Understanding the role of the boar in breeding.

Understanding the role of the boar in breeding.Novice pig farmers should start with highly marketable and popular breeds such as the Landrace or Large White. Good quality boars can rapidly improve the standard of piglets if you do not have the best females. If boars have any problems in terms of their health, fertility, living conditions or genetic traits, you can end up with genetically weak offspring, sows that fail to conceive, or other problems. These, in turn, can reduce your profitability. When buying a young boar, ask for a specimen that has grown at an above-average rate, has converted food into muscle rather than fat at a good feed-to-growth ratio, and has no physical or other imperfections, such as extreme aggression. There are other breeds such as the Duroc – red pigs some breeders use to add more desirable ‘meat traits’ and growth rates to their operation – but this form of breeding is best left to experienced farmers. A good boar should reach about 90kg at around 140 days old. Not more than about 3kg of good pig feed should be used for each kilogram of weight gained from when the pig weighs 30kg until it reaches 90kg: this indicates a good feed-to-weight gain ratio. Remember, too, that proper deworming, hygienic living conditions, including well-ventilated housing, vaccination, and access to clean, cool water are all important factors affecting good growth rates.