A properly balanced diet and the use of fresh quality feed can significantly increase the growth rate, productivity and fertility of pigs. But planning such a diet should be approached as carefully as possible. When choosing feed for the rapid growth of pigs, it is necessary to take into account the age of the animal, its weight, and physiological characteristics. Only if such moments are observed, the farm will develop normally.

Feed types

By nature, pigs are omnivores. That is why, when choosing feed for the rapid growth of piglets, several different types of products are included in the diet at once. This approach allows you to fully meet the needs of the livestock body for nutrients, vitamins and minerals necessary for the growth and development of the animal.

Among themselves, all types of food can be divided according to different characteristics. Among them, the most common is the origin. In accordance with it, all fodder reserves can be divided into vegetable and animal origin.

Commonly used plant foods include the following:

1. concentrates. This category includes grains of cereals and legumes (barley, soybeans, peas, corn). Such food is an essential component of the pig's diet.
2. Waste processing of vegetable raw materials. This includes meal, cake and cereal bran.
3. Green fodder. It is a mandatory component of feeding in the summer. Includes leguminous greens (clover, alfalfa, vetch, peas), beet tops, various herbaceous plants.
4. Juicy fodder stocks. These include beets, potatoes, pumpkins, apples, pears, carrots, corn silage.
5. Rough. Coarse food mainly includes hay of cereals and legumes, as well as straw, which is steamed in a certain amount of hot water before serving.

As for feeds of animal origin, they include:

• various dairy products (skim, whey, whole milk);
• fish processing waste;
• meat and bone meal, other meat production wastes.

Attention! The listed types of feed can be given separately with the alternation of the components of the diet or in the form of compound feed, which includes several ingredients at once. Compound feed in its composition can be starter, complete or replace only a certain part of the menu compiled for animals.

Food waste can also be included in a separate category. In households, they are also introduced into the diet at certain stages of animal development. Plant foods also include acorns and some types of mushrooms.

How to feed piglets to grow quickly?

To quickly raise a piglet, you should calculate the diet in strict accordance with its physiology at each stage of development. Therefore, fattening for each age of the young will include its own components and norms. Do not worry about proper feeding only for newborn babies, provided that they are kept with a sow. In this case, for the first 1-2 weeks, the cubs will have enough mother's milk to fully cover their nutritional needs. When feeding piglets of all other ages, certain recommendations should be followed.

milk pigs

At the first stage of life, the piglet needs to provide a large amount of energy and vitamins, which are the main condition for rapid growth. But new food should be given to the baby in small portions, increasing them over time. You can implement this approach in accordance with the following plan:

1. The first 5-7 days the baby should be fed exclusively with mother's milk. It will provide the piglet with the necessary amount of protein, carbohydrates and vitamins.
2. From day 5, when the first teeth appear in the young, it can be gradually accustomed to concentrates by feeding small portions of toasted wheat or corn. Also, the diet should be diluted with yogurt. It will help normalize bowel function.
3. On the 7th day, you can already try to add premixes to the feeder.
4. From day 10, the animal can already begin to accustom to succulent feed. Finely grated carrots are suitable for this. But it should be administered with extreme caution, starting with a norm of not more than 10 g per day. It will also be useful to supplement the diet with legume hay.
5. From about 10 days in the summer, small piglets can be fed pasture. In this regard, nettle and midge are well suited. Young animals are happy to eat other greens, but you should be careful not to allow piglets to poisonous plants.
6. Immediately after the offspring learns to cope with concentrates and begins to drink on their own, you can also enter porridges steamed in water or mixed with skim milk on the menu. Reverse and whole cow's milk is desirable to give young animals regularly in the first months of life.
7. By the age of 1.5 months, it is already possible to introduce all feed into the diet of a piglet and wean it from its mother. During this period, it is imperative to give young animals mineral supplements, bone meal and pierce or feed mineral complexes with food.
8. From the age of 2 months, it is better to remove corn, buckwheat, bran and soy from the animal's menu. These products can greatly slow down the growth of the baby, provoke obesity and spoil the quality of the meat.

In addition to the main diet, chalk, clay and charcoal should also be introduced into food from the age of two weeks. For a two-month-old piglet, an approximate diet would look like this:

• concentrated feed (mainly barley) - at least 150 g;
• boiled and chopped potatoes - 500 g;
• tear - 500 g;
• return - 600 g;
• root crops - at least 250 g;
• herbal flour - 100 g;
• chalk - about 15 g;
• table salt - 10 g.

It is worth noting that, in addition to what to feed, it is also important how to feed the young. All of these feed supplies should not be given to a piglet at one time. It is better to divide one serving into 2-3 parts and pour it on the baby as the previous one is eaten. So the food will be better absorbed.

It is necessary to feed the offspring during the milk period at least 8 times until the age of 3 weeks, and then gradually reduce meals. By 2 months, their number should be 3. If all the recommendations are followed correctly, then during the milk period the piglet can grow up to 25 kg.

Growing

The period of growing a pig follows immediately after the dairy and lasts up to 4 months of the animal's life. The purpose of fattening at this time is to significantly increase the gain in muscle mass of the piglet. Accordingly, for this purpose, a large amount of protein and carbohydrates are introduced into the diet.

The basis of feeding during this period are various cereals. The most successful option in this case is barley and pea porridge. Moreover, when cooking, do not introduce a lot of liquid into them. The porridge should be thick.

Also during the rearing period, dairy products continue to be given to animals. A good weight gain can be achieved when feeding with skim milk, whey, yogurt. Food waste allows you to supplement the menu, and in the summer - greens from the garden. Be sure to provide the pig with the proper amount of vegetables. To do this, it is best to alternate potatoes, carrots, pumpkins by day.

In winter, feeding is carried out with such food:

• concentrates are the basis of the diet;
• vegetables - double the norm in comparison with the summer;
• corn silage;
• chaff and hay dust.

Attention! It is imperative to add chalk and salt in the amount of 15-20 g to the listed reserves.

adult pigs

Feeding adult pigs largely depends on the purpose of raising livestock. Most often in domestic and industrial pig breeding, fattening is carried out for meat and for bacon. Each of them has its own characteristics.

Fattening for meat

The purpose of this feeding technology is to obtain a large amount of tender meat without a fatty layer. In this case, the animal is determined for slaughter as soon as it reaches a weight of 100-120 kg.

This type of fattening is realized at the expense of silage, potatoes, beets. Food and meat waste has a good effect on muscle mass growth and meat quality. Such food should definitely be supplemented with green grass or legume hay.

At the last stage of feeding a pig for meat, the main food should be supplemented with fishmeal, grain processing waste, and fodder yeast should be added. When implementing such fattening, it is also extremely important to provide the animals with regular walking and plenty of clean, warm drink.

Bacon fattening

This feeding technology is more difficult to implement. At the end of fattening, an adult should reach a weight of 90-100 kg, no more. To get high-quality bacon, you also need to strictly follow the feeding norms, which are constantly changing at different stages of the process. It is especially important to observe the daily rate of protein in food. In the first half of fattening, it should be at least 130 g per day. In the second half, the norm decreases to 100 g.

Feeding in this case will be mainly based on the following components:

• legumes;
• grass (hay in winter);
• root crops, among which special attention is paid to carrots and sugar beets;
• serum.

Concentrated feed and silage should also be introduced into the diet. But here the main task is the correct balance of all types of feed, otherwise there will be an increase in body fat in the pig, and high-quality bacon cannot be obtained.

There are a few other important things to keep in mind while feeding adults and piglets that will increase feed conversion and keep the flock healthy. These rules include:

1. It is better to give grain to pigs in crushed form. This will significantly increase the absorption of nutrients from them.
2. It is better to make mixers from concentrates and other components. Pigs eat them better.
3. When the pig has eaten enough, the remnants of feed are removed from the feeder so that it does not ferment.
4. In parallel with the correct diet, it is necessary to provide animals with proper exercise. Piglets should be accustomed to walking gradually, starting from 1 hour of walking and increasing to 6-8 hours.

What should not be fed to pigs?

The possibility of harmful plants getting into the food of pigs should be completely excluded, the main ones being:

• spurge;
• pikulnik;
• nightshade black;
• cicuta;
• caustic buttercup.

In the case of using cotton cake, it must first be steamed in boiling water. When cooking vegetables, you should also adhere to some points:

• exclusively mature potatoes without sprouts are selected for feeding;
• it is better to cook potatoes until fully cooked;
• it is better to pour out the water in which the potatoes were boiled, as it can cause indigestion;
• beets should not be steamed in hot water for a long time, otherwise substances dangerous for pigs are formed in it.

In no case should you feed animals leaves of laurel or tea, throw away coffee grounds, skins from oranges, lemons or bananas. Such products contain substances harmful to the body of the pig.

Thus, a properly constructed diet is the key to good health and high productivity of the pig. Of course, it can be quite difficult for the owner of the farm to provide feeding that meets all these points. But the efforts, money and time spent on this will pay off handsomely, bringing considerable income to the pig farm or homestead.

Who eats acorns from wild and domestic animals, birds, you will learn in this article.

What animals eat acorns?

The acorn is an important nutritional element for many domestic and wild animals.

Boar eats acorns, he can find them even under the snow. Squirrels eat acorns and deer, roe deer, bears, martens and small rodents.

Mice not only feed on acorns, but also store them for the winter. Leaving them in their burrow, they can forget about them and thus contribute to the resettlement of oaks.

The hedgehog eats acorns, but prefers insects.

What pet eats acorns?

The pig eats acorns. Back in the 12th century, people noticed the addiction of these animals to acorns and began to breed them in oak forests, thereby dramatically increasing their income.

Collected and slightly dried acorns are given along with hay to rams and oxen. According to poultry farmers, acorn flour given to chickens increases their egg laying.

What bird eats acorns?

They eat acorns - woodpeckers, jays and nuthatches. Jay for the winter makes large stocks of acorns (about 4 kg). Thus, jays contribute to the resettlement of oaks.

Since pigs are omnivores, they can be raised using a wide variety of feed and food waste that is available in the backyard. Like other pets, pigs need protein for proper growth and development. It is important to remember that an excess of protein in the diet reduces the appetite and productivity of animals.

Carbohydrates are essential for building fat and maintaining a stable body temperature. However, the issuance of products with a high content of carbohydrates causes obesity in animals. It should also be borne in mind that fiber (one of the carbohydrates) is poorly digested and reduces the nutritional value of other foods. Various types of feed are used for feeding pigs, details of which we will provide below.

Most often, barley, oats and corn are used to feed pigs (Figure 1). They are very nutritious, they have a pleasant taste, and in the body of animals they are quickly digested and absorbed. Concentrates are high in starch and protein, but low in minerals, especially calcium.

Note: Barley can be fed to all individuals, regardless of age, since the beneficial substances of this grain crop are absorbed almost completely. In addition, barley, which is part of the diet of fattening animals, significantly improves the taste of fat and meat.

Oats contain more fat and fiber, so their nutritional value is slightly lower than that of barley. However, it is oats that are considered the best product for suckling queens, and young animals need to be given it only in a sifted form. It is better not to give oats to fattening individuals, as it worsens the quality of the product.

Corn contains a lot of fat and carbohydrates, but much less protein. However, due to its good digestibility, corn can be fed to all age groups. Before slaughter, corn should be excluded from the diet or significantly reduced in quantity, since this cereal adversely affects the quality of fat and meat.

Peas contain a lot of protein and improve the quality of meat products. Peas can be given to all age groups, but it is better to steam them first.

Figure 1. Grain concentrates: 1 - barley, 2 - oats, 3 - corn, 4 - peas

Feed of animal origin includes waste from dairy, fish and meat production. Whole cow's milk is used only for suckling piglets. For the nutrition of adult animals, skimmed milk, buttermilk and whey are used.

See also: do-it-yourself feeders and drinkers for pigs

Any dairy products have a positive effect on livestock productivity, as they contain a lot of proteins, vitamins, minerals and sugar. In addition, dairy industry products improve the taste of meat, so it is advisable to include them in the diet of animals intended for slaughter.

Meat and fish waste also saturates the body with useful substances. However, all such products must be thoroughly boiled before issuance, and at the end of fattening completely excluded from the diet so that the pork does not acquire an unpleasant odor.

In addition to the diet, you can include such products(picture 2):

• acorns have the same nutritional value as bran. They are fed raw, but in combination with succulent feed, as acorns can cause constipation. It is not recommended to feed suckling and pregnant queens with acorns (in the second half of pregnancy).
• Mushrooms are also a favorite product of pigs, as they contain a lot of protein.
• Silkworm pupae- a valuable source of protein for all age groups. The pupae are pre-boiled or dried for further grinding into flour.
• Food waste are the most common forage in household plots. You can use any waste that is left over from food processing and soap-free liquid.

Figure 2. What else can you feed pigs (from left to right): acorns, silkworm pupae, food waste

Food waste is thoroughly boiled and fed along with succulent feed. Waste from the home table can not be additionally prepared.

How much feed do you need per year

Before you start pigs in a private household, you need to consider what kind of feed you need to purchase, and how much feed you need for one individual per year. The main difficulty in acquiring concentrated feed.

Note: A healthy single uterus should eat approximately 2500 grams per day. feed, pregnant - 3500 gr. A lactating sow should eat especially well - 6 kg per day.

It is difficult to determine how much feed a pig needs per year in advance, since in addition to eating dry food, the development of each individual animal plays a role.

Also, during the reception of dry food, the role of water is important, especially in the summer. Therefore, animals should have free access to food and water.

Feed composition

It is difficult to determine which products are better to use, but in most cases, preference is given to compound feed, supplementing them with other products. Compound feed is a food product intended for animals that are bred at home or on farms. Nowadays, there are a large number of factories specializing in the manufacture of animal feed for pigs. When choosing feed, the age of the pig and the composition of the product are taken into account.

Note: It is possible to cook it at home with your own hands only if the farmer has access to a food base, as well as skills and knowledge in preparing various types of feed.

For self-preparation of compound feed, you should study the most popular recipes and choose the one suitable for an individual of a certain age. The main thing in cooking is to observe the proportion of ingredients.

When feeding piglets and fattening young animals, finely ground products are used. The consistency of such feed for small animals should be in the form of thick porridge and slightly warm, for better absorption by the body.

To obtain compound feed, the cereal is first crushed, then the remaining components are added and everything is mixed. Potatoes, peas and bread are additional components to the feed for small piglets.

See also: The most effective pig fattening

Adult animals are fed for slaughter, for this coarse grain feed is used. When kept on brood, then medium grinding is used for cooking. The finished product should have a consistency similar to liquid porridge. In this case, the grain must be crushed to a medium size. You can also mix in the premix.

Feed yeasting

Having determined how much food is needed for one individual, it is also important to properly prepare the feed for distribution.

Yeasting is the most suitable method of preparation. Using such feeds and the method of an individual approach to animals, a large weight gain can be obtained in fattening individuals (Figure 3).

Note: In such feeds, yeast and lactic acid bacteria multiply, which increase the palatability of the products. Yeast products are rich in B vitamins, protein, enzymes and vegetable insulin.

Prepare food in a separate ventilated room. With the systematic mixing of the mass with hands or mechanical mixers, the food is saturated with air, which contributes to yeast. An important role is played by the quality of products, temperature and acidity.

Foods with a high content of carbohydrates (barley, oats, corn, beets) are well yeasted. You can also add legumes (peas, vetch, etc.) and cake to them.

Figure 3. Feed yeasting principle

The starter method of yeast is recognized as the most practical. Its essence lies in the fact that before the yeast is propagated in advance, and then added to the feed.

To prepare the sourdough, warm water and yeast well diluted in water and passed through a sieve are poured into a box. They are mixed with water, and then food is poured into the box. The contents are kept for 6 hours, partially stirring. Then half of the starter is taken for yeast, and feed is added to the other half, after which they begin to give out livestock.

Vegetable feed for pigs

This group is especially important for rearing sows and young animals. Animals perfectly eat green clover, alfalfa and other leguminous plants. They are rich in protein, vitamins and minerals.

You can also use leafy greens, nettles and dandelions. They need to be crushed and mixed with concentrates, and the nettles must first be steamed. In summer, it is greens in combination with concentrates that form the basis of the diet.

Note: In winter, green fodder can be replaced with special silage and green grass, tubers, root crops, carrots and grass or hay meal (Figure 4).

Figure 4. Vegetable (green) feed: 1 - clover, 2 - dried nettle, 3 - tops, 4 - silage

Young leguminous plants can be dried to produce high quality hay, which is later milled into flour and fed in small quantities and without prior heat treatment, as this reduces the nutritional quality of the feed.

succulent feed

The best juicy food is potatoes, as they contain a lot of starch. However, potatoes must be boiled so that the toxic substance solanine is released from the vegetable. It gets into the water, so the liquid in which the potatoes were boiled cannot be used for further preparation of feed. If the diet is based specifically on potatoes, it must be supplemented with protein products. Examples of succulent feed are shown in Figure 5.

Figure 5. Types of succulent feed

Beets for feeding can be sugar and fodder. The best fattening results are achieved when the beets are supplemented with protein feeds. It is better to use sugar beet, as it is nutritionally superior to fodder. You can feed beets in raw chopped form along with tops, since heat treatment does not increase taste and nutritional qualities.

Carrots are also an excellent juicy food, as they contain a lot of carotene. Carrots can be used as a vitamin supplement for pregnant and lactating sows, suckling piglets and weaners. The author of the video will tell you some practical tips on preparing succulent feed for feeding.

Bran for pigs

This is the best food group in terms of nutritional properties, as they are balanced in accordance with the requirements of the animal organism (Figure 6).

Figure 6. Bran and compound feed

Compound feed for pigs - quantity, consumption

Feeding compound feed can significantly reduce labor costs. In addition, these products allow a large increase in live weight in a short time (Figure 7).

Since the use of compound feed belongs to the dry type of feeding, animals should be allowed to drink ad libitum. To do this, drinkers are installed indoors or on the range so that the livestock has free access to water at any time.

The composition of the feed is balanced. It contains all the necessary foods, vitamins and nutrients for the growth and development of animals. When buying compound feed, you need to focus not only on the age of the animal, but also on the type of fattening (meat, bacon or to fatty conditions).

Figure 7. Feed based feed ration

The calculation of the daily rate of feed is carried out according to the age and physiological state of the animals:

• Piglets up to one and a half months give from 15 to 550 grams per day;
• Older piglets (up to three months old) the rate of compound feed is gradually increased to one and a half kilograms per day;
• Single sows 2.5 kg of feed is given per day;
• Pregnant pigs you need up to 3.5 kg of compound feed per day;
• pigs for fattening consume from 1800 to 3300 grams of feed per day.

The only disadvantage of using compound feed as a staple food is its high cost. But if you have the necessary ingredients and diets, you can cook feed with your own hands. From the video you will learn how to make feed for pigs with your own hands.

The quality of pork directly depends on what pigs are fed in pig farms. Due to the physiological and anatomical features of the stomach, their body absorbs concentrated feed better, and food with a high fiber content is digested very poorly. For the same reasons, the animal prefers moist food. Thus, the requirements for raising and feeding piglets are based primarily on their needs. Let's find out what pigs eat.

Varieties and classification of feed

How to properly feed pigs in an industrial environment depends on the breed, age of the pigs, as well as on the ultimate goal of raising them. Pig breeding occupies the first place in the meat sector of the world animal husbandry. Next, we will analyze what you can feed the pigs and how many times a day it is better to do this.

All feeds are conditionally divided into three groups. The first can be attributed to those that contribute to obtaining high-quality juicy meat with a layer of thin fat. On the other hand, the predominance of these products in the diet favorably affects the fat to be dense and grainy. These include:

• cereals, legumes;
• dairy;
• zucchini, juicy root vegetables, potatoes, carrots, pumpkin;
• alfalfa, clover, amaranth, nettle, beet tops, cabbage leaves;
• meat and fish leftovers;
• bean dust.

The second category of feed is what pigs eat almost every day, but the content of these products in the daily diet should be a maximum of 50%. Feeding corn, rye and wheat bran, and buckwheat will help to give the pig's body the energy it needs. However, these components do not contribute to the quality of pork.

Cake, soybean crops, oats piglet can eat well. But this worsens the quality of the meat, so the pig should be fed with such products only at a young age before the start of the fattening stage.

Types, types of feeding

We sorted out how to feed pigs and identified feed groups. Now let's find out how to feed these animals, because they produce liquid, dry and wet feeding.

Liquid feed for pigs must be prepared from various components, which are additionally boiled or used raw. Juicy root crops in the form of zucchini, rutabaga, beets, as well as gourds, pumpkin are crushed and introduced into the mix. They do not need to be subjected to thorough heat treatment.

It is strongly not recommended to feed pigs with raw potatoes and their peels, since the pig's body does not digest such products. Moreover, water from boiled potatoes must be disposed of.

Grain components are carefully crushed. Often used germinated grain, which is pre-soaked. Waste food that you eat, various cleanings, meat and fish leftovers are added to the mix. For more information about the preparation of mash can be found in the article "Feeding a pig at home." Eating liquid and wet food is exactly what guinea pigs love.

Dry feeding is now most often used by large pig farms. Why this is so can be found below.

Dry feed in pig diet

With a dry type of nutrition, feed for pigs is specially developed, enriched with vitamins and minerals.

Pig farms use dry feed that does not cause fermentation inside the intestines of pigs. Such food is easily digested by the pig body, providing a quick set of live weight. In addition, dry residues and what a herd of pigs eat at industrial complexes do not sour or deteriorate.

Eating dry feed saves a lot of time and effort. Pigs eat their food well with water. In addition, the feces of animals with such a diet do not have the characteristic smell of ammonia, and the resulting manure quickly decomposes into organic components, which become an excellent fertilizer.

The basis of the dry diet is combined feed, consisting of cereal grains, cake, bran, hay. Such a diet for feeding pigs is enhanced by special complexes of food additives and nutrients. This allows you to diversify the diet of pigs.

Thus, feeding pigs with dry food should be comprehensive and balanced, since piglets need good nutrition at different stages of growth and development.

Importance of biological feed

In addition, for good nutrition in the preparation of mash, all kinds of cleanings are added to their composition.

Keeping animals in the warm season allows you to organize their walking. At the same time, the pig is happy to independently find what to eat, based on what the body requires. Considering how pigs eat healthy food, it is recommended to prepare hay of various field plants for the winter, to prepare silage from succulent products. In addition, the feed of pigs during industrial cultivation is constantly enriched with vitamins, which contain modern ready-made balanced biological additives. The article "Use of premixes for pigs" contains all the additional information.

Features of the natural nutrition of pigs

In nature, the diet of wild boar is very rich. Animals eat almost any food they find. The pig always ate larvae, insects, worms, small birds and animals, shellfish, fish. Therefore, there is no doubt whether pigs eat meat.

Pigs in the forest also prefer to eat forest mushrooms, acorns, berries, roots, nuts, herbs. They often go to vegetable gardens, orchards, where they feed on oat grains, pumpkins, peas, gourds, and root crops. In addition, wild boars often eat even leaves.

Domestic pigs are happy to eat food rich in animal proteins. A hungry female can eat her litter, so a lactating sow needs to be fed heavily. Before slaughter during fasting, pigs also begin to eat even their own excrement, finding nutrients in the feces.

When rearing meat, a pig needs a protein diet. It is useful to give beef, chicken meat, offal, fish in the form of food residues for the qualitative formation of the muscle mass of a piglet. It is the proteins that determine the quality of pork with layers of meat.

Chestnut fruits and acorns as valuable feed components

Various additives for pig food are not food in the full sense of the word, but they have a positive effect on the growth and development of the piglet. Chestnut fruits and acorns are valuable means of forage enrichment, which surpass many grain crops in terms of protein and fat content.

For example, chestnuts in the amount of 1 kg contain 40 g of protein, 4.8 g of calcium, 1.5 g of phosphorus. At the same time, acorns ripen and fall to the ground in mid-autumn. They are easy to collect, grind and store. Such products should not show signs of rot or mold, as this may adversely affect the health of the pigs.

By the way, chestnuts contain a lot of tannins, which have a fixing effect on the digestive system of pigs. That is why they should be given with succulent feed. Fodder beets, various greens, oatmeal, cereal bran are perfect for these purposes.

The acorn is the basis of feeding the Iberian pigs, which are grown to produce the famous jamón (cured ham).

Thus, chestnuts and acorns are very useful to give to piglets. It is important to clearly understand how to properly feed the animals. Before adding to feed, these fruits are recommended to be soaked in cold water for two days or fried and then chopped.

Chestnuts should be introduced into the pig's diet gradually, starting with 800 g per day. A maximum of 2 kg of this product can be fed per day. The advantage of such feeding will be granular dense fat, high-quality meat.

Benefits of using sprouted grains in a pig diet

In the conditions of pig farms, the most profitable methods of feeding pigs are used, which allow reducing the consumption of concentrated feed, the cost of purchasing vitamin preparations. Grain sprouting is the simplest method of fortification, optimization of feed mixtures.

Sprouted grains have a sweet taste and are eaten with pleasure by small piglets. Due to this, their digestive system develops faster, immunity is formed.

Sprouted grain is a valuable nutritious feed containing vitamins C, E, B, carotene, important trace elements, amino acids. In addition, it is far superior to ordinary wheat in terms of protein concentration.

When barley grains germinate, their enzymes convert complex substances into simpler elements that are easily absorbed. The method of feeding piglets with feed using germinated grain has a positive effect on all the functions of a growing organism.

If you feed young pigs from 4 to 7 months with such feeds, then the volume of high-quality meat with a layer of thin fat increases. At the same time, daily feeding norms make up 10% of the total diet. That is why this type of feed is exactly what it is better to feed meat breed pigs to obtain quality products.

Fermentation residues as an important part of the diet

Beer grains (thick) contain more water, so it is poorly stored.

On the other hand, concentrated feed mixtures are conveniently mixed with liquid brewer's grains. Adult sows are recommended 10-15 liters of this liquid per day, and young animals - 2-4 liters. To improve feed quality when used, this additive is dried.

In this form, the spent grains are suitable for long-term storage.

In order for granular lard to be with layers of soft meat, beer grains should also be added to the diet of pigs during fattening in the amount of 0.6-1.0 kg per head per day.

If animals eat their food without appetite, then by treating it with yeast and brewer's grains, it can be aroused, and after slaughter, good meat and fat are obtained.

However, such substances contain very few minerals. That is why it is recommended to give limestone, chalk, rapeseed meal to piglets in parallel. Dry brewer's yeast contains up to 50% of well-digestible protein, a lot of vitamins, so it's good for pigs to eat them. The feed mixtures processed by them help to improve the digestion of animals, the quality of meat products. This explains why piglets need such substances.

Useful properties of popular feeds

Above, we talked about whether it is possible to feed pigs with potato peels and the root crop itself. We do not recommend including it in the diet in its raw form. We also note oats, which are inferior to barley in nutritional properties, but they are sometimes given to suckling sows, for some reason considering it useful.

But at the fattening stage, this is something that cannot be fed to pigs due to the deterioration of the quality of the meat. Peas, rapeseed, meat residues are assigned the role of protein carriers, so they improve the quality of pork. The use of rapeseed meal gives the body calcium, phosphorus, magnesium, copper, zinc. Those are good reasons to include it on the menu.

Among the things that pigs eat with pleasure is corn. Its energy content is comparable to that of sugar beet, so it is important for the growth of young animals.

Feed the pigs properly when rearing and eat the tastiest pork. A table will help you create the right diet, giving daily feed rates for a piglet weighing 50 kg:

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It has long been calculated that even at home, investments in the construction of premises, the purchase of sows, the costs of caring for and feeding pigs pay off very quickly. A sow's litter averages about 15 heads. Fattening lasts about a year. Therefore, already after 12 months, more than ten adult full-fledged piglets can be obtained from one sow.

To achieve the best results, special attention must be paid to the diet, quantity and quality of feed and special additives. For successful pig breeding, you need to know how to properly feed pigs and what.

Feed used in pig breeding

Cereals

A huge proportion of the diet of pigs falls on dry feed, in particular, on cereals. And this is no coincidence. They contain the right carbohydrates, vegetable proteins and fiber, so necessary for the excellent quality of the product.

1. Barley. The most useful cereal, feed for pigs, which is absorbed by them by almost 90%. In the diet, it occupies up to 70% of the feed composition and is suitable for feeding animals of all ages. Its percentage in the feed is directly proportional to the quality of meat and fat.
2. Corn. It is also almost completely digested and absorbed when fattening pigs of all age groups. It contains more fats and carbohydrates than barley, but other nutrients, in particular protein, are much less, which adversely affects the quality of fat and meat. That is why the content of corn in the feed at the end of feeding should be significantly reduced.
3. Oats. It contains more fat and fiber than in other cereals, therefore it is recommended for feeding young animals, suckers and suckling queens. Its low price is also attractive. For animals in the last fattening period, for the best quality of pork, it is recommended to add oats mixed with barley to the diet.
4. Peas. The steamed product is an excellent food for all age groups, as it contains a huge amount of complete proteins. Its presence in the diet has a beneficial effect on the quality of meat.

succulent feed

Potatoes are excellent food for pigs

At home, in central Russia, it is a staple food not only in the human diet. It has always been believed that the body of a pig is as close as possible to the human. Therefore, just like people, a raw green vegetable in the diet is dangerous because of the presence of the poisonous substance corned beef in it. It can be neutralized by boiling the potatoes in water and then draining the broth. In addition, the boiled product is much better absorbed by the body. In total, in the diet of animals, it should contain 20-40% of the total feed, depending on the type of pig fattening.

Feed and sugar beets

20-30% of pig feed should consist of this vegetable. Moreover, sugar beet is 2 times more nutritious than fodder and is used for fattening pigs along with tops. Both varieties are fed crushed raw to all age groups of animals. Cooking beets is not recommended, as heat treatment significantly reduces the content of vitamins and other nutrients.

Carrots - a storehouse of vitamins

Green feed

Protein, vitamins and minerals - all this is fully contained in the green mass of many plants. Useful substances are stored in dried plants, in hay. For this type of fattening pigs, you can use the tops of beets, peas, vetch, clover. Dandelion, baby quinoa, alfalfa and wood lice are perfect for fattening pigs both fresh and dry. Nettle for this mixture is recommended to pour boiling water over. The price of green fodder is minimal, and the benefits are huge.

Feed of animal origin

Fish and meat waste

Pigs, like humans, are omnivores. When fattening, they take a lot of vitamins, proteins and minerals from animal food: meat, fish and products of their processing. The owners of pig farms successfully increase the productivity of all livestock groups, regardless of the type of fattening of pigs, feeding them meat and fish waste, pre-chopping and boiling them well.

It has long been noticed that such animal food in the diet greatly impairs the quality of the resulting fat and meat, causing an unpleasant odor, therefore, it is recommended that shortly before the end of the fattening of pigs, stop adding it to the mixture.

Dairy

This animal product in the diet has a great effect on the quality of pork, so it is recommended to use it not only for fattening sucklings, but also for fattening piglets. Dairy products include: milk, whey, buttermilk and skimmed milk.

Combined silo

All listed types of feed can be used in pig breeding in various combinations. The pig fattening technology is based, among other things, on the selection of different nutrition schemes. The best and most effective dish for any pig is, of course, prepared from several ingredients, combisilos. There are many recipes for preparing this delicious and healthy pig food:

• potatoes (tubers) - 4 parts, clover (otava) - 3 parts, carrots (with tops) - 1.5 parts, cabbage leaf - 1.5 parts;
• carrots (with tops) - 2 parts, sugar or fodder beets - 5 parts, legumes (green mass) - 2 parts, hay flour - 1 part;
• corn (cobs) - 6 parts, pumpkin - 3 parts, legumes (green mass) - 1 part;
• potatoes (tubers) - 4.5 parts, vegetable waste (assorted) - 5 parts, grain waste - 0.5 parts;
• carrots (with tops) - 5 parts, sugar or fodder beet - 3 parts, aftertaste of legumes - 1.5 parts, herbal flour - 0.5 parts;
• sugar beets - 4 parts, potatoes (tubers) - 3 parts, clover aftermath - 3 parts;
• corn (milk cobs) - 8 parts, carrots - 2 parts.

All root crops are harvested for fattening in raw form, except for potatoes. It is better absorbed after steaming. Depending on the age groups, the purpose of growing, there are different types of fattening pigs, and hence the menu.

Vitamin and mineral supplements

What are premixes for?

In order to carry out fast fattening of pigs, after the first week of life, special additives are added to the feed for a small piglet. With their help, when fattening, its weight in just 60 days increases four times. Decades ago, this was only a dream. More recently, scientists presented their discovery to livestock breeders - specially developed vitamin and mineral complex feed supplements.

Premixes for pigs can significantly increase fattening weight gain, palatability and livestock viability. They strengthen the immune system and improve the nutritional value of pork. With their help, the fattening time is significantly reduced, which provides significant savings for the entrepreneur, reducing the price and cost of the product.

Composition of feed additives

There are various complex feed additives for pigs of different groups. They differ in the number of components and their percentage. Almost all feed additives for pigs contain: phosphorus, magnesium, sodium, lysine, threonine, manganese, iron, cobalt, copper, zinc, selenium. In addition, they include vitamins: A, D3, E, B6, B12, nicotinic acid, pantothenic acid. Each kit necessarily contains a small amount of antioxidants to extend the shelf life of the supplement.

Number of additives

There are different feeding rates for pigs of different groups. All premixes that go on sale have a different price and their own composition, designed to be added to the feed of a separate group. The instructions for use describe the components in detail, and also tell you how much to measure into the feed in each individual case. For example, at home, for pigs from 60 kg before slaughter, it is enough to add only 1% of the premix to the total feed mass. For pregnant and lactating sows, this figure will increase to 3%. For fattening piglets weighing from 10 to 60 kg, you need to prepare 2.5% of a vitamin and mineral supplement.

The success of pig production depends on feed and feed additives in the diet. But to a greater extent, it depends on the literacy and enlightenment of the farmer who is engaged.