The Accidental Smallholder Forum

Livestock => Pigs => Topic started by: rockstar on April 12, 2012, 08:56:02 pm

Title: weaners
Post by: rockstar on April 12, 2012, 08:56:02 pm

i have posted a few questions on this site before and had a lot of positive feed back, thanks  :thumbsup: so here i am again for more help ,gos weaners will be with us beginning of may.  can i feed them barley or oats to mix with pig nuts to cut costs? has it got to be straw as bedding or can i use dead fern/bracken?

Title: Re: weaners
Post by: robert waddell on April 12, 2012, 09:18:42 pm

grain reduces the protein content of feed and makes them layer on the fat
if they were in the wild they would use the bracken and ferns for there nests    the only downside is if you are in a tick area :farmer:

Title: Re: weaners
Post by: princesspiggy on April 12, 2012, 11:12:15 pm

our dorothy dug up grass and made a huge nest with it! straw is cheap this year tho. wer paying £7 a big bale, last year it was alot more. we had to use woodchips last year as there was a straw shortage but not as cosy.

Title: Re: weaners
Post by: Muc on April 17, 2012, 09:57:31 am

I make my own 'hay' with lawn mowings spread on plastic bags in the conservatory and the polytunnel. I asked herself if I could use the porch or the front room but she unreasonably turned down this sensible suggestion. I can make enough to keep two weaners happy.

Title: Re: weaners
Post by: Berkshire Boy on April 17, 2012, 10:04:31 am

How unreasonable of her ;) saves on carpets after all.

Title: Re: weaners
Post by: redborneschoolfarm on April 22, 2012, 04:54:41 pm

Bracken is toxic to cattle not sure if it's the same for pigs but I would avoid using it to be on the safe side

Title: Re: weaners
Post by: Berkshire Boy on April 22, 2012, 05:05:38 pm

Pigs are used for clearing bracken, as long as they are still fed their normal feed they are fine with bracken.

Title: Re: weaners
Post by: Muc on April 22, 2012, 05:14:29 pm

Food for thought from Wikipedia: "The Royal Horticultural Society recommends against consumption of bracken either by humans or livestock, since it contains carcinogens linked with oesophageal and stomach cancer."

Title: Re: weaners
Post by: Bionic on April 22, 2012, 05:16:27 pm

We had the bracken discussion on here a little while ago but I can't find it now.  Perhaps someone else has a better memory
Sally

Title: Re: weaners
Post by: Berkshire Boy on April 22, 2012, 07:34:01 pm

This is an article I read a while ago about research into using pigs for bracken clearing and they find no detrimental effects to the pigs. Makes for interesting reading

http://www.islayinfo.com/islay-dunlossit-estate-pigs.html (http://www.islayinfo.com/islay-dunlossit-estate-pigs.html)

Title: Re: weaners
Post by: robert waddell on April 22, 2012, 08:20:40 pm

for information only this experiment is i believe no longer going they built a purpose built slaughterhouse to accommodate the islands livestock   the author is no longer working for the estate :'( :farmer:

Title: Re: weaners
Post by: Berkshire Boy on April 23, 2012, 07:37:42 am

Robert do you know what happened and why it is no longer going on. Hopefully all the pigs didn't die of bracken poisoning ::)

Title: Re: weaners
Post by: robert waddell on April 23, 2012, 01:07:00 pm

no they did not die i have pm you :farmer: