Feeding and Management of Swine

1. Feeding and Management of Swine Animal Science 1 Unit 22

2. Objectives • Describe the different types of swine production. • Develop feeding programs for the different stages in the life cycle of hogs • Describe accepted management practices for the stages in the life cycle of hogs

3. Introduction • Efficient use of resources is the key to profitability • To remain competitive swine producers MUST select breeding stock that will remain lean and feed efficiently

4. Factors That Affect Profitability • Number of pigs weaned per sow • Minimum goal for producers should be 21-22 pigs per year for each breeding female • Females should be bred and managed to produce a minimums of 2.3 litters during each 12 month period • Feed efficiency • feed wastage should be considered and controlled

5. Types of Swine Production

6. Types • Purebred • Commercial • Feeder pig production • Buying and finishing feeder pigs • Complete sow and litter systems • Swine production can also be classified according to the type of housing used • Pasture, combination pasture and low-investment housing, high-investment total confinement

7. Pasture Management • Farrowing a smaller number of sows per year • Requires enough pasture to be able to rotate pasture to reduce disease and parasite problems • Farrowing only once or twice a year • Low investment in building

8. Confinement Management • High level of mechanization to reduce labor requirements • High investment in buildings and equipment • Multiple farrowings per year with a large number of hogs raised • High level of management ability needed • High degree of control over feeding operation • Better year-round working conditions • Stringent disease and parasite control program • Use of very little priced land

9. Purebred Production • Specialized • Make up less than 1% of the total hogs raised • Produce foundation stock used in commercial production • Must be excellent managers • Higher investment in labor and record keeping • Must keep accurate records • Must spend a great deal of time advertising, showing and promoting swine breeds

10. Commercial • Means used to produce most of the pork produced in the United States • Use crossbreeding • Often cross purebred boars onto crossbred sows • Good management is necessary

11. Feeder Pig Production • Produces pigs that are sold to feeders who feed them to market weights • Producer has a herd of breeding sows • Baby pigs are taken care of until they reach weaning weight • A high producing herd is required • An average of 14-16 pigs marketed per sow is required to break even • Goal is to raise uniform groups of feeder pigs for sale • Health problems MUST be prevented or carefully treated • Generally requires only small investments • Farrowing needs to be scheduled to have a steady supply of feeder pigs for sale • Requires less total feed

12. Buying and Finishing Feeder Pigs • Operator buys feeder pigs and raises them to market weight • Lest investment and managerial ability • Possible to feed pigs on pasture or with limited facilities • Trend is towards investing in more confinement systems • Cost are higher with this operation

13. Buying and Finishing Feeder Pigs • Requires higher investment to purchase pigs • Well adapted to producers who have large amounts of grain for feed • Requires less labor • Disadvantages • Health problems • Variation in market prices • It is a fairly high risk that there will be no profit made

14. Complete Sow and Litter System • Most common method of production • Involves • Breeding herd of sows • Farrowing pigs • Caring for and feeding the pigs to market weight • Investments • Can be low for pasture systems • High for confinement systems and facilities • Trend is toward more confinement systems with larger numbers of sows being kept in the producing herd

15. Complete Sow and Litter System • Confinement permits spreading the production and marketing of pigs more evenly through the years • This results in an increased potential for profit • Labor, management and investment requirements vary considerably

16. Pork Quality Assurance Program

17. Pork Quality Assurance Program (PQA) • Implemented in 1989 by the National Pork Producers Council • Management education program with major emphasis on the swine herd health program • Anyone who raises pork can take part • Just like the Beef Check-Off

18. PQA • 1st step—review of management practices, especially focusing on the use and handling of animal health products • Series of good management practices are reviewed and a plan is developed for needed improvements • Final step—producers plans are reviewed and verified by a verifier • The verifier can be a vet, an extension specialist, or agricultural education instructor

19. Reducing Nitrogen and Phosphorus Excretion

20. Problems faced by the Swine Producers • Odor • Pollution due to excessive N and P in the manure

21. Nitrogen • Odor problem is caused by the release of ammonia from the manure • This is caused by the nitrogen (N) • Nitrogen can be reduced by substituting synthetic lysine for soybean meal in the diet • This reduces the amount of nitrogen excreted and thus reduces the amount of ammonia generated and all in all reduces the smell! • Note: No more than 3 pounds of synthetic lysine per ton in growing-finishing diets. • Replacing two much of the soybean meal with synthetic lysine reduces the amount of other necessary amino acids in the diet and thus has a negative effect on daily gain, feed efficiency and some carcass traits.

22. Nitrogen • Another method of reducing nitrogen is by using split sex feeding • Barrows have lower protein requirements than gilts • Feeding them separately means less protein can be fed thus reducing the amount of nitrogen excreted in the manure.

23. Phosphorus • Corn and soybean oil, both the basis of the swine diet, have high phosphorus content • Problem- • 90% of the phosphorus is in the form of phytic acid, which is not available to the pig • More phosphorus must be supplemented, increasing the amount that is released in the manure • This all contributes to a problem of excessive amounts of phosphorus being released into the environment when the manure is applied to the land.

24. Phosphorus • Solution?? • Adding the enzyme phytase results in more utilization of the phytate phosphorus • This results in a reduction of as much as 30% • Research is also being done in using genetically modified corn that contains less phytate

25. Selecting Feeds for Swine

26. Feed Costs • Range from 55-70% of the total cost of raising hogs • Combining the right kinds of feed in a well balanced ration is one of the most important tasks of the hog producer. • Nutrient needs of hogs include • Energy • Protein • Minerals • Vitamins • water

27. Energy Feeds • Corn • Barley • Buckwheat • Milo • Wheat • Oats • Rye • Triticale • Potatoes • Bakery waste • Fats,tallows and greases • Molasses

28. Corn • Basic energy feed • High in digestible carbs • Low in fiber • Palatable • Other feeds are compared to corn when determining their feed value • See table 22-2

29. Corn Co-Products • Products from the corn-refining industry • Corn gluten feed • Corn germ meal

30. Barley • Good substitute for corn • In some parts of the US it is fed more than corn • High fiber • Slightly less digestible • Higher protein • Must be supplemented with proteins, minerals, and vitamins • Ground medium fine • Also rolled or pelleted • Not as palatable • Poisonous to hogs if scabby

31. Buckwheat • Has 80-90% of the feed value of corn • 11% crude fiber • Not as palatable • Generally mixed with other grains • Less protein supplement needed • Not recommended for lactating sows or small pigs • Can be used for gestating sows and in fast growing rations • Not recommended that it be used for more than 50% of the ration • Can cause buckwheat rash in white pigs when they are exposed to sunlight

32. Milo • Higher protein than corn • Can replace all the corn in hog rations • Must be supplemented with protein, minerals and vitamins • Has a relative feed value of 90-95% compared to corn

33. Wheat • Equal to or slightly higher in feed value than corn • Higher in • Protein • Lysine • Phosphorus • Relative feed value is 100-105% compared to corn • Energy value is slightly lower • Relative price of wheat compared to other grains is a determining factor when considering its use in swine rations • Must be processed through a roller mill

34. Oats • Higher protein, but poorer quality • Protein supplement must be used • High in fiber • Relative feed value of 85-90% • Should not be substituted for more than 20% for growing-finishing hogs • Should be medium to finely ground • Hulled, rolled oats make an excellent starter ration for baby pigs

35. Rye • Not a very good feed for hogs • Relative feed value of 90% • Less palatable than other grains • Should not make up more than 25% of the grain ration • Harder than corn and should be ground • Sometimes infested with a fungus called ergot • Ergot will cause abortion in pregnant sows and ergot infested rye should never be fed to them • It will also slow down gains in growing-finishing hogs

36. Triticale • Hybrid cereal grain • Cross between wheat and rye • More lysine than corn • Not as palatable • No more than 50% of the ration should be triticale • Some varieties maybe infested with ergot • Ergot infested triticale should not be fed to pregnant sows.

37. Triticale Wheat Rye Triticale

38. Potatoes • May be fed to hogs • Contain mainly carbs • Must be fed with a protein supplement • Heavier hogs make better use of potatoes • Takes about 400 lbs of spuds to equal the feed value of 100 lbs of corn • Should be fed at the rate of 1 part potatoes to 3 parts grain • Should be cooked before they are fed

39. Bakery Waste • Include • Stale bread, bread crumbs, cookies, crackers • Average protein content is about 10% • A good protein supplement must be fed

40. Fats, Tallow and Greases • High energy • Make up less than 5% of the ration • Used to improve the binding qualities of pelleted feed • Binding quality is how well the feed particles stick together • Decreases carcass quality if feed in excess • Contain no protein, minerals, or vitamins • Proper nutrient supplements are essential when these substances are part of the ration

41. Fats, Tallow, Greases Tallow Lard

42. Molasses • Provide carbs • Can be substituted for part of the grain • Should never be more than 5% of the ration • May result in scours if over-fed

43. Plant Proteins

44. Soybean Oil Meal • Available with a 44 or 49% protein content • 49% meal is used in pre-starter and starter rations • Both are equal in value for growing-finishing pigs • Protein quality is excellent • Most widely used protein source in hog rations • Very palatable • Hogs will overeat soybean oil meal if fed free choice • Good balance of amino acids • Other feeds that are fed are compared to soybean oil meal when determining their feed value.

45. Cottonseed Meal • 40-45% protein • Poor quality • Low in lysine • Maybe fed as 5% of the protein in the ration • Some contains gossypol which is toxic to hogs • If the gossypol is removed cottonseed meal may replace up to 50% of the soybean oil meal in the ration • Low in minerals • Fair in in Vitamin B • Not palatable to hogs • Do not use as a starter ration

46. Linseed Meal • 35-36% protein • Poor quality • Must be fed with other protein sources • Usually makes up no more than 5% of the ration • More calcium than soybean or cotton meals, about the same for Vitamin B • Best fed in combination with animal protein sources • Acts as a laxative in large amounts

47. Peanut Meal • 47% protein • Low in several amino acids • Must be fed with other protein sources • Becomes rancid if stored more than a few weeks • Low in vitamins and minerals

48. Whole Soybeans • About 37% protein • Can be used to replace soybean oil meal • Higher in energy • Lower in protein • 6 lbs of whole cooked soybeans can substitute for 5 lbs of soybean oil meal • Higher energy of the whole soybeans may increase feed efficiency by 5% • Do not use raw soybeans in growing-finishing ration • They contain an antitrypsin factor that prevents the action of the enzyme trypsin in non-ruminants such as swine, resulting in a reduction in the availability of tryptophan, an essential amino acid • Heating the soybeans destroy the antitrypsin factor

49. Animal Proteins

50. Tankage and Meat Scraps • 50-60% protein • Inadequate amounts of the amino acid tryptophan • Must be used with other protein sources • High in calcium, phosphorus • Vitamin content is variable • Not as palatable as soybean meal • Maximum percentage of tankage included depends on the ration being fed • Gestation rations 10% • Lactation 5% • Growing and finishing 5% • Starter rations 0%