Management

Modern and well-established scientific principles, practices and skills should be used to obtain maximum economic benefits from pig farming.

Selection of breeds

• For commercial pig farming upgraded / crossbred or exotic stock in good health should be selected.

• While selecting a gilt or sow primary aim should be to secure a female that will produce large survivable litter and which can attain marketable weight at an age of six months or less.

• Animals those are ready to be bred should be selected.

• Identify the newly purchased animal by giving suitable identification mark (ear notching or tattooing).

• Vaccinate the animals against diseases.

• Keep the animal under observations for a period of about two weeks and then mix with the other animals.

• Purchase animals in two batches at the interval of three months.

• Follow judicious culling and replacement of animals in a herd.

• Cull the old animals after 10-12 farrowings.

Housing of Pigs

• The house should give adequate protection against direct sunlight and rain. Hogs are sensitive to heat and cold.

• The floor and wall should be strong to withstand the rooting habits of pigs. Concrete flooring is durable and easy to clean. The walls may be of bricks, finished smoothly and doors of strong wooden planks or iron.

• Feed troughs and water troughs may be placed along the front to facilitate feeding from outside.

• Pigs thrive well in temperature range of 20-25^oC. Provide shade, wallowing tank, cooling devices such as sprinkling of water, washing etc. to maintain thermal comfort.

• Design should be such that all animals are observable easily from outside and the labour requirement is less.

• Boars, pregnant and dry sows, gilts and growing pigs are usually kept in open yards with partially sheltered area. Farrowing sows are housed in completely enclosed houses or pens.

• Simple low cost houses constructed with locally available materials as per above guidelines are preferred in rural areas. Multipurpose pens, which can be used, for all categories of pigs can also be designed meeting the floor space requirement.

• Individual or group housing in cages made up of vertical G.I. pipes/M S rods and also farrowing crates can be adopted in large high-tech farms.

• Uncastrated males and females should not be housed together beyond the age of four months.

Housing of Boars

Boar pen should have covered area of 6.25-7.5 m² and open area of 8.8-12 m² for exercise. The walls should have a minimum height of 1.5 m.

Housing of Female

Open yard type with partial roofing as in the case of boar may be provided. A total of 10-15 females can be grouped in a pen. An area of 2 m² per animal may be provided.

Housing of Farrowing sows

Farrowing sows may be housed individually in a farrowing pen of 2.5 x 4.0 = 10.0 m² having guard rails, creep area, feed and water troughs

Space requirement of pigs

(Source: National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development)

Housing of growing and finishing pigs

A covered concrete yard for feeding and resting having feed and water trough arranged in the front side and an open yard in the rear will suffice for fatteners. The total space requirement may be 2 m² per grower/fattener pig.