How old is a feeder pig

Alert, active pigs are usually healthy. Avoid pigs with rough hair coats and wrinkled skins. Avoid pigs with skin lesions which may be caused by lice, mange, or pig pox. Reject pigs with ruptures. Reject crippled pigs, or pigs with enlarged joints,and pigs that cough or sneeze excessively. Avoid boar pigs or castrated pigs that are improperly healed. Refrain from purchasing pigs that weigh less than 30 pounds.

Look for pigs that have evidence of muscling and a large frame. Choose pigs that should grade U. In hauling newly purchased feeder pigs, use the following suggested guidelines. Do not overheat pigs while loading or unloading. Have the feeding quarters cleaned and disinfected prior to the arrival of the feeder pigs.

After the pigs are isolated, avoid traffic between them and other swine. Disinfect shoes before entering the feeding area.

In the winter, provide warm, dry, draft-free quarters with plenty of bedding and supplemental heat if necessary. In the summer, the pigs need adequate shade and shelter and a fogging system to help them keep cool on extremely hot days. Allow approximately four square feet of floor space for 30 to 50 pound pigs, and five square feet for 50 to 80 pound pigs.

Provide one self-feeder hole for each four pigs and at least one automatic waterer for each 20 pigs with a minimum of two waterers per pen. Be sure to feed the pigs a properly balanced ration. It may be advisable for the first week to feed a bulky ration. In this case, normally about one-fourth of the cereal grain corn, milo, or wheat is replaced with ground oats. Use a high level of antibiotics for the first week to 28 days. Often it is advisable to use the highest FDA-approved preventive level for the additive selected.

Be sure and follow the FDA regulations and label directions on the use of feed additives. It is an excellent practice to use a medicator on the water line so pigs can be medicated through the water when necessary. Treat pigs for lice and mange with approved insecticides. Co-Ral, Rabon, Methoxychlor and Tiguvon can be used for lice. Worm the pigs approximately two weeks after arrival. Recommended wormers are piperazine, dichlorvos Atgard , levamisole hydrochloride Tramisol , pyrantel tartrate Banminth , and fenbendazole Safe-Guard.

If you are trying to improve the average weaning weight you may want to make sure that no litters are getting weaned before 18 days of age, reviewing feed intake in lactation and see if sows are eating enough feed per day so they can produce more milk. Also take some piglet birth weights to see if your sows coming up to farrow are being fed right the last few weeks for gestation to give you the biggest pig you can get at farrowing.

However, the sows do tell us that they are going to have better subsequent performance closer to 20 days rather than 16 or If your farm would like to be part of the SMS Benchmarking databases, or if you have suggestions on production areas to write columns about, contact Mark Rix , Ron Ketchem or Valerie Duttlinger.

We enjoy being a part of the NHF Daily team. Previous columns can be found at NationalHogFarmer. Home Livestock Animal Health What is the right age to wean pigs? What is the right age to wean pigs? National Pork Board. TAGS: Reproduction.

Hide comments. More information about text formats. Text format Comments Plain text. These characters will take seemingly forever to finish out to an acceptable weight and condition. Here is an example: we just sold the last of our two litters of market hogs. The first ones, the fastest to pounds, sold in mid October.

The slowest one sold in mid December! I called this character Squiffy and she was a slow grower from the start. She was a bit hyper and had crinkled ears, she should have had upright ears.

The point here is that Squiffy took two months longer than her fast growing siblings. How much extra feed did Squiffy need? The weather you and your pigs will be dealing with is the final consideration. As long as your piglets are kept comfortable , they will be able to grow at their genetic best, even in the summer.

Your job is to keep your piglets comfortable by giving them shade, plentiful water and a cool place to lay. Here is an article on care and management of feeder pigs from Oregon State University, if you want to check it out. On the super hot days, consider making them a wallow.

If your porkers are outside, this is easy, just turn on the hose and make a puddle. Your pigs will handle it from there! Even pigs inside can lay in water poured on a low spot in the bedding, this is what I do for mine! Getting started with meat rabbits? Wonderful choice! Rabbits are backyard superstars that are rising in popularity since they are quiet, only need a small amount of space and are family friendly Getting started with raising your own chickens for eggs?

Having your own eggs will give you a nice start into the world of raising your own food, plus the taste is unlike anything Feeder pigs take 4 months to reach pounds Start with a pound feeder pig and plan to keep it on full feed free choice feed and plentiful water. These are some of my feeder pigs at 10 weeks old.