The Brood Sow and Her Litter. 375 



known. The feeds, excepting the green grasses, stand in the following 

 relation to each other as to laxative elfect, the more laxative being placed 

 at the head of the list: Linseed oilmeal, bran, milk, tankage, shorts, 

 corn. 



It will be noted that onr principle feed, corn, is lacking in protein, 

 ash, bulk and laxative effect, all of which are necessary for the best de- 

 velopment in breeding and growing stock. This defect, however, can be 

 easily remedied in summer by a good pasture of clover, alfalfa, and to a 

 great extent, by bluegrass; and in winter by the use of other feeds in 

 connection with corn, such as leguminous hay, milk, bran, oilmeal and 

 shorts or tankage, the last three of which, however, are lacking in bulk 

 for brood sows not having access to pasture or bulkier feeds. 



Another factor that often means success or failure, is that of ex- 

 ercise for the brood sow and litter. It is almost impossible to keep in 

 good condition the digestive and reproductive organs of breeding and 

 growing stock that do not have sufficient exercise. It not only tends to 

 cause them to fatten, but it also leaves the digestive tract closed and 

 leads to constipation and other disarrangements of the system which, 

 occurring in the pregnant sow, cause weak and sickly litters to be far- 

 rowed. Ordinarily it is no trouble to get sows or pigs to take suifieient 

 exercise, except in very bad weather, especially if a winter pasture, such 

 as wheat or rye, is provided, but should a sow become sluggish and re- 

 fuse to take a good deal of exercise some means of compelling her to do 

 so should be resorted to. 



THE BROOD SOW. 



The importance of the brood sow on the farm is hardly appreciated 

 imtil we stop to consider that she must have under her care for six 

 months all the future porkers produced on the farm. The average num- 

 ber of sows kept by the correspondents who answered the list of cpies- 

 tions is 13.4. Of the total number, 85.5 per cent, of the farmers state 

 that they prefer to have each sow produce two litters yearly, while 14.5 

 per cent, prefer only one litter per sow. Of the former class, the replies 

 ■show that each sow produces on an average 1.81 litters yearly, or in 

 other words, 19 per cent, of the sows fail to produce more than one litter 

 yearly, where two is preferred. The average of the hog raisers desiring 

 only one litter yearly per sow shows that 96.4 per cent, of the sows pro- 

 duce a litter, thus leaving 3.6 per cent, not producing at all. The aver- 

 age number of pigs per litter from all the sows is 7.07. According to 



