to do so. I have a hog house
and make but little use of it, and will
eventually tear it down.
1t is difficult to get sunlight and
warmth into large houses, and, more
than that. they are likely to become
a hotbed of disease germs, and much
fertility is wasted about them. Hogs
should be changed about from lot to
lot. We want a rotation of hog pens,
so to speak, turning up each lot in
turn to the sun and air, cropping it a
season or two and putting it back to
In this way the fertility is scat
sA2d where it win be of use and the
are much healthier. The man
Always confines his hogs to one
yard and building can never at
reat success in swine husbandry.
hugh drawing herewith submitted
}nvey an idea of a portable sleep
Id breeding pen that / have used
humber of years. They not only
Rne splendid satisfaction, but
y please every man who tries
Swine are, of course, never fed
&e pens. l feed outdoors the year
4, either on dry earth or on port
feeding floors. These pens are
Sht feet square. To make them,
construct a platform eight feet square,
ssieg 2x4 scantlings for sills and inch
stuff for floors. Next take eight boards
10 feet long, one inch thick and IL
inches wide; saw them in the center
and use them for the roof, as shown in
the drawing. Use half-ineh battens
cover cracks. A yentilator should
he placed in the roof, and a smallerin-
dow over the door. When completed a
can stand upright in the pen
nicely. They stand right on the ground,
so that no cold air can get under them.
"A door is not necessary, as they are
very warm without. They make a
splendid breeding pen for one sow,
by placing a 2x4 or 2x6 across the end
opposite the door and six to eight
from the floor. The pen is com
pIetely rendered, as the SOW cannot lie
close to the caves, and the pigs can
get out of the way. This style OF pen
costs about five dollars to build; it is
very durable. Two men will easily
raise up n end of it, when a stone
may be placed under for the pur-
OF changing its location. | have
several Of these pens. In the stm-
they are moved to the pasture for
against storms, and in the fall
they are moved to the yards. | attrib-
ute much of my success with fall pigs
TO the use Of these pens, and warm
food. The bedding is changed twice a
week. and the pigs are always warm
end dry.-C. II. Everett, in Prairie
Farmer.