ALFALFA FOR SWINE I9I 



a pasture or soiling crop for sows and young pigs, al- 

 falfa proves a wonderfully helpful ration for niilk- 

 niaking in the sow and for growth in the pigs. Experi- 

 ments have shown that pigs make better growth when 

 the dam is fed considerable alfalfa than those from 

 sows fed the best of commercial rations but with no 

 alfalfa. Of two sets of pigs, one fed clover, rape and 

 soaked corn, and the other with access to alfalfa in lieu 

 of clover and rape, those having the alfalfa seemed to 

 grow the more rapidly. For brood sows it is a most 

 valuable food, either as hay, a soiling crop, or as pasture. 

 The litters of such sows are generally large and vigorous 

 and the dams have a strong flow of nutritious milk. Al- 

 falfa meal in slop may be used with profit where the hay 

 is not to be obtained. It is also claimed that sows fed on 

 alfalfa during pregnancy will not devour their young, 

 its mineral elements seeming- to satisfy the appetite of the 

 sow, while contributing to the fetal development of 

 the pigs. 



On a farm of former Governor Hoard, in Jefferson 

 county, Wisconsin, all the Ijrood sows have for several 

 years been wintered on alfalfa hay of the season's 

 third cutting, and their drink (skim milk from the 

 dairy), without any grain until the last two weeks of 

 gestation. Mr. Hoard says the object is to give the sows 

 a food that will keep them in a non-feverish state and 

 furnish protein sufficient to l)uild the bodies of the forth- 

 coming pigs. 



"It was a matter of experiment at first, our only guide 

 beine the knowledge and reason we could exercise from 



