176 PROFITABLE STOCK RAISING 



inferior pork. Breeding hogs should have short, 

 strong legs and strong, upright pasterns. Lack of 

 sufficient bone as shown by weak, broken-down 

 pasterns, is a common defect noticeable in brood 

 sows, especially those that have been fed largely 

 on corn. In fact, feed has much to do with de- 

 velopment and strength of bone. A low, weak 

 back indicates weakness, and no young sow show- 

 ing such a defect should be kept for breeding 

 These two defects, weak pasterns and backs, may 

 be readily noticed when the pig is moved and often 

 when standing. Other common faults are coarse 

 shoulders open on top, poorly sprung short ribs 

 and narrow loin. 



SELECTION FOR BREEDING 



The fecundity of sows always appeals to hog- 

 raisers. The size of litters varies with breeds to 

 some extent, but still more with individuals. Statis- 

 tics compiled by the Indiana experiment station 

 show that the average size of several hundred of 

 Poland China, Berkshire and Chester White litters 

 were : Poland China 6.5 pigs to the litter, Berk- 

 shire 7 pigs to the litter, and Chester White 7.5 

 pigs to the litter. However, litters of these breeds 

 will vary from three or four to ten or more pigs to 

 the litter. Confinement and overfattening tend to 

 reduce fecundity. Again, sows that are sluggish or 

 over-refined in type are usually indifferent breeders. 

 So far as known, the sow controls the size of lit- 

 ters, and since fecundity is largely a family or in- 

 dividual characteristic, it is good policy to select 

 brood sows only from litters of which at least seven 

 pigs have been successfully raised. Select for a 

 sire a pure-bred animal, using as much care and 



