Many of our compatriots want to engage in pig farming on their plots, but when starting this business, you need to understand that its effectiveness and profitability are highly dependent on what to feed the pigs. If the future owner manages to maintain a balance between the cost and quality of the feed the animal needs, he will be able to provide his family with meat products at a price significantly lower than the market or store price.
In addition, your own pork will have very high consumer qualities, which cannot always be said about products produced at large livestock complexes.
Domestic pigs can provide their owner with high-quality meat products and become a profitable business
Today we will talk about fattening pigs at home, as well as ways to optimize this process without leading to a decrease in the quality of meat.
Is it possible to feed piglets and pigs pumpkin: benefits and harms
Pigs love pumpkin very much.
Its seeds have anthelmintic properties, so pigs are not averse to treatment if such an opportunity arises. Pumpkin (especially yellow varieties) is a valuable source of carotene and B vitamins. 1–2 kg of pumpkin per day provides the body with vitamins and improves appetite. Pumpkin is fed in crushed form mixed with grain feed.
Fattening pigs and sows can be fed pumpkin raw or boiled, unchopped and without restrictions.
These pumpkins are prepared for fattening lop-eared pigs...
conclusions
The above calculations clearly show that the use of peas in feeding pigs can help save some of the usual soybean meal, without compromising the quality of the feed. It makes sense to grow peas and feed them to pigs. But lower yields compared to grains and higher costs or risks during cultivation have led to the current minimum cultivation area. Soybean prices, which continue to rise, or subsidies for cultivation could lead to a change in this trend. If the sown area remains as small in the near future, it will not be profitable for seed factories to continue to grow varietal seeds and develop new varieties. This could also lead to a loss of know-how and an ever-increasing import of protein feed raw materials into Germany and Europe.
Author: Dr. Manfred Weber, Directorate of Agriculture, Forestry and Horticulture, Eden. Translation by Elena Babenko specifically for the soft-agro.com project
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Is it possible to give fodder and sugar beets to pigs and piglets?
Fodder and sugar beets
- excellent food for pigs. Beets can be included in the diet in an amount of approximately 20–30%. 1 kg of beets contains 9 g of protein, 0.4 g of calcium and 0.4 g of phosphorus, 40 g of sugar. Beets have a good effect on the metabolism of pregnant and suckling queens, which can be fed 6–8 kg of raw chopped beets. Beetroot is also used to feed young animals (from 1 to 3 kg for fattening). Sugar beets are crushed, mixed with concentrated feed or given raw.
When crushed, beets quickly oxidize in air, so they should not be left in the feeder for more than 2 hours. Suckling piglets up to 2-3 weeks of age do not digest sugar well, so it is not recommended to give them beets. Frozen beets can only be used boiled. When cooking, you need to quickly bring the beet mass to a boil, boil it well and cool in a cool room to avoid the formation of nitrates during slow cooling.
The best varieties
Scientists call this crop a false berry. But these “berries” are among the largest on earth. The fodder crop is characterized by high yield. Its features are its large size, thick peel and loose texture of the pulp.
Sowing seeds per 1 hectare yields up to 50 tons of fruits. This relatively cold-resistant plant has the longest shelf life among other varieties of this vegetable.
Of the large number of species, it is worth highlighting the Stofuntovaya variety. This pumpkin was named so because its mass reaches 25 kg, and sometimes weighs more. The shape of the fruit is spherical. The pulp is orange, the structure is loose. Pumpkin is resistant to transportation and storage.
The variety Volzhskaya gray 92 is widely known. It is noted for its resistance to drought and diseases. It is most widespread in the Volga region due to the presence of sandy soils. Like the previous variety, it stands out for its high yield and large weight.
Varieties such as Hybrid 72, Record, Titan, Gribovskaya Kustovaya 189, etc. are widely used in agriculture.
Is it possible to feed potatoes to pigs and piglets?
Potato
- valuable carbohydrate food, it contains (in%): water - 75.9, protein - 1.66, fat - 0.21, fiber - 0.64. Organic matter in potatoes is 90% digestible by pigs! Potatoes are a watery food, so do not add large amounts of water to the food mixture prepared from them. Potatoes can make up 1/3 of a pig's diet. Mixed with concentrated feed, boiled potatoes are fed to pigs in the following quantities: weaned piglets - 1 kg, fattening pigs - 2.5–3.5 kg, dams and boars - 4–6 kg per day.
But unripe tubers and sprouts of sprouted potatoes contain solanine, which can cause diseases of the digestive system, so this food must be thoroughly boiled. Water after boiling potatoes is not used as feed. Be sure to wash the potatoes before cooking. Boiled potatoes are mashed and given to pigs slightly warm - this improves the digestibility of starch.
Feeding methods
Since ancient times, peasant farms preferred to fatten piglets with wet mash . This happened mainly because almost every yard had a cow or goat. Milk processing products (whey, buttermilk, etc.) were added to pig feed, which allowed the owners to utilize all waste with maximum benefit.
Currently, dry mixtures are mainly used for fattening pigs.
With the development of industrial pig farming, it became clear that feeding dry mixtures is more “correct” for the following reasons:
- dry food is preferable from the point of view of maintaining cleanliness in the pigsty. Feeders are easier to clean after it, food residues in them do not turn sour or mold;
- a mixture prepared without liquid is usually more uniform. It is more convenient to distribute it among feeders, and it is easier to maintain feeding standards;
- Providing dry products allows for efficient use of feed and prevents its loss;
- Dry crushed mixtures store well and, as a rule, are prepared in large quantities in advance. Wet mash spoils quickly. They are made right before giving it to the animal, each time exactly as much as it should eat.
The feeding regime for the “dry” and “wet” methods is practically the same. The pig is given food at the same time, two or three times a day, depending on the age and characteristics of the specific period of its life. When using dry mixtures, it is necessary to ensure that the animal always has access to drinking water. Green and succulent food is usually mixed with wet cereals, but given separately with dry concentrates. In this case, two types of feeders are organized in the pigsty: containers for the grain mixture are mounted on the wall, and troughs for chopped grass and vegetables or silage are placed on the floor (such dishes have to be washed frequently).
Dry mixtures are placed in separate feeders, without adding succulent and green food to them.
The choice of feeding method should depend on which components of the diet are more accessible to the owner of the farmstead. In principle, pigs easily get used to both dry and wet food; no data are available on breed-related preferences. However, many authoritative sources claim that feeding with properly formulated dry mixtures is, on average, cheaper due to more economical use of products, easier work on caring for animals and a reduced likelihood of diseases.
Well-chosen diets and optimization of feeding are a real way to make backyard pig farming a profitable business . Every summer resident can provide his family with high-quality and inexpensive meat products. You just need to approach this matter competently and responsibly and foresee possible risks in advance.
What's the best way to feed root vegetables?
Beetroot
crushed after cooking. Water after boiling root vegetables is used for steaming roughage (chopped hay, dust). In the warm season, root vegetables and potatoes are boiled for one feeding (at most for one day) and stored in a cold place so that the food does not turn sour.
Root vegetables are fed raw, peeled, crushed if they are given to the pig in small quantities as vitamin feed. If root vegetables ( rutabaga, beets)
), as well as
zucchini and pumpkin
, serve as the main food; they are crushed and boiled.
About heat stress
The fact is that pigs have an imperfect thermoregulation system due to the lack of sweat glands. In addition, most modern breeds have very high metabolisms, which also increases heat stress. The deterioration of the condition begins already in the range of positive temperatures from 25 to 35 degrees.
Animals' behavior changes, appetite decreases, and breathing problems often occur. Sows and piglets are particularly affected. In extreme heat, the birth process is delayed, the number of stillborn babies increases, and lactation in lactating females decreases. Piglets born in hot weather are more likely to get sick and die in the first weeks of life.
In pigs, heat stress causes a specific pathology called leaky gut or leaky gut . Scientists believe that in the heat, pigs experience a strong constriction of blood vessels, as a result of which the intestinal epithelium begins to suffer from a lack of oxygen. The intestinal wall becomes thinner and its protective function decreases. Simply put, the intestinal walls become more permeable, and pathogens and toxins found inside begin to enter the bloodstream. As a result, not only is the digestion process disrupted in animals, but also their immunity is reduced and their susceptibility to a number of diseases increases. Sometimes inflammatory processes develop in the abdominal cavity.
Today they are trying to solve the problem by adjusting diets, giving additional probiotics and preparations containing certain microelements (for example, zinc), as well as increasing the supply of drinking water. For example, the Brazilian scientist Bruno Silva developed a system for feeding pigs, which is based on the concept of “thermal effect of feed” that he introduced. In addition, breeders continue to work on breeding breeds that have increased resistance to heat stress.
What else can you feed pigs?
Among wild herbs, pigs enjoy eating nettles
, which is scalded with boiling water before feeding. The dry matter of nettle contains a lot of protein, carotene and minerals.
You can use all kinds of food waste
(potato peelings and trimmings, cabbage and beet leaves, carrot and beet trimmings), they are thoroughly boiled and given in a mixture with other feeds.
It is important to remember that poor appetite, slow growth and reduced productivity can be caused by a lack of water. On hot days, pigs can only go without water for a few hours. It is necessary to provide pigs with free access to water with a temperature of +12…+15 °C.
Combination with other foods
The correct combination of foods consumed at one time plays a huge role in the correct digestion of animals and reducing the likelihood of intoxication of the body from the processes of rotting and fermentation in the stomach and intestines.
Stone fruits are best combined with other fruits. An ideal vitamin tandem would be an apple and carrots. But for some animals, this fruit is best served separately and in its pure form. Because with a mixed diet, a problem often arises when one product interferes with the absorption of another.
