THE boar: selection and management 93 



cases, is not feasible, but at any rate the boar is not an 

 animal to be purchased at the last minute before he is 

 needed, and the buyer should allow himself time to be 

 sure of a judicious selection. 



L'or heading- a farmer's herd it is much more desirable 

 to choose a boar from a stock that has shown its practi- 

 cal worth in farm pork making- than one from a so-called 

 fashionable ancestry, and he should have been reared 

 under about such conditions as will surround him in his 

 new home. 



\\niere selection of a young boar from a home litter is 

 made he should be separated from his mates at or before 

 he is five months of age. Many breeders favor allowing 

 him the companionship of one or more male hogs of simi- 

 lar age, castrated or otherwise, in order gradually to 

 accustom him to the changing- situation ; and for other 

 reasons this may be excellent. 



The boar of eight months or older will do better if kept 

 by himself; at least, he should not be where sows or gilts 

 may arouse him. He should be kept in a comfortable 

 pen, with a lot or pasture adjoining, and supplied with a 

 \ariety of nutritious food, which means something- more 

 than dry corn with an occasional drink of diluted dish- 

 water. The permanent quarters should be provided with 

 a view to furnishing sunlight, exercise, dry warmth and 

 cleanliness. These should be so located that the so\vs 

 may be conveniently brought to him for service. A 

 large pen is not needed — ten feet square will do — but a 

 yard and pasture should each be adjacent. The yard will 

 be needed for ser\ice and for his exercise in the breeding 



