Pig farming. [Photo, Standard]
Rearing healthy and fast growing pigs is the key ingredient for a successful venture. You want to raise gilts that will give birth to as many piglets as possible that are fast growing as well as quality boars that are physically and sexually fit. The following guide is key to achieving this:
Selecting Breeding Gilts
Gilts selected should have at least 12 teats so as to accommodate a large litter and be selected from sows, which wean 9 -10 or more piglets per litter and are known to be good mothers. Always select breeding gilts at weaning period, further selection should be done at five to six months of age. Fast growing weaners will likely consume less feed per unit live weight gain and are thus less costly to keep. Select gilts which have well developed hams and comparatively light heads and a good body conformation like strong legs and sound feet.
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Selecting Breeding Boars
It is paramount to select a good boar since it contributes half the quality of the herd. Consider boars of sound feet with good, full hams, uniform curve at the back and of good length. Boar to have at least 12 nicely placed rudimentary teats so as to pass on this characteristic to offspring. Do the selection before the boars are castrated at four weeks.
Breeding pigs
Farmers can adopt several breeding models to improve the quality of their herd: Pure-breeding: this involves mating purebred individuals of the same breed like landrace to landrace. The offspring has the same genetic makeup. The major objective of pure-breeding is to identify and propagate superior genes for use in commercial production primarily in crossbreeding programmes. It is also done to propagate and identify superior females for maintaining valuable genetic material.
Cross breeding: involves mating two individuals from different breeds, like large white and landrace, thus introducing into the offspring a gene combination that is different from that existing in either parent or in the breed of either parent. The objective is to take advantage of the observed improvement in performance of the progeny above that of either parent. This is known as hybrid vigour or heterosis.
Out breeding: refers to mating individuals of the same breed but which are less closely related than the average of the breed. There should not be a common ancestor for at least four generations back in the pedigree of the boar and the females with which he is mated. It is a useful mating system in purebred individuals.
In breeding: Refers to mating individuals of the same breed but which are closely related. This could be between a boar and his daughter. Inbreeding should be highly avoided because it can cause problems such as a decrease in litter size and increases rates of mortality. Inbred sows are inferior in milking and mothering ability. It delays sexual maturity in gilts and boars. Inbred boars have less sexual libido. Inbred gilts have fewer eggs during oestrus and farrow smaller litters than those out bred.
