Swine have generally been considered "unclean," creatures of gross habits, &c.; but these epithets are unjust: they are not, in their nature, the unclean, gross, insensible brutes that mankind suppose them. If they are unclean, they got their first lessons from the lords of creation, by being confined in narrow, filthy sties—often deprived of light, and pure air, by being shut up in dark, underground cellars, to wallow in their own excrement; at other times, confined beneath stables, dragging out their existence in a perfect hotbed of corruption—respiring the emanations from the dung and urine of other animals; and often compelled to satisfy the cravings of hunger by partaking of whatever comes in their way. All manner of filth, including decaying and putrid vegetable and animal substances, are considered good enough for the hogs. And as long as they get such kind of trash, and no other, they must eat it; the cravings of hunger must be satisfied. The Almighty has endowed them with powerful organs of digestion; and as long as there is any thing before them that the gastric fluids are capable of assimilating, although it be disgusting to their very natures, rather than suffer of hunger, they will partake of it. Much of the indigestible food given to swine deranges the stomach, and destroys the powers of assimilation, or, in other words, leaves it in morbid state. There is then a constant sensation of hunger, a longing for anyand every thing within their reach. Does the reader wonder, then, at their morbid tastes? What will man do under the same circumstances? Suppose him to be the victim of dyspepsia or indigestion. In the early stages, he is constantly catering to the appetite. At one time, he longs for acids; at another, alkalies; now, he wants stimulants; then, refrigerants, &c. Again: what will not a man do to satisfy the cravings of hunger? Will he not eat his fellow, and drink of his blood? And all to satisfy the craving of an empty stomach.
We know from experience that, if young pigs are daily washed, and kept on clean cooked food, they will not eat the common city "swill;" they eat it only when compelled by hunger. When free from the control of man, they show as much sagacity in the selection of their food as any other animals; and, indeed, more than some, for they seldom get poisoned, like the ox, in mistaking noxious for wholesome food. The Jews, as well as our modern physiologists, consider the flesh of swine unfit for food. No doubt some of it is, especially that reared under the unfavorable circumstances alluded to above. But good home-fed pork, kept on good country produce, and not too fat, is just as good food for man as the flesh of oxen or sheep, notwithstanding the opinion of our medical brethren to the contrary. Their flesh has long been considered as one of the principal causes of scrofula, and other diseases too numerous to mention: without doubt this is the case. But that good, healthy pork should produce such results we are unwilling to admit. We force them to load their stomachs with the rotten offal of large cities, and thus derange their whole systems; they become loaded with fat; their systems abound in morbific fluids; their lungs become tuberculous; their livers enlarge; calcerous deposits or glandular disorganization sets in. Take into consideration their inactive habits; not voluntary, for instinct teaches them, when at liberty, to run, jump, and gambol, by which the excess of carbon is thrown off. Depriving them of exercise may be profitable to the breeder, but it induces a state of plethora. The cellular structures of such an animalare distended to their utmost capacity, preventing the full and free play of the vital machinery, obstructing the natural outlets (excrementitious vessels) on the external surface, and retaining in the system morbid materials that are positively injurious. At the present time, there is on exhibition in Boston a woman, styled the "fat girl;" she weighs four hundred and ninety-five pounds. A casual observer could detect nothing in her external appearance that denoted disease; yet she is liable to die at any moment from congestion of the brain, lungs, or liver. Any one possessing a knowledge of physiology would immediately pronounce her to be in a pathological state. Hence, the laws of the animal economy being uniform, we cannot arrive at any other conclusion in reference to the same plethoric state in animals of an inferior order.
Professor Liebig tells us that excess of carbon, in the form of food, cannot be employed to make a part of any organ; it must be deposited in the cellular tissue in the form of tallow or oil. This is the whole secret of fattening.
At every period of animal life, when there occurs a disproportion between the carbon of the food and the inspired oxygen, the latter being deficient,—which must happen beneath stables and in ill-constructed hog-sties,—fat must be formed.
Experience teaches us that in poultry the maximum of fat is obtained by preventing them from taking exercise, and by a medium temperature. These animals, in such circumstances, may be compared to a plant possessing in the highest degree the power of converting all food into parts of its own structure. The excess of the constituents of blood forms flesh and other organized tissues, while that of starch, sugar, &c., is converted into fat. When animals are fed on food destitute of nitrogen, only certain parts of their structure increase in size. Thus, in a goose fattened in the manner alluded to, the liver becomes three or four times larger than in the same animal when well fed, with free motion; while we cannot say that the organized structure of the liver is thereby increased. The liver of a goose fed in the ordinaryway is firm and elastic; that of the imprisoned animal is soft and spongy. The difference consists in a greater or less expansion of its cells, which are filled with fat. Hence, when fat accumulates and free motion is prevented, the animal is in a diseased state. Now, many tons of pork are eaten in this diseased state, and it communicates disease to the human family: they blame the pork, when, in fact, the pork raisers are often more to blame. The reader is probably aware that some properties of food pass into the living organism being assimilated by the digestive organs, and produce an abnormal state. For example, the faculty of New York have, time and again, testified to the destructive tendency of milk drawn from cows fed in cities, without due exercise and ordinary care in their management, giving it as their opinion that most of the diseases of children are brought about by its use. If proof were necessary to establish our position, we could cite it in abundance. A single case, which happened in our own family, will suffice. A liver, taken from an apparently healthy sow, (yet abounding in fat, and weighing about two hundred pounds,) was prepared in the usual manner for dinner. We observed, however, previous to its being cooked, that it was unusually large; yet there was no appearance of disease about it; it was quite firm. Each one partook of it freely. Towards night, and before partaking of any other kind of food, we were all seized with violent pains in the head, sickness at the stomach, and delirium: this continued for several hours, when a diarrhœa set in, through which process the offending matter was liberated, and each one rapidly recovered; pretty well convinced, however, that we had had a narrow escape, and that the liver was the sole cause of our misfortune.
Hence the proper management of swine becomes a subject of great importance; for, if more attention were paid to it, there would be less disease in the human family. When we charge these animals with being "unclean creatures of gross habits," let us consider whether we have not, in some measure, contributed to make them what they are.
Again: the hog has been termed "insensible," destitute of all those finer feelings that characterize brutes of a higher order. Yet we have "learned pigs," &c.—a proof that they can be taught something. A celebrated writer tells us that no animal has a greater sympathy for those of his own kind than the hog. The moment one of them gives a signal, all within hearing rush to his assistance. They have been known to gather round a dog that teased them and kill him on the spot; and if a male and female be enclosed in a sty when young, and be afterwards separated, the female will decline from the instant her companion is removed, and will probably die—perhaps of what would be termed, in the human family, a broken heart!
In the Island of Minorca, hogs are converted into beasts of draught; a cow, a sow, and two young horses, have been seen yoked together, and of the four the sow drew the best.
A gamekeeper of Sir H. Mildmay actually broke a sow to find game, and to back and stand.
Swine are frequently troubled with cutaneous diseases, which produce an itching sensation; hence their desire to wallow and roll in the mire and dirt. The lying down in wet, damp places relieves the irritation of the external surface, and cools their bodies. This mud and filth, however, in which they are often compelled to wallow, is by no means good or wholesome for them.
"The hog," says Professor Low, "is subject to remarkable changes of form and characters, according to the situations in which he is placed. When these characters assume a certain degree of permanence, a breed or variety is formed; and there is none of the domestic animals which more easily receives the characters we desire to impress upon it. Thisarises from its rapid powers of increase, and the constancy with which the characters of the parents are reproduced in the progeny.There is no kind of live stock that can be so easily improved by the breeder, and so quickly rendered suitable for the purposes required.
"The body is large in proportion to the limbs, or, in other words, the limbs are short in proportion to the body; the extremities are free from coarseness; the chest is broad, and the trunk round. Possessing these characters, the hog never fails to arrive at early maturity, and with a smaller consumption of food than when he possesses a different conformation.
"The wild boar, which was undoubtedly the progenitor of all the European varieties, and of the Chinese breed, was formerly a native of the British Islands, and very common in the forests until the time of the civil wars in that country."
We are told, that the wild hog "is now spread over the temperate and warmer parts of the old continent and its adjacent islands. His color varies with age and climate, but is generally a dusky brown, with black spots and streaks. His skin is covered with coarse hairs and bristles, intersected with soft wool, and with coarser and longer bristles upon the neck and spine, which he erects when in anger. He is a very bold and powerful creature, and becomes more fierce and indocile with age. From the form of his teeth, he is chiefly herbivorous in his habits, and delights in roots, which his acute sense of smell and touch enables him to discover beneath the surface. He also feeds on animal substances, such as worms and larvæ, which he grubs up from the earth, the eggs of birds, small reptiles, the young of animals, and occasionally carrion; he even attacks venomous snakes with impunity. In the natural state, the female produces a litter but once a year;[21]andin much smaller numbers than when domesticated. She usually carries her young about four months.
"In the wild state, the hog has been known to live more than thirty years; but when domesticated, he is usually slaughtered before he is two years old. When the wild hog is tamed, it undergoes the following amongst other changes in its conformation: the ears become less movable, not being required to collect distant sounds; the formidable tusks of the male diminish, not being necessary for self-defence; the muscles of the neck become less developed, from not being so much exercised as in the natural state; the head becomes more inclined, the back and loins are lengthened, the body rendered more capacious, the limbs shorter and less muscular; and anatomy proves that the stomach and intestinal canals have also become proportionately extended along with the form of the body. The habits and instincts of the animal change; it becomes diurnal in its habits, not choosing the night for its search of food; is more insatiate in its appetite, and the tendency to obesity increases.
"The male, forsaking its solitary habits, becomes gregarious, and the female produces her young more frequently, and in larger numbers. With its diminished strength, and its want of active motion, the animal loses its desire for liberty.
"The true hog does not appear to be indigenous to America, but was taken over by the early voyagers from the old world, and it is now spread and multiplied throughout the continent.
"The first settlers of North America and the United States carried with them the swine of the parent country, and a few of the breeds still retain traces of the old English character. From its nature and habits, the hog was the most profitable and useful of all the animals bred by the early settlers in the distant clearings. It was his surest resource during the first years of toil and hardship."
Their widely-extended foreign commerce afforded theAmericans opportunity of procuring the varieties from China, Africa, and other countries. The large consumption of pork in the United States, and the facilities for disposing of it abroad, will probably cause more attention to be paid to the principles of breeding, rearing, feeding, &c. The American farmers are doing good service in this department, and any attempt on their part to improve the quality of pork ought to meet with a corresponding encouragement from the community. We have no doubt that many stock-raisers find their profits increase in proportion to the care bestowed in rearing. Here is an example: A Mr. Hallock, of the town of Coxsackie, has a sow which raised forty pigs within a year, which sold for $275,—none of them being kept over nine months. Mr. Little, of Poland, Ohio, states, in the Cultivator, that he has "a barrow three years old, a full-blood Berkshire, which will now weigh nearly 1000 pounds, live weight. He was weighed on the 3d of October, and then brought down 880; since which he has improved rapidly, and will doubtless reach the above figures. I have had this breed for seven yearspure,—descended from hogs brought from Albany and Buffalo, and a boar imported by Mr. Fahnestock, of Pittsburg, Pa., from England, (the latter a very large animal.) The stock have all been large and very profitable—weighing, at seven to ten months old, from 250 to 300 pounds. Several individuals have weighed over 400, and the sire of this present one reached 750. This is, however, much the largest I have yet raised."
[21]In the domesticated state, the sow is often permitted to have two and even three litters in a year. This custom is very pernicious; it debilitates the mother, overworks all parts of the living machinery, and being in direct opposition to the laws of their being, their progeny must degenerate. Then, again, let the reader take into consideration the fact that members of the same litter impregnate each other, in the same ratio, and he cannot but come to a conclusion that we have long since arrived at—that these practices are among the chief causes of deterioration.
[21]In the domesticated state, the sow is often permitted to have two and even three litters in a year. This custom is very pernicious; it debilitates the mother, overworks all parts of the living machinery, and being in direct opposition to the laws of their being, their progeny must degenerate. Then, again, let the reader take into consideration the fact that members of the same litter impregnate each other, in the same ratio, and he cannot but come to a conclusion that we have long since arrived at—that these practices are among the chief causes of deterioration.
Dr. Gunther observes, that "the robust constitution of the pig causes it to be less liable to fall sick than oxen and sheep. It would be still less liable to disease, if persons manifested more judgment in the choice of the animals to be reared, and if more care were shown in the matter. Withreference to the latter point, it is very true that the voracity of the pig urges it to eat every thing it meets; but to keep it in a state of health, it is, notwithstanding, necessary to restrict its regimen to certain rules. The animal which it is proposed to fatten should remain under the roof, and receive good food there, whilst the others may be sent out for the greater part of the year, care being taken to avoid fields that are damp and marshy, and that the pigs be preserved from the dew. It is also of importance that they should not be driven too hard during warm days.
"There are two other points which deserve to be taken into consideration, if we wish swine to thrive: these are, daily exercise in the open air whenever the weather permits, and cleanliness in the sty. Constant confinement throws them into what may be called a morbid state, which renders their flesh less wholesome for man. The manner in which the animal evinces its joy when set at liberty proves sufficiently how disagreeable confinement is to it. A very general prejudice prevails, viz., that dung and filth do not injure swine; this opinion, however, is absurd."
The falling off in flesh, or wasting away, of swine is in most cases owing to derangement in the digestive organs. The cure consists in restoring the tone of these organs. We commence the treatment by putting the animal on a boiled diet, consisting of bran, meal, or any wholesome vegetable production. The following tonic and diffusible stimulant will complete the cure:—
Powdered golden seal,equal parts.Powdered ginger,equal parts.
Dose, a tea-spoonful, repeated night and morning.
When loss in condition is accompanied with cough and difficulty of breathing, mix, in addition to the above, a few kernels of garlic with the food. The drink should consist of pure water. Should the cough prove troublesome, take a tea-spoonful of fir balsam, and the same quantity of honey; to be given night and morning, either in the usual manner, or it may be stirred into the food while hot.
The symptoms are too well known to need any description. It is generally caused by plethora, yet it may exist in an hereditary form.
Treatment.—Feed with due care, and put the animal in a well-ventilated and clean situation; give a bountiful supply of valerian tea, and sprinkle a small quantity of scraped horseradish in the food; or give
Powdered assafœtida,1 ounce.Powdered capsicum,1 tea-spoonful.Table salt,1 table-spoonful.
Mix. Give half a tea-spoonful daily.
Causes.—Exposure, wallowing in filth, &c.
Symptoms.—It is recognized by a muscular rigidity of the whole system. The appetite is impaired, and the animal does not leave its sty willingly.
Treatment.—Keep the animal on a boiled diet, which should be given to him warm. Remove the cause by avoiding exposure and filth, and give a dose of the following:
Powdered sulphur,equal parts.Powdered sassafras,equal parts.Powdered cinnamon,equal parts.
Dose, half a tea-spoonful, to be given in warm gruel. If this does not give immediate relief, dip an old cloth in hot water, (of a proper temperature,) and fold it round the animal's body. This may be repeated, if necessary, until the muscular system is relaxed. The animal should be wiped dry, and placed in a warm situation, with a good bed of straw.
This disease is very common, yet is often overlooked.
Symptoms.—It may be known by eruptions on the belly, ears, tongue, or eyelids. Before the eruption appears, the animal is drowsy, the eyes are dull, and there is sometimes loss of appetite, with vomiting. On the other hand, if the disease shall have receded towards the internal organs, its presence can only be determined by the general disturbance of the digestive organs, and the appearance of a few eruptions beneath the tongue.
Treatment.—Remove the animal from its companions to a warm place, and keep it on thin gruel. Give a tea-spoonful of sulphur daily, together with a drink of bittersweet tea. The object is to invite action to the surface, and maintain it there. If the eruption does not reappear on the surface, rub it with the following liniment:—
Take one ounce of oil of cedar; dissolve in a wine-glassof alcohol; then add half a pint of new rum and a tea-spoonful of sulphur.
Almost all the diseases of the skin may be treated in the same manner.
Causes.—Sudden changes in temperature, unclean sties, want of pure air, and imperfect light.
Treatment.—Keep the animal on thin gruel, and allow two tea-spoonfuls of cream of tartar per day. Wash the eyes with an infusion of marshmallows, until a cure is effected.
Some animals are covered with vermin, which even pierce the skin, and sometimes come out by the mouth, nose, and eyes.
Symptoms.—The animal is continually rubbing and scratching itself, or burrowing in the dirt and mire.
Treatment.—First wash the body with a strong lie of wood ashes or weak saleratus water, then with an infusion of lobelia. Mix a tea-spoonful of sulphur, and the same quantity of powdered charcoal, in the food daily.
This disease is somewhat analogous to scarlet fever. It makes its appearance in the form of red pustules on the back and belly, which gradually extend to the whole body. The external remedy is:—
Powdered bloodroot,half an ounce.Boiling vinegar,1 pint.
When cool, it should be rubbed on the external surface.
The diet should consist of boiled vegetables, coarse meal, &c., with a small dose of sulphur every night.
Symptoms.—The animal is sad and depressed, the appetite fails, respiration is performed with difficulty, and the belly swells.
Treatment.—Keep the animal on a light, nutritive diet, and give a handful of juniper berries, or cedar buds, daily. If these fail, give a table-spoonful of fir balsam daily.
Symptoms.—Occasional fits of coughing, accompanied with a mucous discharge from the nose and mouth.
Causes.—Exposure to cold and damp weather.
Treatment.—Give a liberal allowance of gruel made with powdered elm or marshmallows, and give a tea-spoonful of balsam copaiba, or fir balsam, every night. The animal must be kept comfortably warm.
Spasmodic and flatulent colic requires antispasmodics and carminatives, in the following form:—
Powdered caraway seeds,1 tea-spoonful.Powdered assafœtida,one third of a tea-spoonful.
To be given at a dose in warm water, and repeated at the expiration of an hour, provided relief is not obtained.
For the treatment of this malady, see divisionSheep, articleScours.
This makes its appearance suddenly. The animal, having remained in a passive and stupid state, suddenly appears much disturbed, to such a degree that it makes irregular movements, strikes its head against every thing it meets, scrapes with its feet, places itself quite erect alongside of the sty, bites any thing in its way, and frequently whirls itself round, after which it suddenly becomes more tranquil.
Treatment.—Give half an ounce of Rochelle salts, in a pint of thoroughwort tea. If the bowels are not moved in the course of twelve hours, repeat the dose. A light diet for a few days will generally complete the cure.
This disease is recognised by the yellow tint of theconjunctiva, (white of the eye,) loss of appetite, &c.
The remedy is,—
Powdered golden seal,half an ounce.Powdered sulphur,one fourth of an ounce.Powdered blue flag,half an ounce.Flaxseed,1 pound.
Mix, and divide into four parts, and give one every night. The food must be boiled, and a small quantity of salt added to it.
This often occurs to pigs that have travelled any distance: the feet often become tender and sore. In such cases, they should be examined, and all extraneous matter removed from the foot. Then wash with weak lie. If the feet discharge fetid matter, wash with the following mixture:—
Pyroligneous acid,2 ounces.Water,4 ounces.
In the treatment of diseased swine, the "issues," as they are called, ought to be examined, and be kept free. They may be found on the inside of the legs, just above thepastern joint. They seem to serve as a drain or outlet for the morbid fluids of the body, and whenever they are obstructed, local or general disturbance is sure to supervene.
This is the operation of removing the ovaries of sows, in order to prevent any future conception, and promote their fattening. (See articleSpaying Cows, p. 201.) It is usually performed by making incision in the middle of the flank, on the left side, in order to extirpate or cut off the ovaries, (femaletestes,) and then stitching up the wound, and wetting the part with Turlington's balsam. An able writer on this subject says, "The chief reason why a practice, which is beneficial in so many points of view to the interests and advantages of the farmer, has been so little attended to, is the difficulty which is constantly experienced from the want of a sufficient number of expert and proper persons to perform the operation. Such persons are far from being common in any, much less in every district, as some knowledge, of a nature which is not readily acquired, and much experience in the practice of cutting, are indispensably necessary to the success of the undertaking. When, however, the utility and benefits of the practice become better understood and more fully appreciated by the farmer, and the operators more numerous, greater attention and importance will be bestowed upon it; as it is capable of relieving him from much trouble, of greatly promoting his profits, and of benefiting him in various ways. The facts are since well proved and ascertained, that animals which have undergone this operation are more disposed to take on flesh, more quiet in their habits, and capable of being managed with much greater ease and facility in any way whatever, than they were before the operation was performed. It may also haveadvantages in other ways in different sorts of animals; it may render the filly nearly equal to the gelded colt for several different uses; and the heifer nearly equal to the ox for all sorts of farm labor. The females of some other sorts of animals may likewise, by this means, be made to nearly equal the castrated males in usefulness for a variety of purposes and intentions, and in all cases be rendered a good deal more valuable, or manageable, than they are at present."
BERKSHIRE BREED.
This breed is distinguished by being in general of a tawny, white, or reddish color, spotted with black; large ears hanging over the eyes; thick, close, and well made in the body; legs short; small in the bone; having a disposition to fatten quickly. When well fed, the flesh is fine. The above county has long been celebrated for its breed of swine. The Berkshire breeders have made a very judicious use of the pug cross, by not repeating it to the degree of taking away all shape and power of growing flesh, in their stock. This breed is supposed by many to be the most hardy, both in respect to their nature and the food on which they are fed. Their powers of digestion are exceedingly energetic, and they require constant good keep, or they will lose flesh very fast. They thrive well in the United States, provided, however, due care is exercised in breeding.
HAMPSHIRE BREED.
This breed is distinguished by being longer in the body and neck, but not of so compact a form as the Berkshire. They are mostly of a white color, or spotted, and are easilyfattened. The goodness of the Hampshire hog is proverbial, and in England they are generally fattened for hams.
SHROPSHIRE BREED.
These are not so well formed as those of the Berkshire kind, or equal to them in their disposition to fatten, or to be supported on such cheap food. Their color is white or brinded. They are flat boned; deep and flat sided; harsh, or rather wiry-haired; the ear large; head long, sharp, and coarse; legs long; loin, although very substantial, yet not sufficiently wide, considering the great extent of the whole frame. They have been much improved by the Berkshire cross.
There are various other breeds, which take their name from the different counties in the mother country. Thus we have the Herefordshire, Wiltshire, Yorkshire, &c. Yet they are not considered equal to those already alluded to. Many of the different English breeds might, however, serve to improve some species of breed in this country.
CHINESE BREED.
This is of small size; the body being very close, compact, and well formed; the legs very short; the flesh delicate and firm. The prevailing color, in China, is white. They fatten very expeditiously on a small quantity of food, and might be reared in the United States to good advantage, especially for home consumption.
Mr. Lawson says, "The best stock may be expected from the boar at his full growth, but no more than from three tofive years old.[22]No sows should be kept open for breeding unless they have large, capacious bellies.
"It may be remarked, in respect to the period of being with young, that in the sow it is about four months; and the usual produce is about eight to ten or twelve pigs in the large, but more in the smaller breeds.
"In the ordinary management of swine, sows, after they have had a few litters, may be killed; but no breeder should part with one while she continues to bring good litters, and rear them with safety."
Pregnant sows should always be lodged separately, especially at the time of bringing forth their young, else the pigs would most probably be devoured as they fall. The sow should also be attended with due care while pigging, in order to preserve the pigs. It is found that dry, warm, comfortable lodging is of almost as much importance as food. The pigs may be weaned in about eight weeks, after which the sow requires less food than she does while nursing. In the management of these animals, it is of great utility and advantage to separate the males from the females, as it lessens their sexual desires.
[22]Sows are generally bred from too early—before they come to maturity. This not only stints their own growth, but their offspring give evidence of deterioration. A sow should never be put to the boar until she be a year old.
[22]Sows are generally bred from too early—before they come to maturity. This not only stints their own growth, but their offspring give evidence of deterioration. A sow should never be put to the boar until she be a year old.