# Free-choice feeding?



## 3ravens (Mar 16, 2006)

If this is your first time with feeder pigs, I'd go by the book. Pigs, like people, will eat as long as food is there. You will end up with obese pigs, a lot of lard, and a HUGE feed bill. Once you've fed out pigs a few times, you will learn how fat or lean you prefer them, and can judge the amount of feed. Table scraps will make a difference too.....how much and what kinds of scraps. The best finish for feeders, IMHO, is to turn them out into a fenced piece of woods about a month before butchering, but everybody doesn't have the land for this. Or a pig-proof fence! Electric fence is the way to go! :1pig:


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## HogEmAll (Jul 20, 2005)

I would feed them free-choice untill they reach 75lbs. After that, go with about 5lbs of feed each per day. Start out with 16%, then after 75lbs go with 14%. Once they reach 200lbs, go with 12% till butcher.


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## GeorgeK (Apr 14, 2004)

if you have bacon pigs, a lot of them will stop eating when they are full (not to be confused with satiated) Lard pigs on the other hand have been bred to overeat


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## John Schneider (Sep 9, 2005)

I feed free choice except for my breeding stock. Dry sows get a ration low in protein of about 7 pounds a day plus alfalfa. Feeders get free choice 16%. Pigs will eat until they are full. I don't think Lard type pigs even exist anymore. Maybe the odd one.


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## Siryet (Jun 29, 2002)

We always feed "free Choice" and haven't had a problem yet. We only raise Weaners until 250 lbs. We don't have breeding stock. Our ratio has been a steady 1lb gain - 3 lbs feed year after year. :dance:


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## beeman97 (Jul 13, 2003)

Feed your pigs all they will eat IF & i say IF your are sure your going to butcher them when the time comes.believe it or not they will stop eating when they are full. Hogs will gain properly until they are about 240 lbs, after that they will get obese fast if left on free choice feed.
If your going to keep some for breeding stock then limit there feed to 5 to 7 lbs a day & that will keep a good lean pig for breeding.
good luck
Rick


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## agmantoo (May 23, 2003)

For my own consumption I would buy gilts instead of barrows provided they are priced the same. The reason is IMO that the gilt will be less fat at butchering.


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## GeorgeK (Apr 14, 2004)

Oh, they exist. I don't know what the percentages are, but the first sow I had definitely was lardy and almost all of her offspring. I ended up going back and culling everything related to her and starting over with a new sow. Once in a while I now have a lardy show up. I've found them to be very poor parents. Almost all of them would neglect their litters, and the ones that raised any piglets at all would have a max of 1-2 survive past 3 months




John Schneider said:


> I feed free choice except for my breeding stock. Dry sows get a ration low in protein of about 7 pounds a day plus alfalfa. Feeders get free choice 16%. Pigs will eat until they are full. I don't think Lard type pigs even exist anymore. Maybe the odd one.


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## ShortSheep (Aug 8, 2004)

Thank you, everyone, for your responses. I will probably feed "by the book" for now, as I'm a little nervous and don't want to do anything to harm them.


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## tinknal (May 21, 2004)

ToTheBones said:


> Thank you, everyone, for your responses. I will probably feed "by the book" for now, as I'm a little nervous and don't want to do anything to harm them.


Any book that tells not to feed free choice is very old, very wrong, or is reffering to breeding stock. BTW, what is the prejudice against lard? I render all of it, and use it all.


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## Misty (May 29, 2005)

tinknal said:


> Any book that tells not to feed free choice is very old, very wrong, or is reffering to breeding stock. BTW, what is the prejudice against lard? I render all of it, and use it all.


that is why you are raising it yourself. The way you want it. I personally HATE the texture of fat in my mouth. I won't eat pork roast because of it. But there needs to be some when I cook the pork chops. I just don't want to chew it. We feed out butcher pigs free choice. Our sows get 5#/day per head. Our boar is growing and he gets 12#/head. I think they waste it in a feeder many times. We have also found with our show pigs that if they don't hvae it in front of them all the time, and instead are fed three times a day, they gain better. But that is a whole other feeding program. You don't want your breeders getting fat, because then you will have breeding issues, farrowing issues.


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## kidsngarden (Mar 24, 2006)

We got four butcher pigs and one breeder together and free fed all five until our butcher pigs time was up. Now our breeder will no longer free feed. We just fed her same as the others because she was with them and it was easier that way. We will always ration her food now according to pregnancy, nursing, etc.

And our pigs were very lean - maybe too lean. So I'm not so sure they get all fat free feeding. But they also were outdoors with a hut and a large area to run around in. - that makes a difference.

kidsngarden


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