Stock keeping for amateurs : a manual on the varieties, breeding, and management of pigs, sheep, horses, cows, oxen, asses, mules, and goats, and the treatment of their diseases designed for the use of young farmers and amateurs

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Chapter I. Pigs

Introductory Recommendations — Varieties of Pigs — The Chinese Pig — The Suffolk and Norfolk — The Shropshire — The Rudgewick — The Cheshire — The Old Sussex — The Hampshire — The Berkshire — The Tonquin — The Essex Half-blacks and the Essex and Hertford — The Dishley — The Old Irish — Neapolitan, Maltese, fyc. — Advice in Buying — Considerations in Pig Keeping — Accommodation for Pigs, the Pig Stye — Labour in Superintendence — Feeding — Breeding — Improve - ment of Breeds — Descriptive Terms.

Introductory Recommendations.

Pigs, as a rule, are not animals that are profitably kept by farmers, when the amount and value of the food they consume is taken into account. They, of course, under any circumstances, eat much that would be otherwise worthless of itself, and could be

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put to no useful purpose, which in time gets converted into so much good pork or bacon ; while they make a large amount of valuable manure in the process — results that are apparent to everybody. The difficult matter, however, is to make pigs pay when there is no large amount of coarse, or half-spoiled food to resort to. This, however, can be done by those who give sufficient attention to the subject.

There is no art in their management, when the farmer

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thrashes out a whole stack of “ tail wheat,” which is expressly devoted to these animals’ delectation, the art consists in finding these hearty eaters enough to enable them to subsist and leave a profit to their owner. To do this successfully, much depends upon the breed of pig selected. Some are chosen for the large size they attain, and different breeds are held in estimation by different people, for some point of excellence or other, which possesses value in their eyes, with a definite object in view. The main qualifications, however, to be regarded in the choice of a breed with a view to their paying are that they be hardy, and not sensitive to changes in the weather, that they will eat coarse rough food, and fatten quickly, when it becomes desirable to fat them, and these qualifications are to be found in the improved Berkshire. They are very hardy and will eat almost anything ;

- changes of weather affect them less than almost any other breed, and when they are nearly ready for the butcher it takes comparatively very little to put them in first-rate condition for killing. It is true the best bred ones do not attain a large size, but it is one most suitable for porkers, and they fetch long prices from the pork butcher ; and this ready means of disposing of them gives the opportunity of clearing off a good deal of the stock at times, when the supply of inexpensive food, which in ordinary seasons can be scraped together, happens to fall short from some cause or other ; but with good management this seldom needs to be the case.

Experience has shown that store pigs, when kept simply as store pigs, seldom pay between the ages of two months and twelve months old. Of course, the price of pigs varies at times, like everything else ; but in average years a pig at two months old generally fetches a pound, and when a number of breeding sows are kept, and the pigs are sold off at that age, and at that price, a very handsome profit can be secured. Between two months and twelve months, when the pig is growing (we are speaking now when it is fed only upon food that costs very little), if the value of its food is estimated at a shilling per week (the particulars of which we will shortly allude to in detail) for the forty-two, or forty-four weeks remaining to make up the year, the nominal

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value of the pig would be supposed to be three pounds two or four shillings, including the first pound, its estimated value at two months ; but store pigs would not be worth nearly so much as that in the condition they would then be found, from living upon hard fare ; and therefore it would be a loss to keep them, unless their manure was very desirable, or there was a quantity of rough food for them that was wanted to be eaten up ; standing, therefore, upon the simple merits of feeding, it is clearly the most paying plan to dispose of them at the age of two months, just after the time they have left the sow, and have become thoroughly weaned and accustomed to the separation, when they will have attained a certain value in the eyes of a purchaser as being fit for young stores.

Varieties op Pigs.

There is a very large number of different breeds of pigs, and it would perhaps be impossible to name them all, but some species stand boldly out, being remarkable for conspicuous features, which we will briefly refer to.

The Chinese Pig. — Perhaps we are more indebted to Chinese pigs than to any other variety for the improvement effected upon the original European stock of swine. There are several kinds comprised in this breed, but the most distinct are the white and the black, the white being better shaped than the black. The best are very white skinned, the hair being thin, and also white, with short head and small ears, very thick neck, and high chine, the head in a fat pig appearing buried in the fore part of the body. The legs are short, and the belly nearly touches the ground. The leading characteristic of the breed is to accumulate fat, which causes them to be bad bacon pigs, the flesh being very tender, so that a great improvement is effected by crossing the pure Chinese pig with an English breed, which results in the addition of more lean flesh.

The black, which are similar to the white in their main points, are more prolific, and are quicker growers, and attain greater weights than the white Chinese. It is, however, when they are young, and eaten as porkers, that their meat is found to be

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unrivalled in flavour ; and the breed is therefore held in high estimation by dairymen and others who have a quantity of skim milk to use up, which, mixed with barley meal, is the best food that can be given to them, and, fattening quickly, they do not take so large a quantity as many other kinds of pigs would consume. When they attain a large size their flesh is coarse, oily, and unpleasant, and their principal value is in their making the best roasters.

There is also a small kind known as the “small white breed,” which never attain a large size.

The Suffolk and Norfolk. — These are of two distinct kinds, but they so closely resemble each other that they are invariably spoken of as the same breed, They do not attain a large size, but are held in good estimation in some districts, as being hardy and prolific ; but they are useful only as porkers, and do not turn out good bacon hogs.

The Shropshire. — This is a very large breed, and is held in high estimation where a stock of bacon forming the principal article of food in the shape of meat consisting of bacon is wanted for consumption on a farm, for the great size it attains, as it turns out enormous flitches. The change in the manner of living, however, when farm servants are now not commonly fed at their employers’ table, has caused this description to be less freely resorted to of late years, and it is rapidly going out of fashion.

The Rudgewick is another large sized animal, which is met with chiefly on the further borders of Surrey and in Sussex, but they do not appear to be commonly known throughout the country. Their large size as bacon hogs causes them to be chiefly valuable on this account, and they do not demand any particular care and attention in rearing.

The Cheshire. — The original Cheshire pig attains to a very large size, and is by no means a good looking animal, having a big head, with large flapping ears, round and narrow back, and long bony legs. Bacon made from this variety used to be commonly met with in Manchester and the neighbouring large factory towns, where it was largely consumed by the working population, but the breed is now comparatively seldom met with. In old

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times people wanted to see how large they could cause their pigs to grow, and sacrificed quality to quantity, very often this description having been known in individual instances to attain the weight of 12cwt.

The Old Sussex is a well shaped pig, which does not attain a very large size. They grow freely and come to maturity early, but possess no special points beyond those we have indicated.

The Hampshire enjoys a better reputation, perhaps, than it really deserves, being a somewhat coarse, raw-boned animal, and the favour in which it is held possibly may be traced to the methods used in curing it, and to the mast which abounds in the New Forest and other woods, where these pigs pick up a large amount of food, just as they did in the days of the Saxon Heptarchy. The old stock, however, is being fast obliterated having been crossed extensively in late years by other varieties, in which the Berkshire has played the most prominent part.

The Berkshire we have spoken of in laudatory terms in our introductory remarks, and although it is not commonly regarded as a breed which attains a large size, yet it produces animals of very great weight occasionally, which alteration in size must be attributed to the gradual improvements which have been effected hy judicious crossing, to which the Chinese and Tonquin breeds have mainly contributed.

The Tonquin, to which we have alluded above, often called “Tonkey ” or “Tunky,” a corruption of the word “ Tonquin,” is said to have originated from a cross of small Berkshire and Chinese pigs. They are small in size and well shaped, and as pork they are not excelled by any other description of pig. They are generally white in colour, thick, and compact in shape.

The Essex Half -blacks, and the Essex and Hertford. — Both bear a very high reputation as good kinds of pigs, which are distinguished for certain good points that are prized by many.

The Dishleys are handsome pigs, and are the type of perfection in the shape sought to be attained by pig breeders, springing originally, it is said, also from crosses between Chinese and Berkshire ; they have several defects which render them objectionable, as they ara very tender and subject to be unfavourably

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affected by changes of weather ; they also take a great quantity of food to fatten properly; the sows are had nurses, and they are not very prolific ; when fat, however, they are masses of flesh, and appear to be “ scarcely able to see out of their eyes for fat,” as is often commonly expressed ; being nearly the same height, length, and thickness, their general contour being lost in a mass of fat.

We will close our brief notice of the varieties of pigs by mentioning the Irish and Mediterranean breeds.

The Old Irish — In its original form the Irish breed of pigs is a large and coarse one, ugly in shape, narrow in body, with large ears, and very large bones. The breed, however, has been vastly improved of late by judicious crossing with some of the best English varieties, and Irish bacon and pork, which used some years ago to be considered very inferior, now take rank with the average qualities of English bacon. Great attention has been paid to the improvement of stock in some parts of Ireland, where the preparation of bacon for the English markets is now a very large trade.

Neapolitan, Maltese , c}c. — In the Mediterranean countries there are some very useful breeds of pigs to be met with, which resemble one another very closely in their general characteristics, the principal of which are the Neapolitan and Maltese.

Many of our English breeds are indebted to these for improvement ; as regards the smaller kinds, particularly the black varieties, their delicacy of flesh and heauty of form having been considerably improved by judicious crossing with the Neapolitan.

They are symmetrical in shape, round and plump, small in bone, fine snout, with longer head but shorter body than the Chinese pig, which they resemble in many points ; but they are rather larger in body, almost destitute of hair or bristle, and coal black in colour. Their aptitude to fatten at an early age exceeds that of almost any other kind of pig, while the flavour of their meat is very superior. They are fairly prolific, good sucklers, and may be kept so as to thrive on food of moderate quality only.

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Advice on Buying.

From tlie foregoing the reader in search of information will be able to gather the leading characteristics of the various hinds of pigs mostly reared in this country, and he will have to take into consideration, when making his first purchase, his own position and circumstances, in relation to pig keeping — whether he will have to sell them as fat roasters or porkers, as bacon, or to breed for sale as store pigs.

A dairyman who does not rear calves, and has a large quantity of skimmed milk to dispose of, would find the small breeds, which fatten quickly, answer his purpose the best. But if the farmer resides in the neighbourhood of the mining or manufacturing districts, the larger breeds will, in all probability, be in much greater request, whilst the London market will be the best for small kinds of pork, and these considerations must direct the first choice of breeding stock, together with the class of food that is likely to be produced, and general facilities of feeding.

Success, or non-success, depends much more upon such considerations than they generally obtain credit for, and many people, instead of duly weighing them, take the first breed of pigs that comes to hand, perhaps because somebody else has done well with them, whose position and circumstances, relative to the points to which we have referred, are entirely different to their own, or perhaps for no reason at all, but that they want to keep pigs, and think one sort will suit as well as another.

In purchasing, a young sow is preferable to an old one, less money is generally asked for her, and the purchaser will have the prime of her life. She should have a capacious belly and not too great an inclination to fatten, free from natural defects, and with at least twelve teats.

Many sows become too fat during their period of gestation, but this may be overcome by restricting their food somewhat. An old sow is invariably coarse about the teats, and wears an old look, and they are sometimes, from the rough usage they have experienced during the course of their lives, at times bad tern-

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pered. In the case of a young sow, with kind treatment, she may be made very quiet by the time of farrowing, which will be a great point in her favour. The sow should be chosen good at the shoulders and loins, and long in body, with short legs.

In the case of the hog, the chief points insisted on by good judges are breadth of chest, width of loin, chine, and ribs, depth of carcase, and compactness of form, accompanied with docility and general beauty of appearance. Head not too long, the forehead being narrow and convex, with fine snout, full cheeks, and small mouth ; the ears short and thin, with sharp pendulous ends pointing forward, the tout ensemble of the head denoting good temper and sprightliness.

The neck should be full and broad, especially on the top, where it should join broad shoulders and broader chine; the ribs, loin, and rump being of uniform breadth, ending in a tail not too low nor too long, so as to be unseen at top when the animal is fat. The back of a well-shaped hog is straight, or slightly curved, the chest is deep, broad, and prominent, the ribs well set and springing well from the chine, the shoulders widely extended, the thighs inside and out should be very thick, and the belly, when pretty fat, should nearly touch the ground, which entails the possession of short legs. The bone must be fine and joints small, the hair long, thin, and fine, having few bristles, and the skin thin and supple, without looseness. The colour should always be uniform.

The breed of the hog is of more importance than that of the sow, as the progeny take after the male rather than the female, and there may be reasons at times for the latter not being too highly bred.

Considerations in Pig Keeping.

Some excellent points in the choice of pigs for breeding were given in the Field newspaper a few years ago by Mr. Jno. Coleman, Professor of Agriculture, Albert Veterinary College, as well as good hints upon their management. The letter referred to was in answer to the queries of a correspondent who sought information upon the following points :

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1st. What breed is best to keep ?

2nd. What might he expect to make by each sow per year, with luck and care ?

“I will do my best to enlighten him upon these points,” says the Professor, “ premising that my views are based upon practical experience in pig breeding.

“ In deciding upon the description of animal, the pig breeder must be influenced partly by the wants and prejudices of the locality for which he breeds. There is in many places an antipathy to black pigs, for instance, from a notion that the meat is not so white and delicate, and, however suitable a black breed might prove in other respects, it will not do to keep such, unless we are bold enough to attempt conversion — a very slow process. Again, in countries where the black breed prevails white animals are not popular, being considered less hardy. We must, therefore, breed for our market. Further, our choice of large, medium, or small breeds must be guided by the same rule. If the pigs are wanted for pork, then the small breeds, either white or black, are best, coming early to maturity, and laying on fat rapidly. If, on the contrary, large bacon is required, as is the case when a coarse feeding population has to be supplied, the large breeds will be most profitable. And if there is a market both for bacon and pork, then the medium-sized animals are best.

“ When black pigs are in favour I would recommend the Berkshire breed, for the following reasons. They are hardy, and will pick up their living during the greater part of the year ; are fairly prolific, and produce animals suitable for either pork or bacon, the latter being noted for the large proportion of lean flesh. Other breeds may fatten as rapidly, but none cut up better, and few so well. There is no advantage in having highbred sows ; such animals are generally inferior breeders, and especially is this the case if much forced when young. Select average specimens of the sort with good breeding points ; such are, length of body, straight back, rather fine head, and tapering neck, depth fore and aft, twelve well-shaped teats, and a fair covering of long soft hair, which indicates quality and constitution. It

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must be borne in mind that the sows will at times have to live hard and rough it, getting their own living in the grass or stubble, and only be cared for as the time of farrowing approaches, and whilst suckling ; therefore it is of great importance to select a hardy breed, and the Berkshire are in this respect unequalled.

“We now come to the second question, viz., the value of the produce. This will depend upon two points — the prolific nature of the sow, and the market price of the stores. Suppose we take four litters from each animal, commencing with the young sow when a year old ; we cannot estimate the average of each litter above eight — the first is often only four or five, and is no criterion of the breeding powers, as I have known cases when two or three the first time, were succeeded regularly by ten or twelve. Of the eight pigs farrowed, six on an average will be raised, and by good management and some luck, two litters may be produced annually. Perhaps we can hardly count on this regularly, but we may assume it, having estimated our produce moderately. The value of the offspring at eight weeks old will vary from 15s. to 20s. a head. It follows, then, that we may expect a gross return per sow of from £9 to £12 per annum. At three years old the mother, unless she prove an extraordinary breeder, may be replaced by a hilt, and the value of each will be about the same.

“ What is the cost of keep ? This will vary according to the resource of the farm and the management. On an arable farm, or one consisting of arable and grass, there will always be a certain proportion of damaged produce, decayed roots, &c., which but for the pigs would be wasted, and upon such food a hardy sow will, with the addition of a little wash, or merely water, keep herself in good enough condition from the time of weaning until within three weeks of farrowing again. Sometimes it may be good policy to add a handful of beans to the wash ; but if allowed range of ground this is often quite unnecessary. Therefore, I think, we may fairly assume that during half the year the sow supports herself, and repays us in her manner for what she consumes. During the remainder of the year, however, it is a very different story. We must improve her condition before farrowing by generous diet, which shall encourage the secretion of

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milk, and when she has farrowed, we must force on the young litter tlirougli lier by every means in our power. Giving a somewhat rough calculation, inasmuch as no exact experiments have as yet been made on this point, I should consider that at least 3s. to 4s. per week for twenty-six weeks would be required to do justice to the litter, and this does not include attendance, which, with straw, may fairly be put against the manure. In round numbers, the expense of maintenance will range from £4 to £5, whilst the value of produce may be taken at from £9 to £12, so that we may look for a clear profit per sow of about £5 to £7. If this can be done, I venture to predict that your correspondent’s sows will prove the most paying sort of his live stock, and that this is frequently realised, and often exceeded, I am convinced.

“ One point of importance remains to be noticed. We must contrive that our litters shall drop at periods when the weather is not extreme, thus : Midsummer and Christmas are bad times ; the beginning or middle of July, and about February will be the best seasons, both as regards weather and requirements of the market. The autumn litter will be fit for winter pork, whilst the spring litter will run on, and come in for bacon the following season. It will be impossible to always regulate the farrowing as above, and, indeed, it may not be always desirable ; but it is well to avoid as much as we can the dead of winter, or height of summer, as the pig is, of all our domestic animals, most sensitive to atmospheric influences.”

Accommodation foe Pics.

Having selected the breed of pig to be kept, the next question that must be considered carefully is how to house him to the best advantage. As to rear and feed pigs properly a good deal of trouble has to be incurred, the sties should be constructed upon such a principle as to enable the pigs to be fed quickly and to be kept clean. The pigsty should always face the south. One man or boy could look after a great number of pigs, if the animals were housed in a way to save extra work. The sties should be placed upon a slight inclination, so as to allow the

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urine to drain off, and keep the animals dry, which, is a great point in pig economy. The sties should be fifteen feet long, and seven wide, part to consist of a boarded house, or brick or stone erection (according to the materials at command), which, while snug and warm, yet ought to be well ventilated. A fair sized opening should be made for egress and ingress of the pig, but this in cold weather it will be found desirable to contract, by fitting the opening with sliding boards to run in a groove. The uncovered part should have but a low wall or railing only, of sufficient height to keep in the pig. In this open portion the trough is usually placed, where the pigs of one litter are generally fed indiscriminately, that is, they are allowed to feed themselves so ; but even in one litter it will be often found that the pigs vary in size and strength very much, so that generally one or two little ones get shouldered aside by the heavier ones, and pushed away, when, with a deprecatory squeak, they will run to try their chance at the opposite end of the trough, only to meet the same rebuff, perhaps, from a strong pig which has placed itself there. The anxiety and worry these little pigs endure has a very unfavourable effect upon their growth. Where there is only a paling, and not a thick wall, all this can be avoided, as well as the great waste of food prevented, which sometimes takes place through the pigs putting their feet in the trough — slipping into it and by pushing it over in their haste to get at it — by placing the trough, which should have a flap at the top to turn over at pleasure, outside the sty, in the sides of which are holes only large enough to admit the head of one pig at a time. Not only waste will be avoided (for often men can scarcely help pouring the wash, or barleymeal, or whatever the food may happen to be, over the heads of greedy animals), but the troughs can be cleaned out more effectually, and all knocking of the pigs about, which is sometimes done by an angry man, is avoided by the adoption of this plan. In most old-fashioned pigsties a trough is placed inside the wall of the open portion, and the man who feeds the animals pours out of a bucket the contents into the trough. The result of this procedure is, as we have before stated, that the pigs, in their

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eagerness to get the food, crowd round, and half of it is poured over their heads, or on the ground, and wasted. This may be obviated by having a spout carried through the wall, into which the food can be poured, and so save the inevitable loss which occurs through the slovenly plan we have mentioned, if the previous one we have suggested cannot be adopted. A boiling and baking house should be placed at the high end of the sty, and a cesspool to receive the drainage at the other.

Some breeders have adopted for fattening hogs a form of sty which is but little larger than the size of the pig. In these no litter is allowed, the chewing of which is thought to be injurious to the pig ; the floors consisting of boards, placed upon an inclined plane, having holes in them for the water to drain off, and these are swept out every day.

Both in the covered and uncovered divisions of the sty brick or stone floors should be used, both sloping towards the drain, the inside being raised a few inches higher than the outer division.

Although pigs will eat the dirtiest food with the greatest possible apparent relish, and appear to enjoy wallowing in the worst filth they can meet with, it is a vulgar error to suppose they thrive best when dirty. An occasional washing or brushing will keep their skins in good order, and cause them to thrive better than when neglected. The latter is easily performed, and docile pigs enjoy the operation immensely.

Labour in Superintending.

In properly constructed sties a good deal of labour and trouble is to be saved, so that one good strong boy or man could attend to a great number of pigs ; but no stock pays better for being well looked after, and great saving is to be effected by constant attention. As we shall describe hereafter, pigs can be fed economically on a good deal of waste stuff, often regarded as rubbish. This is often thrown to them all at once, when sufficient pains are taken to get it together, and they waste more than they consume ; when, if a portion of it only were tossed over to them occasionally, the extra labour incurred by the additional attention