Canadian Bacon Pigs. 



491 



Investigations are now being made at the Guelph and 

 Ottawa stations to discover the best rations for the production 

 •of bacon. One important result brought out by the trials so 

 far as they have gone is the unsuitability of maize when 

 given throughout as the sole or principal ration to bacon 

 pigs, though maize meal has been used for finishing off with 

 success at the Guelph station. But while the kind of food 

 fed to the hog during the finishing-off period is recognised 

 ■ as having a most important influence on the quality of the 

 flesh, it has been found that the firmness or softness of the 

 bacon also depends largely upon the character of the rations 

 given previous to the fattening period. The grains which 

 Canadian pig-keepers are recommended to avoid, or to use 

 sparingly, are beans, buckwheat, and rye, all of which are 

 said to be prejudicial to the production of good bacon ; but 

 it must be observed that the Canadian beans are a different 

 variety from those grown in this country. Rape, grass, and 

 ■clover are also considered to have a detrimental effect on 

 the quality of the meat when given too abundantly to pigs 

 iifi the fattening stage. 



Among grains mentioned in the report as serviceable 

 in the final development of bacon hogs the first place 

 is given to barley, whether fed alone or in combina- 

 tion with other grains, such as peas, wheat, oats, maize, 

 • and shorts. Reference is also made to the value of 

 shorts and middlings as a food for both young and older 

 pigs. Peas, on account of the large amount of protein 

 they contain, are stated to make an admirable adjunct to 

 other grains in the feeding of swine, especially when fed 

 ground, although they have given good results where they 

 have been fed whole, after having been previously soaked 

 for some hours. The great value of dairy by-products as 

 part of the rations for fattening swine has been proved by 

 numerous experiments in the Dominion. The report states 

 that there is practically no difference in the feeding value of 

 skim-milk, butter-milk, or whey, when all three are fed 

 in prime condition. Mention is also made of the use 

 •of molasses, potatoes, roots, bone-meal, and wood-ashes. 

 With regard to molasses, it is stated that, according to an 



