198 FARM ANIMALS 



hams and shoulders, short heavy neck and short 

 legs. Packing hogs may weigh from three hundred 

 to five hundred pounds, but as a rule are of a poorer 

 grade than the butcher hogs. The pork from pack- 

 ing hogs is used for curing or made into mess pork 

 and other pork products. Packing hogs constitute 

 forty per cent, of the hogs which come to the Chi- 

 cago market. The light hog class includes animals 

 which weigh from one hundred and twenty to two 

 hundred and twenty pounds, and range in age from 

 five to eight months. The form of this class may 

 vary considerably. It includes a number of light 

 hogs of the lard type and also bacon hogs which are 

 used for the production of the so-called Wiltshire 

 sides. Our bacon hogs differ considerably from 

 those preferred in England. Pigs weigh from 

 sixty to one hundred and twenty-five pounds and 

 include about ten per cent, of the swine which are 

 put on the market. 



The pork raiser should make himself thoroughly 

 familiar with the demands of the market where he 

 expects to sell his product. Since about two-thirds 

 of the world's supply of pork is produced in the 

 United States and since at least six-sevenths of our 

 hog production takes place in the corn belt, any 

 individual who intends to go into the business of 

 raising pork cannot do better than make a study 

 of the business on the farm of some successful raiser 

 in this region. He will then become acquainted 

 with the type of lard hog which is characteristic 

 of our hog industry and will learn many other prac- 

 tical points which could not otherwise be acquired. 

 Chicago is the greatest hog market in the world and 

 the prices for pork products are, therefore, largely 

 set in this city. The retail dealer, however, may 

 exercise a considerable influence on the price of 



