116 Journal of the Department of Agriculture. — Aug., 1922. 



deep should be put inside. This will allow the young-sters to obtain 

 part of their requirements undisturbed, and- they will therefore be 

 less of a drain upon the sow. Especially is this true as the time of 

 weaning- approaches. In this way there is little likelihood of the sow 

 overfeeding, whilst sufficient trough space is allowed the youngsters, 

 and they should make maximum gains. The most suitable feeds for 

 the little pigs at this time are the by-products of the dairy, fed in 

 conjunction with some finely-ground meal. Separated milk slightly 

 heated and mixed with pollard and mealie meal, or the meal sifted 

 out from crushed oats and fed in equal amounts, and in the propor- 

 tion of 1 meal mixture to 4 of milk, has given very satisfactory 

 results. Butter-milk, whey, wheaten bran, etc., may also be used, 

 but will not give quite such good results. The practice of scattering- 

 soaked grain, such as mealies, barley, etc., is recommended, as it not 

 only teaches the young pigs to search for their feed, but is also 

 conducive to their taking sufficient exercise. 



9. If the number of pigs in the litter is above ten, those that are 

 decidedly runty should be knocked on the head and buried. On no 

 account should the sow be allowed to rear more than ten pigs. The 

 remainder, if not too bad to destroy, should, if possible, be given to 

 another sow. As a rule it does not pay to attempt to rear these by 

 hand. 



10. If breeding on commercial lines, the litters should be weaned 

 at about eight weeks of age, but if breeding on pure-bred lines, and 

 especially if the litter is fairly small, say, seven or eight, they can 

 be left with the sow for another two or three weeks. 



11. If some of the boar pigs in the litter are decidedly lacking 

 either in type, constitution, or size for age, they should be castrated 

 at six weeks of age. This will allow them to get over the operation 

 by the time they are weaned. The doubtful boar pigs can be left 

 over until they are about three to four months of age. 



12. As a general rule it is not absolutely essential to ear-mark 

 the litter before weaning in the case of winter litters, which should 

 ordinarily be few in number, and therefore allow little possibility 

 of a mistake being made. To be on the safe side, it is a good thing 

 to mark your litters at this time, but one must be careful not to make 

 the cuts too big or too small. The tendency is, as a rule, to make 

 them too small, in which case it is extremely difficult to read the 

 numbers when the pigs are matured. It is purely a matter of practice 

 to know exactly how to mark them. Use the system of marking 

 recommended by the Pig Breeders' Society. 



13. It is a good practice, especially when the youngsters are 

 warmly bedded, to rouse them up late in the afternoon, when they 

 have settled down for the night. The object is to let them empty 

 their bladders, for pigs have a tendency to keep to their warm nests 

 and so do themselves a great deal of harm. A pig is different from 

 other kinds of live stock, which will ordinarily excrete and urinate 

 when they are lying down. A pig will not do this, except in a particu- 

 lar part of his pen, usually the corner farthest from his nest. This 

 may seem a small point, but it is one of the many minor points that 

 count in getting optimum results. 



