SWINE MANAGEMENT. 



11 



Fig. 5. — A boar of good type. 



At best, it is impossible to choose sows that will produce true to type, 

 for as yet no line of breeding is absolutely pure, but by selecting the 

 sows in this manner the chances for uniformity are immeasurably 

 increased. Some mistakes are bound to be made and their correction 

 will be difficult, but by keeping records of the breeding stock and 

 "their produce, it wiU be possible to dispose of undesirable individuals 

 as their poor reproductive ability becomes known. One ideal must 

 always be uppermost in the breeder's mind, and the stock must 

 constantly approach nearer to that one ideal in order to make any 

 real progress. It is relatively easy to produce hogs, but to produce 

 uniform hogs, hogs that will build up and advance the breed, requires 

 time and constant effort. 



THE BOAR. 



The farmer who lives in a community where it is possible to obtain 

 the services of a good boar, and who has only a few sows, will not find 

 it profitable to keep a male simply for use in his own herd. However, 

 if he has six or more sows, or if it is impossible to get the use of his 

 neighbor's boar when necessary, it will be well to purchase one of his 

 own. It is often desirable to delay the purchase of the boar until 

 some time after the original female stock has been selected. If the 

 gilts were bred at the time of their purchase, the service of a boar will 

 not be needed until several months later, when it is necessary to breed 

 for the second lot of pigs. This is not only a saving of money at the 

 time of starting the herd, when expenses are apt to be very heavy, 

 but it also gives the breeder time to study the original sows along 

 with their offspring and select a boar that will correct their faults. 



There is a hackneyed but nevertheless true expression that the 

 "male is half the herd." He really does represent 50 per cent of the 



