SWINE 211 



Jersey. This breed is red in color and belongs to the fat or 

 lard type. It is a popular hog with the farmer as it is well 

 suited to average conditions and when well cared for is a rapid 

 grower. It is coarse in quality, however, and does not produce 

 as high class a product as some of the other breeds. But in this 

 respect rapid improvement is being made. Duroc- Jerseys 

 have a rather heavy, straight snout and somewhat heavy ears. 

 These should be partly erect with the points tipping forward 

 and outward. 



In producing young, all the breeds are good if properly 

 selected and handled. They should be selected from prolific 

 strains with good constitution and good length of body. 



SWINE FEEDING 



It used to be thought if a man was no good for anything else 

 he could still be a farmer and if he could do nothing else on the 

 farm he could feed hogs. There is some truth in this but at the 

 same time there is no class of animals on the farm where 

 scientific feeding and handling can be used to any better ad- 

 vantage than with swine. 



Swine will eat most anything and everything but thrive best 

 on concentrated feeds. They can make good use of the by- 

 products from the dairy herd, of the kitchen slop, and of 

 spoiled and otherwise waste grains. On this account a few 

 hogs on a farm are very profitable. From the standpoint of 

 economy of production also the hog is very good. It is about 

 equal to the dairy cow and has the advantage of requiring less 

 labor. 



In feeding pigs it must not be forgotten that the young ani- 

 mals and the breeding stock need a great deal of exercise. The 

 next thing in order should be plenty of mineral matter such as 

 salt, bone meal, ground limestone, or air-slacked lime, hard- 

 wood ashes, and charcoal. 



These materials are needed for bone construction and in 

 digestion and metabolism. Hardwood ashes, or if these are 

 not available, a small amount of a weak solution of concen- 

 trated lye, may be used to neutralize the acids produced in 

 digestion. The charcoal is an absorbent and its function is 

 not entirely known but it is very much relished and must serve 



