THE PIGGERY.

Franklin Times, Volume 9, Issue 638, 3 June 1921, Page 10

THE PIGGERY.

(By K. \V;. Gorringe, Instructor in Swine Husbandry, in the Journal of Agriculture.) 'N Site. Tt is not generally recognised by farmers how important it is that great care should be taken in the selection of a site for a piggery. Many mistakes have been made' in the pas.t in this respect, resulting in severe losses both to breeders and feeders. Farmers, in fact, have followed the ideas practised by their forefathers, and have too often built their piggeries more for the sake of their own convenience than for the comfort and well-being of the pigs. They have not sufficiently realised what they are doing when they enclose any small plot of ground—say, about half a chain square—and place a shed in one corner in which to keep their pigs from year to year. This may give good results for a start, bun as time goes on the shed and the whole plot become infested with parasites and germs, unless special attention is given to the disinfecting of the whole premises, which, one regrets to say, is very generally neglected. Often one hears the remark that a place is “pig-sick.” The proper definition of the matter is that the piggery is so infested for want of proper sanitation that the pigs have to fight for their very existence. In selecting a site it is important to avoid low or wet ground. High ground with good drainage, a gentle slope, or rolling .country, is to be preferred. If it is the breeder’s special desire to build a permanent or central house, special care should be taken to choose the most suitable site for the house to rest on. Springs under the ground, not seen or felt, yet close to the surface, have been the cause of continual dampness throughout pig-houses, even though the whole of the ground surface has been covered*-with brick or concrete. It is advisable to portion off an area of the farm for the pigs, the minimum to be 1 acres, divided up into four equal paddocks—the idea being to give the animals' a change from one paddock to another. These paddocks can be sown down with any good forage crops or grasses, and the fact that they will occasionally be ploughed up and resown will tend to keep the area in a good, healthy, ana dsanitary condition.

In connection with a site the water supply is of the greatest importance. Provision must usually, be made to supply this artificially, as it cannot be obtained by having a creek ' running through the piggery in cases where the water flows through another property afterwards. Good fresh water plays a very important part in the health of all pigs, whereas foul and dirty water is often the cause of worms and other intestinal complaints. It is essential that good clean water be within reach of the pigs at all titmes; it is astonishing what a large quantity will be consumed, especially during the summer months.

Together with the question of site, the legal provisions embodied in different statutes must always be kept in view. No drainage from a piggery is allowed into a running stream if this afterwards runs through another property, or is, afterwards used for any other purpose. All pigs must be kept at least 50 yards away from the nearest milking shed, dairy or slaughterhouse, and must not be so placed as to become a nuisance to the general public or adjoining dwellings in occupation. « Shelter. Shelter from exposure* is a very important point. The prevailing wind should be taken into consideration, and the piggery so placed as to have as much protection as possible from cod biting winds. If this is difficult, provision should be made for rapidgrowing shrubs, etc., just outside the fence.. Trees or other taller growths should be kept some yards away, as in after years they will have the tendency to kep the piggery damp if they are planted too close. On many farms a belt or block of natural bush has been kept for general shelter. This could be used to great advantage in connection with the site of the piggery. It will also be found beneficial to have a few shelter trees planted down the subdivisions, such as willows, wattles, or any variety that has a good top and a small root system. A largercctec! tree would in time interfere with the ploughing operation in the paddocks. Fencing and Yards. With regard to the style of fencing, this must be left to the judgment of the breeder. It has been found that a fence containing six pig-barbed wires, one plain wire, and one ordinary barb wire on top to make it cattle-proof, gives good results for the outside boundaries. Six posts to the chain, with four battens in between, will be sufficient. For the subdivision fence seven plain wires, well strained, with six bat-* tens between posts (spaced six to'

the chain) will be found to give sat-is-action. If the plain .wires can be strained on the roller systef, the roller to remain on the strainer post, in the event of any wire becoming slackened it is very easy to tighten again. Suitable distances apart for the wires bn the boundary fence are one nearly on the ground, then two at Sin, two at din, one at Gin, one at 9in, and one at 14in. For the subdivisions the distances will be one wire close to the ground, three at 3in and three at din. I the breeder can afford to be liberal with extra battens, so much the better for the life of the fence. Provision should be made for gates 9ft wide into each paddock, so as to allow any farm implement, also the pig houses, to pass through. Iz will be found very handy to provide a small yard as a drafting pen, in which can be built the staging for loading and unloading pigs to and from market,. There should also be an enclosure some distance apart for the purpose of isolating pigs suspected *of disease, or to accommodate any pigs which may be introduced until such time as it is evident that they are free from infectious or contagious disease. This enclosure should lie so constructed as to be easily disinfected if it be necessary to do so. Housing. Pigs are very susceptible to t the unfavourable influences of damp cold, heat, and draughts. The pig house should thus be warm, so that a minimum amount of feed will bo used up in maintaining the body heat animals. It should be dry; sweating walls or damp floors are highly objectionable. There should be an abundance of sunshine In the cold months, as sunshine is not only one of the greatest germ killers known, but tends to dryness and warmth, besides having a invigorating effect on the pigs. Plenty of fresh air without draughts is also a feature of importance.

There are two general types of pig houses—the central type, and the individual or movable house. A central house contains a number of farrowing and 'fattening pens under the same roof, while an individual house is made so as to keep only a single farrowing sow, or it can be used for a number of young growing pigs. The chief advantages claimed for central houses are that they are more convenient, necessitate less labour and care for the pigs, and are warmer. On the other hand, it is claimed for individual houses that they are cheap annd easy to build, better for farrowing sows (preventing crowding or piling up, quieter, movable to cleaner ground, and more sanitary. ©Owing to the favourable climatic conditions for pig keeping in New Zealand as compared with many other countries, I am of opinion that the central house has very little .advantage here. It is, besides, very expensive to construct and beyond the means of the average breeder. I have found that where a large number of animals are housed under one ro*f the atmosphere .becomes very dead, and young pigs farrowed under such conditions do not thrive nearly, so well as those farrowed in individual houses. After comparing the useful points of both types I therefore do net advocate the building of central houses for'general use of the average farmer.

If, however, the breeder specially desires a central house great care

must be taken, as previously mentioned, in the selection of the site on which it is to rest. Allowance must be made for good drainage, also for the admission of sunlight throughout the whole house. It is generally the breeder with a large herd who adopts this mode of housing, and one of the many designs can be selected and built to requirements. It should be realised, however, that if the breeder is not prepared to keep such a house very clean and to be liberal m the use of disinfectants trouble may be expected. In building a, central house a concrete reservoir should be placed at the end of the building to catch all the drainage; No breeder should be guilty of wasting this valuable liquqid manure, which can be pumped up and carted over the land at comparatively little expense. # Individual Movable Houses. From my experience and observation generally, and taking into eon 1 Adoration the economy in construction, ease of handling, and greater healthfulness, I consider, without a doubt, that the light movable pig house provides the best and cheapest housing for general use. There are various designs to choose from—the gable shaped, the two-thirds span roof, the lean-to, etc. Whereas permanent houses should be built facing the north, so as ft) get as much sun as possible, portable houses can be moved to suit the convenience of.the breeder and the comfort of the pigs. Cleaning and Disinfecting Any style of house can become infected with parasites and germs; therefore the houses must be kept clean, no dirt being allowed to accumulate in the corners. It is of little use applying - a disinfectant on top of a coating of filth which may conceal and protect millions of- disease gers. A good spray pump is the best to use, so as to force the liquid into every crack, and every part of the pen should be thoroughly saturated with the solution. Limewash is also good. A liberal sprinkling of slaked lime will be found benefieia around

houses, feeding troughs and yards. Proper attention to this important question of housing will mean the saving to tthe country of thousands of young pigs, besides greatly increasing profits by making feeding more effective.