Feeding and the right diet for pigs

Some beginner breeders consider that the pig is able to eat any food that is offered to her. Indeed, these animals are omnivorous and able to absorb a lot of different foods. There have been cases when adult boars or uterus ate small animals in the yard (although these cases are rare).Nevertheless, this does not mean that pigs can be fed with any food available: weight gain depends on how well the pigs are fed.

Feeding the pigs

Basic guidelines for making a ration for pigs

Before deciding what and how to feed the pigs, you need to understand What basic rules are used to compile their diet. At large farms, feed is purchased in bulk, which is why the diet there is less diverse.You also need to find out that it is easy for a pig to digest, and what food is hard to digest by its body. For beginning livestock breeders, it is recommended to definitely clarify which breed of pig: meat, meat-fat and greasy varieties are fed in various ways, so you need to decide what you need more: meat, fat or both, equally.

When fattening it is better to clarify in advance which direction of production the breed belongs to. For example, Vietnamese fold-bellied pigs (or, as they are sometimes called, lop-eared) belong to the bacon variety. Only after specifying the breed it is necessary to start fattening so that the pig is gaining weight faster.

Compilation of a ration for pigs

Not for all animals, a ration is drawn up for the purpose of rapid gain in live weight. There are several special cases in which the diet has to be made separately:

• The ration of the breeding stock. These queens and boars are not sent to slaughter: they are needed for further breeding and increase the herd – a diet for them is drawn up with an aim to improve health. It is impossible to save on these animals in any case, because the farmer’s profit depends on them.
• The diet of young animals. You need to be very careful about how to feed the little piglets. Immediately after weaning, they are very vulnerable, they need high-quality food.Moreover, food must be chosen correctly so that babies do not get worse after such a meal.
• Feeding sows. Feed for pigs, from which the offspring will be obtained, are selected with special care. A special table is compiled for months, according to which the sow’s diet changes. All this is necessary in order for her to give birth to healthy offspring, and then be able to give enough milk.

But this is not all that is worth remembering. Feeding should be done according to a certain schedule, while it is worth considering how much food a pig takes per day. Sometimes an excess of food can harm, not benefit. And the quality of food should be closely monitored. In no case should fattening a pig with rotten, frozen potatoes or drunk cherries. There is no guarantee that after such food the pig will remain alive, so it is important to be able to correctly and thoughtfully make a diet for these animals.

Choosing a breed for fattening

Even before that how the farmer will understand what to feed domestic pigs, he will have to choose the appropriate breed of these animals. If you buy rural pigs, which were bred without a separate plan, they will gain weight slowly, and the cost of buying feed will be very high. Here, even feed such as Purina will not help with weight gain. Although in order for pets to grow faster, you need to take the appropriate feed for pigs.But thoroughbred Whiskers can grow faster than regular rural pigs.

Breed selection

If we talk about the choice of breed for fattening, then here we must take into account market requirements and their own preferences. When a farmer decides to grow a pig, in order to acquire meat, he should choose the breed and type of fattening to his taste. But when growing pigs for sale, everything is somewhat more complicated. Low-fat lean meat is very popular at the moment, so you should pay attention to meat varieties and only then go on to buy the right pork feed for the selected breed.

Options for feeding pigs

So, the farmer has acquired an adult pig or piglet, and now he needs to choose the appropriate feeding regimen, while it is important to avoid such dangers as overfeeding, excessive food consumption or health problems. In some cases, there is a chance to see how the eaten pig stops breathing, and all because of inappropriate food.

In both industrial and domestic conditions, fattening is carried out in one of 3 main directions. Some breeds are bred for one type of feeding, while others are a kind of universal:

• Fattening piglets for meat. Piglets are used here, which, depending on the variety, are sent to slaughter at the age of 6-8 months.They quickly gain weight and clog when they reach a mass of 110 kg. This is a classic figure, which is always guided by experienced miners. Slaughtering smaller piglets is unprofitable, so people with experience do not even try to do this.
• Bacon feeding. Here the product is already fatter, and there is always a layer of fat in the meat. Growing here occurs in different conditions than when receiving lean meat. Piglets selected during fattening for bacon should already weigh between 25-27 kg at the age of 85-95 days. There are special breeds that are best suited for such cultivation.
• The last type is the so-called fattening to fatty conditions. In Ukraine, such fattening is called simpler and more understandable – for lard. It uses meat-sucking pigs or adult animals, which were rejected for one reason or another. Fattening is also carried out according to certain rules, in violation of which both meat and lard (or bacon) are of poor quality and are not suitable for consumption.

Please note that meat and bacon are more in demand on the market than fat, therefore, pigs are usually fed on them. And in terms of costs, bacon and meat methods are cheaper than fattening to fatty conditions. But growing pigs for fat should also not be discounted, because tasty and high-quality fat is also sold well. Ultimately, it all depends on the available feed, breed and other individual factors.Farmer’s own preferences also influence to a large extent.

Feeding adult pigs for slaughter

You can use any breed of animal to get meat or bacon, but it’s important not only to feed the pigs , but also the characteristics of the young animals used. We need piglets whose mass at the age of 90-120 days is at least 25 kg, and ideally 30-35 kg. The diet and principles of feeding piglets at home are somewhat different from those used on large farms. To clarify, the principles remain the same, but certain differences are observed in the composition of food.

There are ready-made combined or concentrated feeds that are used specifically for pork production. And they can be used at home, not only on farms, where a herd of 25 animals is kept on a site of 20 square meters. m. For example, for pigs often used products of the brand K-55, which provide a fairly intensive increase in live weight. It should be understood that dry feed, as well as too liquid, slows down the rate of mass gain.

To ensure that the feed is not too liquid, it must be diluted with clean lukewarm water. The norms are as follows: 1.3 liters of water per 1 kg of feed. All this is thoroughly mixed and given out to animals. Such liquid mixers are great for daily daily feedings. But keep in mind that when calculating how much feed should be given per day, the mass of dry feed not diluted with water is taken.When calculating the daily allowance, it should be borne in mind that they are all made not in kg, but in feed units.

Stages of feeding adult pigs

This division is applicable to all types of feeding. Feeding domestic pigs in the first stage requires a balanced diet with a full range of vitamins and healthy nutrients. The food that the pig eats should be moderately nutritious, since a lack of protein slows down its growth rate. For example, at the beginning of feeding, meat piglets should receive 190-210 g of protein every day. At the same time, for those piglets who have reached a mass of 60 kg, the daily allowance is 270-320 g.

Upon reaching a mass of 60-70 kg, it is time to move on to the second stage of feeding. Here, the amount of protein (those same proteins) can be somewhat reduced. For example, feeding pigs that have reached a mass of 100 kg or more implies the presence of proteins in food. But their number does not exceed 360-380 g per day. That is, the ratio of feed to protein in it decreases with increasing animal mass. At the same time, the ratio of liquid to dry food remains unchanged throughout the entire feeding period.

Feeding adult pigs with low-calorie feeds

Before feeding pigs with such feeds, it must be taken into account that the speed the mass gain will ultimately be small, which is a serious flaw in the eyes of livestock breeders.Under such conditions, pigs feed mainly on grass, food waste and other similar foods. The quality of the meat is not high enough, although for home use it is quite suitable. Such feeding is suitable if there is access to a large amount of high-quality meadow grass.

Fattening pigs

The main problem in this case is this: in the meadow grass there may be a lack of protein, which slows the growth of animals, so you have to add high-calorie succulent feed to the diet. Top dressing with some concentrates is also used. All this is necessary in order to balance the diet of pigs. But you need to do this so that top dressing does not increase the amount of protein food above the required norm. In winter, hay is used instead of meadow grass: it is more nutritious. Alfalfa or clover hay is 0.6-0.75 feed units.

Intensive feeding of adult pigs

There are 3 main options for feeding domestic pigs. All of them are used by farmers to obtain high-quality pork in accordance with GOST. It is always important here not only how much feed the pig eats, but also what it eats. The quality of food received plays a big role, because it determines what vitamins and nutrients the animal receives.Here is a table that shows the composition of the diet for fast growth and weight gain with meat pigs:

15-35%

Even in the summer, food for pigs should be diversified with grass for the vitamins that it contains. Root-fed types of feeding are usually divided into 2 main types: fattening by fodder beets, carrots, Jerusalem artichoke and fattening by potatoes. At the same time, the mixture with potatoes contains up to 30-35% of this root crop, while beets or carrots dilute food in smaller quantities. It should also be remembered that it is possible to feed pigs with sugar beets, but it will cost too much.

Preparation of the diet for fattening adult pigs

Ready-mixed feeds can be replaced with manually made mixtures, and these mixtures can be used with any kind of fattening. Types of fattening differ only in the percentage of different foods. When composing a mixture for fattening, one must take into account the influence of various feeds on the future quality of pork. The technology of making a ration is very simple. Conventionally, all the food that pigs receives can be divided into 3 groups, according to the level of quality. Here they are:

• The first food group. With its help, high-quality pork is obtained, but these feeds are of a higher price. This includes most cereals, in particular wheat, millet and other varieties of grain. In addition to grain, carrots, sugar and fodder beets, and legumes are also worth mentioning. That is why pigs are often fed peas, wheat and beetroot. They are also fed with pumpkin or barley.
• The second group is medium-quality feed. If you use only them, the meat will turn out to be of poor quality with a lot of fat. But it is worth combining them correctly with food from the first group – and you get a complete diet. This group includes corn, potatoes and bran. That is why bran is only fed with wheat or other similar types of grain.
• The third group is low-quality cheap feed. This includes soybeans, oats and various food waste, as well as various meal and bagasse.Pulp, oats or soybeans can not fatten pigs, but you can dilute the diet with them. If what the pig eats consists of 20-25% of the feed of this group, it will benefit her. Ideally, it is worth combining feeds from all three groups.

So, how is the ration made? 50-60% of the feed from the first group is taken. With root-feeding, they make up to 70-80% of the entire portion. Of the cereals, it is worth using primarily barley and wheat, which make up 50-60% of the total mass of grain. About 10% of corn and oats are also taken, do not forget about bran. Even when preparing portions, they use raw buckwheat and peas, the proportion of which should also not exceed 10%. But you don’t need to fatten animals with bread.

This is not all about how to properly feed pigs during meat feeding. Be sure to add juicy feed to the portions.In summer, it is better to feed pumpkin, cucumbers, fresh peas, and herbs, for example, nettle. Potatoes, as well as red beets, can be fed both in winter and in summer. In addition to potatoes in winter, it is worth using harvested silage, which can replace fresh grass and plant tops. At the same time, it’s better to make porridge from dry food: it’s easier for animals to eat porridge.

Feeding piglets under six months of age

The best food for growing piglets up to one month of age is milk mothers. But for newly born babies, you need not only milk, but also vitamins, as well as premixes for accelerated growth. Usually, in order to feed the suckers, the uterus is enough, a person only needs to add vitamins. The starter complex of premixes and vitamins is usually supplied in granules. Difficulties begin when the uterus refuses to breastfeed piglets and no longer gives milk.

Feeding piglets

Even if the sow did not refuse to feed the babies, they alone will not have enough milk. Here you need to know how to feed piglets at home. From the third day, they begin to feed newborn pigs with premixes for dairy pigs. It is necessary as early as possible to accustom to them every little pine, so that they independently take these top dressings.On the fifth day, they can be fed with cow’s milk already, and after a week they can feed the kids with various cereals.

Some farmers feed small pigs with jelly made from oatmeal. It is also given a week after birth. It is needed in order for the kids to quickly gain weight, although they need liquid food most of all, already for 10 days they can be fed with soft hay, for example, pea tops or beans. Proper feeding of growing piglets includes a certain amount of succulent feed. But extruded feed will suit them only of the highest quality and only from a month old.

Recommendations for feeding piglets

First, it is important to know what is better to feed small pigs . Moreover, the recommendations are the same for pigs on natural feeding, and for those who are switched to artificial feeding. Weaners are usually fed with milk replacer – substitutes for whole milk. In order to artificially grow piglets, you need to accustom them to the fact that feeding is carried out by people, so the farmer will have to solder them with milk every day with his own hands. Such care will teach babies to the owner from an early age.

Feeding the piglet with milk

What should not feed pigs in the first month of life? Sunflower seeds, onions, fish, bread, pumpkin and other similar products.Nothing other than milk should be given from animal feed. By the way, adult pigs are fed small quantities of fish, bone meal and other similar products, therefore, in order for there to be no nutrition problems, it is better for beginner breeders to use prepared feeds from reliable manufacturers. But you need to ensure that the cost of food does not become high.

You must always ensure that the kids do not eat from the same trough with adult pigs. As already mentioned, those types of food that are suitable for adult boars are not suitable for piglets. For example, acorns will work well as nutrition for fattening meat, but babies are not always able to digest them. Some animals are able to eat almost any food, while others turn out to be very capricious and demanding food, so this issue must be approached individually.

Not only what pigs eat, but also the feeding regimen.

Piglet feeding regimen

If we talk about the regimen, then a healthy piglet eats 6-7 times a day, because it has a small stomach. It is not at all difficult to teach the animal to eat right. It often happens that the baby is sluggish or, conversely, shakes, as if in a fever. The problem can be illness, the presence of worms or poisoning.

Often you can prevent the problem simply by using the correct feeding regimen, because the common cause of poor health is banal overfeeding.

Piglet feeding mode

Everyone wants quickly feed piglets so that they can be slaughtered early. But if you give them a large amount of food at a time, it will only get worse. Of course, it happens that some pigs calmly overpower portions, while others immediately feel bad. But it is better to give portions based on weaker babies. It is also worth feeding babies with salt feed or giving salt separately to improve digestion.

Feeding a pregnant sow

It is worth talking about how a pregnant pig is raised. Its correct content will be the start of the development of the economy. And no matter, then the piglets will be kept separately with her. In any case, the health of her future offspring depends on the quality of nutrition that the pregnant pig receives. It turns out that the better the pregnant sow is fed, the higher the farmer’s profit. Without this, there is no chance of getting healthy piglets.

Some farmers recommend (this is even on the video) to give the uterus really a lot of food. Moreover, everything that is recommended for adult pigs is used: corn, wheat, barley, oats, succulent feed and protein food. In fact, it all depends on the quality of the food, and the portions should be even slightly smaller. They are reduced by 1/5 of the usual mass.You can do it yourself or buy ready-made mixed feed for sows, although ready-made feeds alone are not always suitable.

Growing a pregnant pig

Vitamins are a great choice. A granular vitamin feed for sows will definitely be needed.

To prevent the pig from stopping to bear offspring, you need to feed it twice a day. Animal feed should be a quarter less than in the diet with standard fattening, and the preparation of portions should take into account the fact that a pregnant pig requires only the highest quality food. Here is what livestock breeders write on the forums about pregnant sows:

“The quantity and quality of feed received is very important during pregnancy. Moreover, the recommendations are the same for pigs of ordinary breeds, as well as for black Vietnamese animals. You can use both prepared feeds (their production has long been established), and you can choose a diet yourself. It is only necessary to choose the best option: high-quality grain, juicy and fresh root crops, fragrant hay or grass. Before farrowing, you should halve the portion (2-4 days before giving birth). ”

Conclusion

Keeping and feeding pigs is not the most difficult, but responsible task. Be sure to choose the right feed and diet, only then all the costs will pay off.