St. Tammany farmer. [volume] (Covington, La.) 1874-current, 1908-01-25
POINTS IN PORK RAISING.
The South Has Great Advantages Fof
Growing Hogs.

Inc south 0fferS unusual Opp0ftu-
mites for the production of first-class
market hogs. While there are some
drawbacks. the most serious one,
which is swine sickness, can be elm
mated TO a great extent by proper
sanitation and management. And right
here there is no safer rule to follow
than, Use preventive measures in
stead Of curative ones" The hog is an
animal which positively will not re-
spond to treatment, and especially
is this true when compared with other
kinds of live stock. Entire droves of
hogs have been taken off by disease,
when other men nearby used proven
tive measures and survived the
plague. This was not simply luck; it
was a question Of proper feeding, care
and management. Certain feeds, for
example, have a tendency to weaken
a hog constituaonally, and thus he is
less able to ward off disease. A hog
fed continually on corn grows a small,
weak bone, soft and fabby muscles,
and does not obtain his full size. This
possible may be breeding animal,
and as a result the weakness IS hand.
ed down to the offspring, and often
times the fault is there multiplied
AS a result of this, the animal is not
able to take proper exercise or rustic
for himself This possibly may bring
on disease. At any rate, exercise is
too often not given its full value. This
is especially true in case of breeding
animals and of young and growing
pigs. It is one valuable measure to
be used in preventing disease.
In the feed, care and management
of swine there are certain funda-
mental principles which hold true, no
matter what our condition may be.
In the first place, we must provide
ourselves with strong, vigorous ami
mails to start with, either high-grade
or pure bred, always giving the best
success. Then we must provide feeds
which contain the proper material for
building up the various parts OF the
body; and not only this, but we must
know at what age these certain kinds
Of feed must be given. These two
things are allimportant, and it will
depend to decided extent upon them
whether man actually makes a profit
from raising hogs. Another important
question is that Of care and manage
ment, which has to do with such
things as regularity in feeding, time
of feeding, caring for the sow and her
litter providing shelter, saving of the
young things and providing pasturage
and plentiful supplies of good pure
water If the above things are care
fully attended to, and at the right
time, there is no reason why every
man so doing can not make swine rails
ing profitable.
! In the actual breeding. raising and
marketing of hogs it is settled ques-
ton that it is most profitable to pro-
vide a hog pasture of some descrip-
ton. The pasture is especially valu-
able in growing the pigs from birth
are thus not only providing green
feeds which aid in digesting other
foods, but at the same time we are
giving the young pigs plenty of exer-
else to make strong bone, and at the
same time using valuable measure
in warding OF disease.
Contrast these conditions with ten
or twelve brood soWs and their lit.
tiers, housed in small, filthy, i'll venti.
lated places. Is it any wonder that
they contract diseases and spread il
through the neighbordood? This is
just criticism, and even today in some
of the prominent swine producing sec.
ton this method of management is
used. 1t is gradually being replaced.
however, by modern methods of swine
growing.
It is true that under southern con-
ditions we have individual problems
to work out. Such things as breeds,
feeds and management are all vital
in the hands of the swine grower.
There is certainly a bright future for
the production of the hog, and one
reason of this is because protein or
muscle producing feeds are so easily
and economically grown. Here is
where we have a decided advantage
over the Corn Belt producers. The
two principle crops there are corn
and hogs Corn is the finishing feed
for hogs. but not feed for producing
growth. Too many times it is corn
from birth to maturity. The result is
a small, weak animal, decreased in
size and constitution. Remember the
first thing to do is to grow a frame
of good bone.
The prominent essentials are ID
Supply plenty of pasture or range. 90
Start with strong, vigorous, groWthy
animals. 60 Feed young and growing
animals on bone and muscle produc-
ing feed. "a Do not try to fatten the
animal until he is grown; yet do not
have them too large; two hundred
and fifty pounds is the handy weight
animal (5) Give plenty of exercise to
young stock; it strengthens them and
tends to ward off disease.-R. s. Cur
tbs, Assistant Professor of Animal
husbandry, North Carolina College
of Agriculture, Raleigh.
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