A MANUAL ON THE HOG. 



04 -r 



Warm bran mash, skimmed milk, warm slops, or vege- 

 table food which will keep her bowels open and at the 

 same time increase the flow of milk, should be given, but 

 no more at one time than she will consume, as food lying 

 by her will induce her to leave her bed frequently to par- 

 take of it, and thus increase the risk of overlaying her 

 pigs. For several days after the pigs are born the herds- 

 man should remain until the sow finishes her meal and re- 

 turns to her bed, in order to see that she does not overlay 

 her pigs. After that time there will be little danger in 

 this respect. While nursing, the sow must be regarded as 

 a machine for the manufacture of milk for the pigs, and 

 should have as much as she will eat. 



The drain upon a nursing sow is immense if she has as 

 many as ten pigs, as is shown by her rapid decline as the 

 pigs increase in size, unless they are furnished a large 

 part of their food from other sources. 



Harris, page 213, says: " According to the experiments 

 of Dr. Miles, * * Essex pigs, about three 



weeks old, ate three and a half pounds of new milk each, 

 per day. The next week they ate nearly seven pounds of 

 milk each, per day. From this it appears that a litter of 

 ten pigs, a month or five weeks old, will eat over thirty 

 quarts of new milk a day, or more than is ordinarily given 

 by the best cows."* Again he says: "The milk of the 

 sow is richer than that of any other domestic amimal. 

 Milk is derived from the blood, and this is derived either 

 directly from the food, or from the flesh and fat stored up 

 in the animal. It is, therefore, easy to understand that 

 when a sow is called upon to give as much milk as one of 

 the largest and best cows, it must tax her digestive powers 

 to the utmost, or rapidly convert her flesh into blood and 

 milk." As soon, therefore, as practicable the pigs should 

 be fed all they will eat, independently of that supplied by 

 the mother. They will commence to drink a little milk 



*Twice as much. 



