THE FEEDING OF SWINE 471 



to develop capacity while the animals are young. A rather 

 bulky ration fed during the early part of the pig's life will in- 

 crease the feeding capacity so that later in life he can consume 

 more than would be possible if he received only a concentrated 

 ration at first. Furthermore, there is great danger of overfeed- 

 ing a pig; and if concentrated foods are used, this danger is 

 greatly increased. If once a pig is overfed, he will never con- 

 sume as much feed thereafter as he otherwise would. 



Young animals grow much more rapidly than older ones. 

 The young pig should be encouraged to consume as much as 

 he can use to the best advantage. If the animal is fed too 

 small an amount at this time, he not only fails to develop 

 capacity, but does not make the most of that period of his life 

 when he is the most economical producer. 



Later, as the time approaches for fattening and after the ca- 

 pacity has been developed, the animals should be put on a full 

 feed of rather concentrated food. This change should be made 

 gradually, as swine cannot endure a sudden change without dis- 

 orders following. 



Giving swine their feed. — When foods are fed in the form of 

 mash, there is always much crowding about the trough, which 

 makes it very difficult for the feeder. To avoid this crowding, 

 place the trough alongside the fence and parallel to it, so that 

 the feeder may approach the trough from the outside and the 

 animals from the inside. A very good plan is to hang a panel 

 immediately above the trough, suspended from either end of 

 the upper side. By placing a latch in the center of the lower 

 side of the panel, it may be swung in and fastened to the 

 side of the trough in the lot, thus shutting the swine out of the 

 trough and giving the feeder an opportunity to put in the feed. 

 The panel may now be swung back and fastened to the out- 

 side of the trough, giving the swine access to the entire meal at 

 once. If there is more than one trough in the lot, the feed 

 should be placed in all before any of the panels are swung back. 



