248 FEEDING FARM ANIMALS 



way, the water is to be lessened as the animals in- 

 crease in size. 



When a weight of 100 pounds or so has been 

 attained, the pigs now being five or six months old, 

 the slop should be so made as to have a consistency 

 somewhat like mush. If the pigs demand more wa- 

 ter than this food gives, let it be available as drink. 



Pasture for Pigs. The great opportunity for 

 making a profit out of pigs, especially when prices 

 are low and grain products high, is to depend on the 

 use of clover, cowpeas, soy beans, alfalfa and rape 

 pastures. As the subject of pig feeding is studied, 

 more conclusive becomes the evidence that pasture 

 crops go hand in hand with pork production. It 

 should be the. swine raiser's aim as much to grow 

 these forage crops as it is to grow the hog itself. 

 Particularly is this true of the legume crops. Alfalfa 

 naturally comes first because of its highly digestible 

 nutrients, its vigorous growth and consequent 

 heavy yields, its long cycle of life and its land-im- 

 proving benefits. In time alfalfa will be commonly 

 grown in all sections. 



Hogs may be turned into an alfalfa or a clover 

 field early in the spring and kept there through the 

 season until frost, provided the acreage is large in 

 proportion to the number of animals. The tramping 

 will not hurt the crop, and the grazing of the swine 

 will not impair the feeding quality of the alfalfa 

 when made into hay. 



When a large field is pastured a portion can be 

 cut, to be followed a week or so later by another 

 portion, and so until the field has been cut over. In 



