120 
ELEMENTARY AGRICULTURE 
the diagram will serve. The mother should not be 
fed grain during the twenty-four hours previous to 
the birth of the pigs. A supply of clean water is all 
that is necessary. She should not be fed too much 
during the ten days after farrowing. 
Diseases.—The best way to handle the diseases of 
hogs is to avoid them. Over-crowding causes many 
forms of infection. Lack of clean quarters and filthy 
Fig. 85.—A sow with a good litter of pigs. 
wallows have been known to start sickness. If hogs 
have a cool place, they do not need to wallow in the 
mud. Their drinking water should be clean. Over¬ 
feeding after a period of hunger often causes trouble 
and should be avoided by providing a regular supply 
of food. Salt, ashes, charcoal, and lime placed in a 
pan or box where the porkers have access to it, will pro¬ 
vide about the best tonic. 
If the hogs should become sick, they should be re¬ 
moved from the herd and observed carefully. If the 
whole herd is not doing well, it might be best to change 
them to another field or lot. 
