OF THE 



BOARD OF AGRICULTURE. 



Vol. XI. No. 3. 



JUNE, 1904. [NEW SERIES.] 



THE CONSTRUCTION OF PIGSTIES. 



The importance of having sound, healthy, and suitable 

 housing for pigs is overlooked, or not understood, by a very 

 large number of pig-owners in Great Britain, many of whom 

 can least afford to waste their money by uneconomical methods. 

 Many members of the working classes, and not a few farmers, by 

 bringing up the animals in cold, damp, and dirty surroundings,, 

 are actually throwing away a great part of their labour and 

 trouble, and even running the risk of losing the swine altogether. 

 For it is the foul, badly-built sty, which in bad weather becomes 

 a quagmire, which harbours the germs of disease that too often 

 spreads through the neighbourhood and cannot be got rid of for 

 years. But even where no actual disease appears, all experience 

 shows that swine kept under good conditions thrive better and 

 fatten quicker than those kept in filthy surroundings. The 

 labour and expense of building a good sty, and of keeping it 

 properly, are repaid in a very short time. 



Before laying down any rules about how to go to work, the 

 different circumstances under which pigs are kept must be con- 

 sidered. Some pig-owners live in urban centres where ground 

 is valuable and in demand, not only for gardens and allotments, 

 but also for building houses. It is obviously of no use to 

 build an expensive sty if the land is likely to be used for 

 other purposes in a short time. Other owners live in country 

 places where land is plentiful, but building material scarce 

 and troublesome to get. In such cases the owner must use 



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