286 LIVE STOCK MANAGEMENT. 



exhibition purposes. It would simply mean time, money and 

 labor thrown away. 



Constitution is a very important point. A hog which 

 lias a good constitution will withstand a great deal more 

 exposure and will make better gains than one which is poor 

 in constitution. Furthermore, in all our show rings, any 

 weakness in this respect is discriminated against most se- 

 verely. The question of bone is an important one. In many 

 instances it is the deciding point in the show ring. A hog 

 must have plenty of bone, and that bone must be of good 

 quality. A large, coarse, porous bone is not desirable. We 

 must have size of bone, combined with quality. The feet 

 and legs are also very important. A hog which does not 

 stand well on its feet and legs can never make a show ani- 

 mal. Crooked legs, long pastern, knock knees, and all other 

 deviations from the correct form should be discriminated 

 against. Quality throughout as indicated by the refinement 

 of the head, the ears, the shoulders and the bone, is a very 

 important feature. 



The coat of hair must not be overlooked, as a swirly 

 coat will be very much discriminated against. Curliness or 

 coarseness of coat is also very undesirable. On the other 

 Tiand, a thin haired, fine haired hog is always discriminated 

 against. A good coat should be medium in length, straight 

 and very thick, and should be of the desired color of the 

 ftreed in question. 



Having all these points, the next thing to be considered 

 is the feed which will produce proper and uniform develop- 

 ment It is very important that the hog intended for show 

 purposes should have a ration which is properly balanced. 

 That is, one which will supply plenty of muscle, building 

 material, and an abundance of bone. In this respect nothing 

 seems to serve a much better purpose than shorts combined 

 with oats, or shorts and barley, and shorts with a small 

 amount of corn. The best ration, however, is a ration of 

 skim-milk and shorts, with perhaps a little corn or barley 

 added. Sometimes as much as 10% oil meal is added to the 

 grain ration. It seems to have a favorable influence upon 

 the health of the animals, and also adds quality in finish to 

 the same. During the summer months a good clover or 

 alfalfa pasture, or, in fact, any forage crop which is rich 

 in protein, makes an excellent adjunct to the grain ration. 



