Hello Nairalanders,

In the next few weeks I'm going to be given free training on how to do pig farm and say bye-bye to poverty in your life. The following are the topics that we will be learning:
(a) Introduction
(b) Breeds: Local Breed and Exotic Breeds
(c) BREEDING: Crosses between native and exotic for Improvement of local breeds - (i) Pure-breeding (ii) Out breeding (iii) In breeding
(d) Methods of cross breedy: Cross breeding (i) Effect of Cross Breeding (ii) Effect of Negative Selection
(e) Selection of Breeding Gilt
(f) Selection of Breeding Boar
(h) Heat detection - Common signs of heat
(i) How to induce heat
(j) Assistance
(k) Reasons for not conceiving
(l) Care and Management of breeding Boar
(m) Care and Management of breeding Boar
(n) Care and Management of breeding Sow
(o) Minimum Breeding Ages for Boars and Gilts
(p) Care and Management of New Born Piglets
(q) Feeding piglets whose mother does not produce enough milk
(r) Castration
(s) Pig’s Digestive Systems
(t) Formulation feed
(u) Housing Management
(v) Disease and Parasite
(w) Reproductive Disorders and Diseases
(x) Diseases and Disorders of Digestive Tract
(y) Other Diseases
(z) Vaccination Schedule for Pigs

These are otherwise known as A-Z OF PIGGERY WEALTH

Sit as lecture unfolds

Thanks

Following @agrowell. Interested.

Nice... I'm interested

I'm all in

Following

@ MirthOsas, jeph19, JaphOBMG, BillyPro and others that did not write, thanks for showing interest. Here we go:

INTRODUCTION
Pig farming is the raising and breeding of domestic pigs as livestock, and is a branch of animal husbandry. Pigs are farmed principally for food (e.g. pork, bacon, gammon) and skins.

The following factors can influence the type of pig farms in any given region:

-- Available food supply suitable for pigs
-- The ability to deal with manure or other outputs from the pig operation
-- Local beliefs or traditions, including religion
-- The breed or type of pig available to the farm
-- Local diseases or conditions that affect pig growth or fecundity
-- Local requirements, including government zoning and/or land use laws
-- Local and global market conditions and demand

The following terminologies shall be used as we go on in the training:

Pig, hog, or swine, the species as a whole, or any member of it. The singular of "swine" is the same as the plural.
Shoat, piglet, or (where the species is called "hog" pig, unweaned young pig, or any immature pig
Sucker, a pig between birth and weaning
Weaner, a young pig recently separated from the sow
Runt, an unusually small and weak piglet, often one in a litter
Boar or hog, male pig of breeding age
Barrow, male pig castrated before puberty
Stag, male pig castrated later in life (an older boar after castration)
Gilt, young female not yet mated, or not yet farrowed, or after only one litter (depending on local usage).
Suckling pig, a piglet slaughtered for its tender meat
Feeder pig, a weaned gilt or barrow weighing between 18 kg (40 lb) and 37 kg (82 lb) at 6 to 8 weeks of age that is sold to be finished for slaughter
Porker, market pig between 30 kg (66 lb) and about 54 kg (119 lb) dressed weight
Baconer, a market pig between 65 kg (143 lb) and 80 kg (180 lb) dressed weight. The maximum weight can vary between processors.
Grower, a pig between weaning and sale or transfer to the breeding herd, sold for slaughter or killed for rations.[clarification needed]
Finisher, a grower pig over 70 kg (150 lb) liveweight
Butcher hog, a pig of approximately 100 kg (220 lb), ready for the market. In some markets (Italy) the final weight of butcher pig is in the 180 kg (400 lb) range. They tend to have hind legs suitable to produce cured ham
Backfatter, cull breeding pig sold for meat; usually refers specifically to a cull sow, but is sometimes used in reference to boars
Sow, breeding female, or female after first or second litter
Herd, a group of pigs, or all the pigs on a farm or in a region
Sounder, a small group of pigs (or wild boar) foraging in woodland
Trotters, the hooves of pigs (they have four hoofed toes on each foot, walking mainly on the larger central two)
In pig, pregnant
Farrowing, giving birth
Hogging, a sow when on heat (during estrus)
Sty, a small pig-house, usually with an outdoor run or a pig confinement
Pig-shed, a larger pig-house
Ark, a low semi circular field-shelter for pigs
Curtain-barn, a long, open building with curtains on the long sides of the barn. This increases ventilation on hot, humid summer days

Enough of these grammar, we shall continue from here on Sunday.

Thanks for being part of the class

Good Evening Class,

As much as possible just like the topic we are treating says, "Practical" so I won't us with much theory. Today we shall be talking about

(b) Breeds: Local Breed and Exotic Breeds

Local Breed: Local breeds are different from one place to the other, so we are not going to treat much of this. In Nigeria, our local breeds look like this with the follow features:
1. They are a small body size compared to other exotic and crosses pig types
2. Most of them are kept under scavenging systems.
3. Resistance to several diseases and parasites.
4. They are always stronger than the exotic and crosses pig types

Exotic Breeds
The most common pig breeds for commercial pig production are the Yorkshire, Landrace, Hampshire, Duroc, and Tibetan, Tamworth and Meishan breeds and their crosses. These breeds produce lean meat combined with efficient feed conversion (3 kg of good feed is needed to produce 1 kg of pork). Compared to local pig breeds, these commercial breeds are less resistant to diseases and suffer more from hot weather and low quality feeds. Pure exotic breeds generally do not perform well in rural pig production systems.

1. Yorkshire The features are as follows:
Yorkshire: white, long body, erect ears, good mothers, live weight of a mature male 300 – 450 and female 250 - 350 kg.
High prolificacy, with a litter size of 12, weaning percent of > 70, and 7 pairs of teats.
Widely used for upgrading local breeds.

2. Landrace The features are as follows:
Landrace: white, large drooping ears, long body, good mothers. One of the newest breeds of a Danish origin.
They are noted for having the highest number of pigs per litter, average live weight of matured male is 310 – 400 kg
and female is 250 – 330 kg.
Good for Bacon production. High prolificacy, average litter size of 11 with a good weaning rate.

3. Hampshire The features are as follows:
Hampshire: black, white belt, muscular. Average live weight of matured male 300 kg and female is 250 kg.
Good for Bacon production.
High prolificacy, with a litter size of 9 with high weaning rate.

4. Duroc The features are as follows:
Duroc: red, muscular, partially drooping ears, desirable as sires.
They grow the fastest out of all the other breeds. Average live weight of matured male 300 kg and female is 250 kg.
High prolificacy, with a litter size of 9 with high weaning rate.

5. Tibetan The features are as follows:
The Tibetan breed of pig is especially adapted to the high hills, cold climate and to being on pasture all year round. It
is characterized by: Light body weight (mature wt about 35 kg .)
Black hair coat, with long and dense bristles. Highly developed digestive organs; the length of the intestine is about 36 times its own body length.
Ability to deposit fat in the body. The internal and visceral fat is about 15 percent of body weight.
Muscles with a marble appearance and meat with a special flavor.
Low prolificacy, with average litter size of 5, weaning percent of 69, and 5 pairs of teats.

6. Tamworth The features are as follows:
Tamworth: Ginger, golden red to dark red colored breed with a long head, prick ears, a straight face and snout, and a long, narrow body.
Mature boar may weigh 245 – 265 kg and sow 200 – 300 kg. They produce smaller litters than other commercial breeds.

7. Meishan The features are as follows:
The Meishan breed of pig was developed in China and characterized by:
A black colored breed with short legs, big stomach, deep back and very ugly face are the major visible features.
Very high prolificacy, with a litter size of 14 -17 with average birth weight 900gm, weaning of 11 - 12, and having 8-9 pairs of teats.
Daily weight gain is 300 – 400 gm with FCR 5:1. An adult male weight about 450 kg and female weight 350 kg average.

See you in the next class.

Remain a success

Questions and contributions would be highly welcomed.

Paying prompt attention.

Hello Class,

Pig Production Systems
There are three ways pigs can be raised or kept. Similar to poultry, cattle and other livestock animals, pigs can be raised under:
1. Extensive or Free-range system
2. Semi-intensive system
3. Intensive system

Extensive or Free-range system
This is a system in which the pigs are allowed to move around without limits or unconfined. The animals find and scavenge for food themselves while the farmer supplements this with agricultural byproducts or kitchen waste. In the evening, the pigs return to the enclosure made for them as shelter. This enclosure is usually a small place made of sticks and a simple roof.
In this type of management system of pig, local pig breeds are usually kept and bred because they have high resistance to diseases and can manage with low-quality food/feed. One of the advantages of this extensive system is that little, or no money is spent in providing food or veterinary services for the pigs.
Under the extensive or free-range system, the pigs are allowed to mate indiscriminately, giving room for inbreeding. Hence, the reason for poor-quality and poorly performing offspring. Quality of pigs is usually a priority to the farmers since the pigs are not kept or bred as a regular source of income or meat production. The pigs are sold when the keeper needs extra cash or they are present as gifts during festive seasons.

Semi-Intensive System
Semi-intensive system involves confining the pigs to limited space or area. The keeper provides all the feed, water and veterinary services that the animals need because they are not allowed to scavenge or find food and water for themselves. So the pigs are feed with kitchen wastes and agricultural byproducts such as corn husks and cobs, cassava peels, yam peels, etc.
Under this type of management system, the pigs are allowed to graze on grasses within the confined space. The pregnant sows are usually given special attention and provided with extra food.
Unlike in the extensive system, farmers keeping pigs under a semi-intensive system spends more time and effort on the pigs. The financial inputs are fairly low but more technical knowledge about pig production is required.

Intensive System
The intensive system is the best and recommended system of keeping pigs if the production goal is to generate income. Under this system, pigs are kept indoors or in pens and not allowed to move outside. The pens are constructed in such a way that the pigs can eat and drink in their pen. This is the type of management system practiced by commercial pig farms. If you want to start a pig farm, then you must choose this system to get the best from the animals.

Most of the discussion here shall focus more on Africa perspective especially Nigeria where I am operating from.

(c) BREEDING: Crosses between native and exotic for Improvement of local breeds - (i) Pure-breeding (ii) Out breeding (iii) In breeding

Crosses between native and exotic for Improvement of local breeds:
Breed improvement is important in obtaining improved and high yielding animals. The main purpose of breed improvement is to introduce a positive characteristic into a local breed. For example: by crossbreeding an indigenous sow with an exotic boar; the offspring is likely to inherit the body shape and good growth rate from its father and the tolerance to environmental stress from its mother.

Pure-breeding

Mating purebred individuals of the same breed. The progeny 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 programs as well as to propagate and identify superior females for maintaining valuable genetic material. Furthermore crossbreeding will not be worthwhile unless superior pure bred individuals are used.

Class let me have your view before we meet in the next training

Thanks

Welcome Class,

Out breeding
Mating individuals of the same breed but who are less closely related than the average of the breed. There should not be a common ancestor for at least four generation 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

Mating between individuals of the same breed but which are more closely relate than the average of the breed. This could be between as close individuals as full sibs or sire – daughter, mother - son. Pure breeding is a special kind of in-breeding.
The effect of inbreeding is the concentration of common genes in the offspring. This high frequency of homozygous gene pairs applies to both desirable and undesirable traits. Many undesirable traits e.g. hernia and cryptorchidism involve recessive genes thus inbreeding perpetuates their expression phenotypically. In breeding causes decrease in litter size and increases 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.

Effect of In-Breeding
a. Sow with newly borne litters about 12 piglets.
b. Male and Female piglets taken by another farmers to his home.
c. Breeding between the same siblings.
d. Female giving birth about 9 piglets
e. About 25 % less no of smaller and weak piglets are born as compared with first sow and some of them were borne dead
f. Male and Female piglet taken by another farmers to his home
g. Breeding between the same siblings about six piglets.
h. About 50 % less no of vey smaller and weak piglets born as compared with the first sow, some of them were borne dead

Class, Lets continue from where we stopped,

D. Methods of cross breedy

Cross breeding
Mating two individuals from different breeds thus introducing into the progeny a gene combination that is different from that existing in either parent or in the breed of either parent. Cross breeding can involve two or more breeds, depending on the desired result. The sole purpose of cross breeding is to take advantage of the observed improvement in performance of the progeny above that of either parent
- hybrid vigour or heterosis.

1: Cross Breeding Between Unidentified Breeds;

Effect of Cross Breeding
--- Local sow with her piglets
--- Exotic sow with her piglets
--- Female piglet from local sow and Male piglet from exotic sow are taken by a farmer to his home for breeding propose
--- Breeding between these male and female pig
--- Healthy and bigger body size piglets are born from the local sow
--- All male piglets are sold and few selected crossed bread female are kept for breeding
--- Another exotic male which is not in relation with the herd introduced for breeding.
--- Breeding between them
--- Very healthy, strong, active and fast growing piglets are born

agrowell:
@ MirthOsas, jeph19, JaphOBMG, BillyPro and others that did not write, thanks for showing interest. Here we go:

INTRODUCTION
Pig farming is the raising and breeding of domestic pigs as livestock, and is a branch of animal husbandry. Pigs are farmed principally for food (e.g. pork, bacon, gammon) and skins.

The following factors can influence the type of pig farms in any given region:

-- Available food supply suitable for pigs
-- The ability to deal with manure or other outputs from the pig operation
-- Local beliefs or traditions, including religion
-- The breed or type of pig available to the farm
-- Local diseases or conditions that affect pig growth or fecundity
-- Local requirements, including government zoning and/or land use laws
-- Local and global market conditions and demand

The following terminologies shall be used as we go on in the training:

Pig, hog, or swine, the species as a whole, or any member of it. The singular of "swine" is the same as the plural.
Shoat, piglet, or (where the species is called "hog" pig, unweaned young pig, or any immature pig
Sucker, a pig between birth and weaning
Weaner, a young pig recently separated from the sow
Runt, an unusually small and weak piglet, often one in a litter
Boar or hog, male pig of breeding age
Barrow, male pig castrated before puberty
Stag, male pig castrated later in life (an older boar after castration)
Gilt, young female not yet mated, or not yet farrowed, or after only one litter (depending on local usage).
Suckling pig, a piglet slaughtered for its tender meat
Feeder pig, a weaned gilt or barrow weighing between 18 kg (40 lb) and 37 kg (82 lb) at 6 to 8 weeks of age that is sold to be finished for slaughter
Porker, market pig between 30 kg (66 lb) and about 54 kg (119 lb) dressed weight
Baconer, a market pig between 65 kg (143 lb) and 80 kg (180 lb) dressed weight. The maximum weight can vary between processors.
Grower, a pig between weaning and sale or transfer to the breeding herd, sold for slaughter or killed for rations.[clarification needed]
Finisher, a grower pig over 70 kg (150 lb) liveweight
Butcher hog, a pig of approximately 100 kg (220 lb), ready for the market. In some markets (Italy) the final weight of butcher pig is in the 180 kg (400 lb) range. They tend to have hind legs suitable to produce cured ham
Backfatter, cull breeding pig sold for meat; usually refers specifically to a cull sow, but is sometimes used in reference to boars
Sow, breeding female, or female after first or second litter
Herd, a group of pigs, or all the pigs on a farm or in a region
Sounder, a small group of pigs (or wild boar) foraging in woodland
Trotters, the hooves of pigs (they have four hoofed toes on each foot, walking mainly on the larger central two)
In pig, pregnant
Farrowing, giving birth
Hogging, a sow when on heat (during estrus)
Sty, a small pig-house, usually with an outdoor run or a pig confinement
Pig-shed, a larger pig-house
Ark, a low semi circular field-shelter for pigs
Curtain-barn, a long, open building with curtains on the long sides of the barn. This increases ventilation on hot, humid summer days

Enough of these grammar, we shall continue from here on Sunday.

Thanks for being part of the class

I'm really impressed with this and interested in it also.
I'll be graduating next year as an agricultural economist and would love to practice it.
Can I have your number please

Thanks for the kind gesture OP, which of the breeds is best for meat production in Nigeria? Both local and exotic breeds..

jeph19:

I'm really impressed with this and interested in it also.
I'll be graduating next year as an agricultural economist and would love to practice it.
Can I have your number please

@jeph19,
Thanks for the encomium, I am only given back what the society gave to me.
For phone number, please check my signature

MirthOsas:
Thanks for the kind gesture OP, which of the breeds is best for meat production in Nigeria? Both local and exotic breeds..

@MirthOsas,

It is a pleasure to contribute my quotas to agricultural growth in NIgeria
Though the class suppose to resume on Monday 6th January 2020, but let me quickly answer your questions.

For commercial meat production in Nigeria please do not use local breed, no much profit therein. For Exotic breed in meat production which is otherwise known as Bacon Production, the best breeds are in this order:

1. Yorkshire (Popularly known as White Large)
2. Landrace
3. Hampshire
4. Duroc

Though pure exotic breeds are difficult to be found in Nigeria

Hello Class,

Compliments of the season, we are all welcome back the classroom. Our training continues in a low key. Today we are starting from

Effect of Negative Selection
--- Sow with newly borne litters about 12 piglets.
--- Stronger and healthy piglets were either sold or castrated for meat purpose
--- Smaller and weak Male and Female piglets kept for breeding purpose.
--- Breeding between the same siblings.
--- Female giving birth about 9 piglets
--- About 25 % less no of smaller and weak piglets are born as compared with first sow and some of them were borne dead
--- Among the piglets stronger and healthy either sold for cash or castrated for meat and smaller and weak are kept for breeding purpose.

following

With you!

@Agrowell

I can't thank you enough for this insightful online lecture. Following with rapt attention. God bless

PS: I'm sorry sir, 'g' is missing among the letter A-Z (I don't want to miss anything here ooo )

Nigga is only just doing COPY AND PASTE
Funniest part, he is getting accolades for plagiarism

Repent OP

EhiGid:
Nigga is only just doing COPY AND PASTE
Funniest part, he is getting accolades for plagiarism

Repent OP

Mofo!
Do same and get some accolades also

EhiGid:
Nigga is only just doing COPY AND PASTE
Funniest part, he is getting accolades for plagiarism

Repent OP

Interestingly I didn't know that you're also aware of it too?
But then I have no problem with the OP if he's doing it freely and I can even support him if he'll need my assistance.

So good job @ OP

Hello Class,

Selection of Breeding Gilt
It is extremely important to select a good boar since it contributes half the quality of the herd.

Areas to be consider while selecting breeding Gilt:
i. Gilts selected to have at least 12 teats so as to accommodate a large litter
ii. Gilts to be selected from sows, which wean 9 -10 or more piglets per litter and are known to be good mothers and first farrowing at one year of age and farrowing interval of seven month.
iii. Select breeding gilts at weaning period, further selection should be done 5-6 months of age.
iv. Select fast growing weaners. These will likely consume less feed per unit live weight gain. Thus less costly to keep.
v. Select gilts which have developed hams and comparatively light heads.
vi. The selected gilts should have good body confirmation i.e. strong legs, sound feet etc.
vii. Gilt should not select for breeding purpose having supernumerary and inverted teats, and fat deposited at the base of the teats
viii. Guilt must be at least 8 months old at first service.

Summarized Feature to look out for in a selected gilt
Age to breed gilts-----------------------------8 months
Weight of breed gilts-------------------------100-120 kg
Length of heat period-------------------------2-3 days
Best time to breed in heat period------------Gilts – first day and Sows- Second day
Number of services per sow------------------2 services at an interval of 12-14 hours
Period of oestrous cycle----------------------18-24 days (Average 21 days)
Occurrence of heat after weaning------------2-10 days
Gestation period------------------------------114 days