Pigs on the farm
A sow and her pigletsPigs can be farmed as free range, being allowed to wander around a village, kept in fields, or tethered in a simple shelter. In developed countries, farming has moved away from traditional pig farming and pigs are now typically intensively farmed.
Today, pig farms are much larger than in the past, with most large-scale farms housing 5,000 or more pigs in climate-controlled buildings. With 100 million pigs slaughtered each year, these efficiencies deliver affordable meat for consumers and larger profits for producers.
Individual farm management focuses on housing facilities, feeding and ventilation systems, temperature and environmental controls and the economic viability of their operations. Just as producers have to determine profit margins and types of facilities and equipment for their farm, they must also find the practices that best fit their specific situation. Some procedures and treatments are known to stress the animals and producers should consider the animals' welfare, health and management in correspondence with accepted husbandry skills.
how to start a pig farm
The first thing you have to do is get a suitable place for your pigs' pen, it has to be spacious and well ventilated because pigs don't have sweat glands so they need the ventilation to keep them cool, pigs needs space so they can move around but not too much so their muscle tissue won't develop too much, therefore making their meat tough.
A good pen should be 10 by 10 feet of moving space and 5 by 5 feet of eating space. Pigs produce foul smell so try and locate your pen in an isolated area.
Secondly, check the internet or your neighbourhood for places and people that sell piglets, buy healthy piglets ranging from the age of four weeks and eight weeks old.
Thirdly, you must also provide a strong and seperate food and water trough, if possible let it be a galvanized iron so its easy to clean.
Now you have to get a good source of NUTRITION, you must have a regular source of food for your pigs. This is kind of easy because pigs eat anything that is edible, but make sure you boil any scrap food you give them to prevent them from bacteria and diseases. Mix their feed with something full of nutrients like vitamins and minerals. You can go the natural way and give them lots of fruits and vegetables. Some prefer commercial supplements.
Water is essential in keeping your pigs healthy, pigs need water to stay hydrated especially since they don't sweat, so provide a source of water where they can wash themselves or even stay in it to keep themselves cool, you can change the water regularly if necessary.
Pig manure is one of the problems if you’re keeping pigs for meat or breeding. Aside from the annoying smell, you need to manually clean their pens to get rid of the manure. More often than not, their drinking water will have some waste in them too. However, this can be a welcome annoyance. Find someone who is willing to buy pig manure from you. This is valuable in crop farming as they are excellent fertilizers. You can earn a little extra from something a bit disgusting.
Another important thing to know on how to start pig farming to generate money is determine the possible market. For huge pig farms, there won’t be much of a problem. Usually, large companies will be the one to approach you to see if your pigs are of high quality so they can start purchasing from you. You should be wary of the competition, though. With the high demand for quality pork, more and more people are entering the industry. You will still need to advertise and approach the companies if necessary. For small-time pig farmers, your market will circle around your neighbourhood or community. In any case, you must be aware of the standard selling price of pork cuts or whole pigs to avoid unscrupulous people.
The biggest secrets on how to start a pig farm is to have the determination to succeed and to have ample knowledge on the subject. And knowledge? you already have, so go out there and make some money for yourself.
