Home Diseases and pests Gooseberries and care for him in the spring. Spring care for gooseberries, providing a rich harvest. Processing row-spacing gooseberries in autumn

Gooseberries and care for him in the spring. Spring care for gooseberries, providing a rich harvest. Processing row-spacing gooseberries in autumn

Many residents living in the private sector have their own small business, doing agriculture.

Is content Vietnamese profitable?

It will be about what conditions to create for successful breeding of the breed, the correct maintenance and diet of this breed, for novice farmers.

In the last 15-20 years, on the territory of the Russian Federation, in individual country and peasant households, Vietnamese bellies have become widespread.

The forage base is any type of herbs, root crops, pumpkin pulp.

The diet includes supplements and concentrates of animal origin.

Piglets should be fed twice a day.

It is forbidden to overeat this breed, since such a fattening option has negative consequences, the structure of muscle and fatty tissues. The productivity of the breed is also deteriorating.

The components of complementary foods in the winter include dry ears of cereals, fortified supplements. The remaining third is made up of acorns and cereals. In summer, it is better to graze animals on weed species of herbs.

Part of the diet in the summer is the leaves of shrubs, fruit droplets, vegetables, in the form of zucchini, pumpkin, duckweed. Approximately 1/5 part is cereals and waste from cereals. Screenings from various crops are ideal for food.

The finished product is much better than the Russian steppe breed, with fatty veins. The color scheme is not different, but even tastier.

The sebaceous layer 1.5-3.5 cm thick, softer, resembles a cut from the abdominal part of the meat breed, but more tender. The rib part contains, without veins and fat.


In agriculture, the following small breeds are recognized: Vietnamese and Korean.

Korean piglets grow and gain in weight faster than the Vietnamese breed.

There are also differences in appearance, the Korean breed has a wrinkled stigma structure, the Vietnamese have smooth stigmas, and narrow eyes.

There are some features in terms of fertility, Korean sows carry in a short time, considerable offspring can give birth from 10-25 pigs of this breed.

Females of both breeds have a well-developed maternal instinct and attentiveness. Good for growing at home.

Pork meat of small breeds is popular among farmers, not only due to the taste of the finished product, but also its value. It contains a minimum of cholesterol, is well absorbed by the body. In the restaurants of the world, it has long become a real delicacy, and a raw material for the preparation of hundreds of dishes.

Keeping Vietnamese piglets at home


The breed of Vietnamese piglets is popular among farmers and ordinary people involved in household breeding.

The high demand for breeding the Vietnamese breed lies in its individual characteristics.

Pigs have some characteristics characteristic of this breed.

Representatives have a weight - from 80-150 kg, depending on gender, have a flattened snout, small ears, have broad indicators, back and chest, squat body, covered with black bristles, sagging stomach.

  • Build a good masonry room with a ventilation system in it, which will ensure systematic ventilation of the room, the flooring should be concrete, at the end of the room it is necessary to equip a rest area for piglets.
  • The diet should be thought out, the pigs of this breed, unpretentious in food, can eat greens and vegetable crops, but do not forget the pigs should also be given fortified feed and supplements.
  • Monitor the cleanliness of the premises and drinking water, as Vietnamese pigs are very ambitious, unlike their simple counterparts.

Room parameters

On the advice of breeders, up to 15 individuals can be accommodated in a camp with parameters of 3.0 x 3.0 m. The floor is padded. Be sure to make a system for the removal of wastewater.

The walls are upholstered with fiberboard, because during farrowing the females behave restlessly, disperse, and can injure themselves, ¾ of the enclosure is occupied by a platform, another ¼ part is occupied by a toilet. If the machine contains boars, then the machine is assigned to them up to 3 square meters. m. In the aisle from the machines, a distance is made for the passage of a wheelbarrow.

The optimum temperature for adults is 18-20 degrees Celsius. For small children in a separate place 30-32 C. It is recommended to use gas convectors or infrared heaters as heating.

An additional 10-20 acres are allocated for walking animals.

Is it profitable to keep a breed of Vietnamese piglets for sale?


It is profitable to feed small ones, provided that a person lives in a rural area with good buildings for household needs and feeds animals for individual consumption, since there is little meat from them, approximately 9-12 kg.

It can be estimated that there is no special benefit to hold, there is no sale.

By weight, they are similar to standard chicken and other birds, the peculiarity of the Vietnamese breed is that they are small, they will not grow larger, no matter how much you feed them.

The owner needs to take into account one more thing - cutting. The work is not easy, and in order to slaughter a pig, a person needs to pay a lot of money for his service, there is no benefit to the farmer.

Advice. You need to breed such a breed exclusively for your family, if you are engaged in independent slaughter of piglets.

How to properly feed the Vietnamese breed during the reproductive period


How quickly the signs of maturity will appear in representatives of this breed is inherently related to the correct diet and feeding.

Therefore, beginners should learn more about their features.

In summer, they should be fed 2 times, and in winter 3 times, as energy is consumed to maintain balance in the body.

It is difficult for small breeds to assimilate coarse feed, fiber, straw and is not recommended to be introduced into the diet of small breeds.

For food, it is advised to use mixed fodder and grain, or to make mixtures from other grain crops. The ideal culture for feeding piglets is barley, rye, wheat, it is possible to additionally add other crops to make a mixture.

A good addition to the main diet will be fruits, or any herb at the discretion of the owner. Give vegetables and fruits, as in raw foods, useful substances are preserved.

In the cold season, such a breed can do with store-bought food, saturated with various useful additives. These pigs, in addition to food, are given various fats and acids, which the body of young animals produces in small quantities. Useful preparations should be added to the feed every time, taking short breaks.

Buying market young should be noticed when buying:

  • You can not buy young animals from an identical offspring.
  • The farmer maintains a single reproductive male for a large number of females.
  • Weight indicators of the piglet with which he appeared.
  • Check the state of health by external examination of the parents of the pigs.

The main distinguishing feature is the similarity of representatives to the dog breed of pugs.

The young growth of the Vietnamese breed has a very active character, they are able to quickly adapt to the environment, therefore, the born young animals should be kept with the expectation of some nuances. The environment and content must be good, so that the living creatures feel comfortable.

Pigs are neat, do not spoil coatings, do not emit a specific smell characteristic of simple ones.

In the room for keeping young animals, it is necessary to equip a wooden platform, a rest area for pigs, so that when it gets cold, the piglets do not get sick while in the home.


If the owner has not provided for all the conditions for the correct maintenance of pigs, then material will be required for additional insulation, and time to clean the home.

In a pigsty with young piglets, representatives should maintain a constant temperature regime of at least 18 degrees.

It is required to equip an additional place for walking.

This breed loves to play outdoors. It is necessary to graze piglets in warm weather on the street 2 times a day, in the afternoon and in the evening. Representatives who regularly walk have a high resistance to various diseases, an active character, and better productivity.

A hole should be made in the pasture and filled with water. This breed loves to take water treatments, as it cools their body, strengthens the immune system.

It is also necessary to have trees in this area, or dig in logs so that the pigs can clean the dirt from the bristles.

To ensure good productivity of young animals, you need to familiarize yourself with the conditions for the proper diet and maintenance of the Vietnamese piglets breed, on a monotonous diet and walking, the owner will not achieve high results in breeding:

  • At birth, quick access to feeding should be provided, otherwise they die.
  • To ensure successful growth and weight gain, preventive measures against infection with helminths should be systematically carried out.
  • A male of reproductive age should weigh approximately 40 kg.
  • These animals should be fed little by little, but often.

Pigs purchased for breeding are always a group of young animals, with two males. As individuals grow older, the most active and healthy is selected for reproduction, the rest are clogged.

When buying a breeding group, always take the advice of farmers with experience - choose females in one farm, males in another. Since closely related ties will give a defect in the offspring and a large number of culling.

The gestation period is about 116-120 days. There is a well-known statement that babies appear after 3 days, three weeks and three months.

Before childbirth, in about 48 hours, the behavior of the uterus changes, becomes more dynamic, colostrum is gradually released, and it refuses to eat. Before farrowing, the female warms up the litter, prepares hay (chews it) so that the young are more comfortable. Before farrowing, the farmer must remove the rubbish pen, change the hay, wash the dishes and change the drink in it.

The location of the future young animals is blocked in the room separately, heat exchangers are hung to maintain a constant temperature regime. If the birth goes without complications, then do not interfere, but qualified farmers with extensive experience say that it is always necessary to prepare sterile material, tools, disinfectants and treatments for young animals in advance.


It becomes easier for the expectant mother when the owner is with her, as the animals are very receptive to the environment.

After the end of the process, apply to the mother for 40 minutes to obtain timely nutrition.

The young are wiped from the remnants of the placenta, the fontanel on the stomach is treated with disinfectants.

The treated representatives are settled in a corral for warming, attached to the mother for breastfeeding. For 1-2 day old piglets in the paddock, it is necessary to maintain the temperature within 31-32 ° C. The remains of the placenta are collected and buried away from the paddock so that the uterus does not eat it.

Important! In the nutrient fluid of the Vietnamese herbivorous pig, there are few trace elements, such as copper and iron. Therefore, solutions of preparations containing nutrients are administered intramuscularly.

Medications

The most popular preparations contain vitamin supplements, which can cause imbalance in the body (diarrhea and poor digestion of food). The use of some therapeutic agents is made with the permission of a qualified specialist.

It is not advisable to arbitrarily use drugs, since large dosages and incorrect handling of drugs can harm young animals.

Recommendation! If breeding offspring are selected, then for each piglet it is necessary to create a map, where the characteristics of the individual, weight, size, diseases, vaccinations, and a number of other anatomical and individual characteristics will be recorded. Such data must be updated every 7-10 days. It is easier for the owner to determine which individual is more active and will show good reproductive performance.

About the breed

  • A famous Hollywood actor kept a Vietnamese pig as a pet.
  • Males are sometimes used as a guard, in the summer cottage they are no worse than trained dogs (they are easily trained, they react negatively to strangers).
  • The older the pig, the healthier her offspring.
  • In some Asian countries, this breed has become a talisman of the hearth.

For a novice breeder or farmer, it is important to know ... Lop-eared piglets: precocity, immunity and ...

Vietnamese piglets attract the attention of livestock breeders due to their small size, precocity and unpretentiousness in growing. They have become an excellent alternative for those farmers who do not want to raise ordinary large white pigs on their farms, or for livestock breeders who want to provide their families with a supply of fat and meat without incurring high costs.

Story

Vietnamese bellied piglets were first bred in southeast Asia. Only in 1985 did they become widespread in other countries and on other continents. Pigs got their name due to the fact that they were imported to other continents from Vietnam. The animals found their fans very quickly, because in a short period of time they were already known not only in Europe, but also in distant America.

To date, the work of scientists to improve the breed continues. They set out to improve the productivity of piglets, increase their size, increase the percentage of muscle mass. The Vietnamese lop-bellied pig came to Russia relatively recently. Due to inexperience and lack of knowledge among farmers, rumors began to spread that several breeds of Asian animals were raised in our country. However, it turned out to be one variety. A little later, it became known about another dwarf breed, which began to be used as an ornamental animal and called a mini pig.

External distinguishing features

Characteristic external features make it possible not to confuse Vietnamese piglets with other breeds. They began to be called bellied due to the fact that already at the age of one month the tummy sags in the piggy. In adult gilts, the belly may touch the ground. Their colors can be varied, but most often spotted and pitch black individuals are found.

vietnamese piglets

Loose-bellied black piglets may differ in an unusual, slightly flattened shape of the muzzle. They have a very wide back and short legs, so adult pigs can grow large, but at the same time undersized. Boars have a dense coat of bristles. There are lop-eared black piglets, although most often their ears are small. Vietnamese pigs are famous for their ability to quickly gain weight, which averages up to 80 kg. However, if the owner decides to feed the pet longer and creates the right diet for him, then the weight of the animal can reach 150 kg.

How to feed Vietnamese piglets

The main mistake of inexperienced farmers is that they try to organize feeding and create a diet for Vietnamese pigs the same as for ordinary whites. However, marbled Vietnamese piglets eat not only other foods, but also with a different frequency of meals. They need to be constantly fed throughout the day, and not limited to two meals a day. Vietnamese pigs have a stomach much smaller than that of a normal white pig, so their food is digested faster.

Black piglets (Vietnamese fold-bellied breed) are a herbivore representative of the animal world, therefore the owner must plan their diet exclusively from plant products.

They are fed:

  • corn;
  • hay;
  • pumpkin;
  • apples;
  • pears;
  • zucchini;
  • forbs.

Beets and straw should not be given to Vietnamese pigs. They prefer fresh hay. The new menu should be designed taking into account the time of year and the availability of food.

Attention! It is impossible to use only pasture for feeding Vietnamese pigs, their diet must include compound feed.

If the ultimate goal of keeping an animal is to get bacon, then it should not be overfed. The ideal weight for such piglets is about 100 kg, they gain it in about 9 months. For individuals grown primarily for meat, the content of barley and corn in the diet should not exceed 10%.

How to feed Vietnamese piglets

Breeding Vietnamese piglets

Fertilization and farrowing in Vietnamese piglets take place without much difficulty. Sexual maturity of females occurs 4 months after their birth. The beginning of their hunting becomes obvious by restless behavior, refusal to eat. Vietnamese piglets get sick very rarely, so such symptoms are a sign that it is time to let the pig to the boar. Also, in females, the genital loop swells, and characteristic discharge appears. However, these indications may turn out to be false. To check whether reproduction can be carried out, it is worth leaning lightly on the croup. If the pig stands calmly and motionless, then it is definitely on the hunt and ready for fertilization, otherwise it will take some more time.

Attention! Close relatives should not be allowed to mate.

During farrowing, it is advisable for the owner to monitor the process so that there are no undesirable complications. At the ready, you should keep iodine, threads, cotton wool and scissors, so that if necessary you can cut the umbilical cord. The first signs of an imminent farrowing of a Vietnamese pig are restless behavior, a lowered belly, and formed milk lobes. By the time of birth, the room should be cleaned, only hay and water are left in the pigsty. A newborn pig requires additional attention, they wipe their mouth and snout from the accumulated mucus, and also make sure that each of the cubs receives a portion of colostrum during the first hour of life.

Breeding Vietnamese piglets is easy, profitable and even exciting. From one farrowing, up to 10 babies are obtained, gradually this figure can increase, and at a time the pig already brings 12 pigs. One female per year is able to do 2 farrowing.

Vietnamese piglet care

Caring for Vietnamese piglets involves, first of all, arranging a pigsty. Since the animals grow small, even in a small room you can keep several adults. How many pigs fit in a particular area depends on their age and size.

The barn is built both brick and wooden. To simplify the cleaning process, the floor can be concreted by covering the pigsty in a separate part of it with boardwalk so that the pets do not freeze. It is advisable to divide a large room into pens, in each of which to place several pigs. It will also make it possible to place separately sows and their offspring.

Vietnamese piglet care

Between the partitions it is worth building a passage so that it is convenient to distribute food and carry out cleaning. The room is well ventilated to prevent oxygen deficiency. In the cold season, the optimum temperature must be maintained so that the piglets do not get cold. This is especially true if a recently farrowed pig lives in a pigsty, which is undesirable to lie on a cold floor or in a cold room.

There is a recommendation from experienced pig breeders to release Vietnamese pigs in the summer to give them the opportunity to graze. Also, this breed of piglets is very fond of taking mud baths, which also needs to be taken into account by the owners. In hot and dry weather, this is required both for cooling and for repelling blood-sucking insects. Such conditions for growing animals are often created in the conditions of the middle zone (Volgograd, Moscow, Kursk regions, Moscow and the region).

So that an adult domestic boar does not come hunting every month, it is recommended to castrate it. This is done only if the individual is grown for slaughter. This is a very important condition, since the castrated boar becomes less aggressive, the meat obtained from it is devoid of an unpleasant odor. Castration of animals is carried out at the age of 1.5 months.

Advantages and disadvantages of the breed

Like any other breed, Vietnamese piglets have their advantages and disadvantages.

The list of benefits is quite impressive:

  • They quickly gain weight and become sexually mature. Boars are ready for mating at the age of 6 months, and domestic pigs - already at 4 months.
  • Growing and propagating does not require much hassle. Females do an excellent job of caring for offspring, so the owner requires a minimum of effort.
  • They have excellent immunity. Vietnamese piglets almost do not get sick and do not need numerous vaccinations and vaccinations, they easily adapt to various climatic conditions.
  • From the Vietnamese breeds of piglets, very tasty and tender lard and meat are obtained, and the carcasses are cut quickly and easily.
  • Female Vietnamese piglets have increased fecundity and give birth to up to 12 cubs at a time.
  • The pig has genetic memory and does not eat poisonous plants.
  • Vietnamese piglets feed exclusively on plant foods, which significantly reduces feed costs.
  • Pigs are very clean and organize a sleeping place and a toilet in different parts of the barn.

The disadvantages of Vietnamese piglets are very subjective and are determined by the owners individually. Some are skeptical about the color of the animal, others are not satisfied with the small size or a thin layer of fat. However, in comparison with the advantages, these shortcomings are not so important. Many farmers happily turn a blind eye to them and continue to raise Vietnamese pigs on their farms.

With a responsible approach, pig farming will help not only provide your own family with lard and meat, but also organize a business, make a profit from the sale of surplus. In just a couple of years of keeping Vietnamese piglets, you can significantly increase the livestock. They do not require much attention to themselves, eat plant foods, and rarely get sick. Even a novice livestock breeder can cope with the cultivation of Vietnamese pigs.

Vietnamese bellied pigs are becoming quite popular in Russia. Despite the fact that in our country they have appeared recently, they have already become popular among livestock breeders.

Origin of the breed

Vietnamese bellied pigs originated in Southeast Asia. For the first time in Eastern Europe and Canada, they appeared in the mid-80s of the 20th century and were brought from Vietnam. Breeding improvement of the breed is actively conducted in Canada, Hungary, Ukraine. Often this breed is called "Mangal", implying that it is related to the Mangalitsa breed, but this is not so. Also, Korean and Vietnamese pigs are the same breed. In European countries and in the farms of America, the breed is popular among livestock breeders. Work is underway to improve the breed qualities, namely productivity, increase muscle mass.

Features of this breed

When choosing animals for your farm, you should familiarize yourself with its features of growing and keeping, with the advantages inherent in this breed. It is they who give pigs such popularity and great distribution.

1. Loose-bellied pigs start walking at the age of 4 months. Earlier maturation of females allows you to start hunting at this age. Males reach puberty by six months, sometimes even earlier at 4-5 months they can begin to cover females;
2. Newborn piglets are completely under the supervision of the female, who have a pronounced maternal instinct and are able to take care of their offspring on their own. In this case, intervention from outside is not necessary;
3. A strong immune system allows individuals of this breed to perfectly adapt to various climatic conditions from hot to cold, they can feel comfortable everywhere;
4. The meat has excellent taste, the thickness of the fat layer is 5-7 cm;
5. An excellent advantage of this breed is their resistance to diseases common in pig breeding, deworming is carried out from veterinary measures;
6. The sow is able to give a large offspring, from 12-18 piglets per farrow;
7. Feed intake is small, but pigs eat often, succulent feed is a large volume, but like all other breeds of pigs, they need a balanced diet;
8. Pigs do not defecate where they sleep, which greatly facilitates their care.

The productivity and manifestations of breed qualities depend on how suitable the content of the breed will be.

Exterior qualities

The breed has a typical bacon body type. Broad body reaching towards the ground. Fairly wide chest. Gilts and sows have a sagging belly. The head is small, pug-shaped, in adult boars fangs grow up to 15 cm in length. Small protruding ears. Males have bristles and can reach 20 centimeters. This bristle shows the emotional mood of the animal, rising, showing its condition. The coat color is mostly black, sometimes with light patches on the head, there are also colors that go into dark red with stripes, but this color manifestation is not typical for this breed.

How to choose bellied pigs for your farm

Farmers buy this breed to engage in either purebred breeding or for fattening, and growing Vietnamese pigs as pets is also common. In any case, you must carefully select the right piglets for your type of rearing.

First of all, you should find trusted sellers, or a farm that has established itself in the market. If animals are needed for further breeding and breeding, then it is better to buy from different sellers to prevent closely related ties. When buying, you need to find out the weight of the piglet after farrowing and its weight gain every 10 days, this information will help to track the dynamics of growth and the correspondence of body weight to age.

It is important to look at the boar and the uterus, if monthly piglets are purchased, the sow will have well-defined milk signs. It is also necessary to pay attention to all the young animals presented. Thus, you can evaluate the overall picture of health and breed of a given seller.

Normally, Vietnamese bellied piglets have a developed muscular skeleton, strong, spaced limbs, a pug-shaped nose, uniform skin hair growth, everything should be clean under the tail, the piglet is active, has a good appetite. It is necessary to clarify the feed with what composition was given to the piglet, this is necessary in order to adjust the diet and select the feed composition that is optimally suitable for the piglets.

Piglets can be used for meat already at the age of 3-4 months, the optimal age and expediency of using piglets for slaughter at 6-7 months. Live weight is 50-60 kg, sometimes it can reach 100 kg. The average weight gain per day is 250-300 grams

Content method

First of all, you need to take care of the room where the piglets will be raised. Despite the fact that this breed is not demanding for special conditions, they also need the necessary minimum. The advantage is also the small size of these animals, which will allow growing more in a smaller area.

If there is no ready-made room for arranging a pigsty, it can be built from bricks, ready-made blocks. A concrete floor can make for easy cleaning indoors, but most of the floor is covered with wooden boards, this place is necessary for relaxation. Boards are optimally suited for the cold season, they will keep warm. And the remaining concrete part will not allow digging indoors. The whole space is divided into machines (4-5 m2) one machine. In such a pen, 2 queens, or a uterus with piglets or one boar will fit. It is necessary to leave a wide passage between the machines, this is necessary for the convenience of cleaning the room.

The room should be ventilated without drafts. It is known that bellied pigs tolerate cold weather well, but the best solution would be to install heating in the pigsty in order to provide comfortable conditions for animals in the winter season. It is especially important not to let the uterus and newborn piglets get supercooled. You can heat the stove, special radiators and any other available method.

Near the room where the pig will be kept, there should be a paddock, it is equipped with wooden blocks so that the pigs can rub against them. One adult pig requires 1 acre of land. Since the walking yard is only used when the weather is warm, it is necessary to have a canopy to prevent the gilts from the sun and rainy weather. They also organize a mud pool for them.

What to feed Vietnamese bellied pigs

Many people think flip flops should only be fed green food. But on such a diet it will not be possible to get good gains. In order for the live weight gain to be intensive, you should choose the optimal balanced diet, taking into account all the needs for enhanced growth. To figure out how to raise Vietnamese pigs at home, several aspects should be taken into account. Firstly, the material component, the composition of the diet depends on it, if possible, you can use more expensive components, but basically everyone wants to make a diet in the budget segment. And the second point is what we want to get from raising animals. If you want to engage in fattening for meat, then it is better to make the diet yourself.

Concentrated feed (grain) can be grown either independently or purchased ready-made. The organization of a balanced diet will allow you to get quality products at the lowest cost. In summer, the main share is occupied by green fodder. In Vietnamese pigs, the structure of the gastrointestinal tract is slightly different from ordinary pigs, the stomach is smaller, the intestines are also of a smaller diameter, and food passes through the gastrointestinal tract faster. Therefore, animals eat less, but often.

They are not suitable for roughage that contains a high fiber content. Best of all, they absorb green grass, alfalfa, clover hay. Concentrates are also included. It can be wheat, barley, rye. Oats and corn are not entirely suitable for bellied pigs as the main food, as they make the animals fatter. The feed mixture is made in the following proportions: barley 45%, wheat - 30%, oats - 15%, corn - 10%.

The grain is crushed in a mill and mixed in the required proportions. Whole grains are not digested and are simply passed out in the stool. Also steamed mash has a good effect on meat qualities. To do this, the finished mixture is poured with boiling water at the rate of 1⁄2 and slightly salted. This mash is steamed for 10 hours. After the mixture has cooled down, vitamins, fish oil, premixes can be added to it.

For 1 sow, 2.5-3 kg of feed is required at one time (only 2 meals per day). Uterus in the period of gestation, dairy products, eggs, vitamins are added to the feed. Piglets are given 1.3-1.5 kg of the mixture per head for one feeding 2 times a day. Loose-bellied piglets can also cook thick porridge from feed.

Animals will chew food longer, and therefore the assimilation of food will be much better. Vietnamese pigs are also given root crops and tubers. They are easy to store and in the winter season will be able to provide animals with the necessary vitamins. It can be carrots, pumpkins, zucchini, bean hay. Vegetables do not need to be boiled, as they will lose their qualities, so they are given raw. Boiled potatoes are added for greater nutritional value of the feed, up to 15% percent of the total feed.

How to breed Vietnamese pigs

An important rule in breeding Vietnamese pigs is the fact that there should be no closely related ties when mating. Despite the fact that the animals are maturing, the pig should not be crossed if its weight does not exceed 30-35 kg. An animal with such a small weight will not be able to bear full-fledged offspring, moreover, there is a risk of harm to the female.

How to determine the readiness for mating in Vietnamese pigs

1. the behavior of the pig becomes very restless;
2. The genitals become swollen and mucus may be secreted;
3. when you press the croup, the pig freezes.

To carry out mating, the boar is placed in a corral to the uterus for 1 day. After fertilization, the gestation period lasts from 114 to 118 days. 3-5 days before farrowing, you can see how the pig fusses and builds a nest for itself, its mammary glands swell, and the nipples begin to redden, the stomach drops noticeably. On the day the farrowing begins, the animal does not take food, the nipples secrete drops of colostrum.

How farrowing occurs in Vietnamese pigs

Before the start of farrowing, it is necessary to carry out a hygienic cleaning of the room where the sow is kept, lay a fresh bedding, put dishes with clean, not cold water. Although piglets in general can do without human intervention and the uterus can easily cope on its own, but as a caring farmer, you can still control this process and make it easier for the sow to care for newborns. Before the birth of the piglets, it is necessary to prepare the essentials, namely, wiping diapers, scissors, iodine solution and cotton wool.

In the first hours after birth, piglets must be given access to colostrum, it also needs to be wiped, examined, to see if the airways are clogged, the umbilical cord is cut, bandaged and treated with iodine. The duration of farrowing can vary from 3 to 5 hours, after the afterbirth (usually 2 of them) has come out, farrowing can be considered complete. The afterbirth is removed, as the sow can eat it.

How to care for little Vietnamese piglets

1. Constant availability of milk every half hour, so that each newborn gets his portion;
2. Anemia is a very common disease in piglets, due to a lack of iron in the body. To prevent the occurrence of this disease, iron preparations are administered intramuscularly to piglets, such as ursoferran, ferran. For prophylactic purposes, ferran is administered to piglets on the 3rd-5th day of life - 1-1.5 ml intramuscularly in the thigh or neck area. For therapeutic purposes, the dosage is 2-3 ml for animals older than 2 weeks of age.
3. To control the weight gain and the condition of the animal, you can maintain tables of indicators.

10 days - weight not less than 1 kg
20 days - 1.5-2 kg
30 days - 2.5-3 kg

A month after farrowing, piglets are gradually weaned from the uterus and transferred to a more adult diet. Weaning occurs in a few days, this will help prevent the development of mastitis in the uterus, and the piglets will not be stressed due to a sudden change in feed. By the middle of the second month, piglets can be treated for worms with drugs such as Alben, Alvet at the rate of 0.5 ml per 10 kg of body weight once. Fattening is very profitable, but all this activity requires time, effort, and finances. Even despite the fact that these animals are not whimsical.

Meat qualities are especially noted in pigs weighing up to 40 kg, it contains the optimal amount of fat. Pigs up to 20-30 kg gain weight due to muscle mass, the remaining kilograms come from fat. The meat of Vietnamese pigs is a delicacy, its appearance is marbling, it is juicy, tender and tasty. And most importantly, at the age of 3 months, the pigs are ready for slaughter, which means that you can provide yourself with an uninterrupted supply of fresh and tasty meat.

Kira Stoletova

The Vietnamese breed of pigs has gained wide popularity today. This is due to the fact that animals quickly gain weight and consume less feed than some other breeds. It is also worth noting that it is not difficult to care for pigs of this breed. Consider what features Vietnamese piglets have and how to properly organize nutrition and care in order to get maximum weight gain.

Appearance

Before talking about the features of the breed, its description and characteristics should be given. What do Vietnamese piglets look like? As for the exterior, Vietnamese pigs have a specific appearance, so it is not possible to confuse them with any other breed.

Overall animals are painted, as a rule, in black. The muzzle of the Vietnamese piglets is short, and erect ears are widely located on the head, which, to match the muzzle, are medium-sized. The Vietnamese bellied pig, thanks to its large body and short legs, looks stocky. The legs, despite their small size, are strong, the chest is wide. Lop-eared individuals are extremely rare.

As the pigs grow up, their belly begins to sag slightly. It is this feature of the structure of the animal that was displayed in the name of the breed. In boars, the belly sags more than in pigs. Sometimes skin folds almost touch the ground. At the same time, Vietnamese bellied pigs feel comfortable and lead a mobile lifestyle. Often they are more active than their relatives who do not have a pendulous belly.

Vietnamese bellied piglets look very funny. Maybe that's why some people buy them not for the purpose of obtaining meat and tallow products, but for the purpose of decorating their yard. When making such a purchase, it should be understood that the Vietnamese pig breed is gaining weight quickly. Within a few months, not a miniature piglet will run around the yard, but a large Vietnamese pig.

Occasionally there are marble and white colors. Some argue, based on their own experience, that piglets from marbled sows are stronger. But zootechnicians do not confirm this fact, arguing that piglets from a white, black and marble sow have the same health reserve.

Productivity

The breed of pigs Vietnamese bellied is not large-sized. The weight of an adult pig is on average 110 kg. The boar weighs about 130 kg. If we talk about the maximum performance, then the weight of the female does not exceed 140 kg. A boar can weigh 150 kg. This is a meat breed.

With proper care and nutrition, daily gains range from 350 to 500 g, and gilts reach puberty by 4 months. But experts recommend the first mating at the age of 7-8 months. At birth, Vietnamese piglets weigh about 500 g.

By the time of puberty, the weight of Vietnamese bellied piglets is 70-80 kg. With such indicators, it is possible to slaughter animals. Meat yield after slaughter exceeds 70%.

With regard to reproductive function, Vietnamese pigs have an average of 12 piglets. Sometimes there are 18 piglets in one litter. Accordingly, raising Vietnamese pigs can be seen as a small but very profitable business. In one year, a sow gives birth to about 24 piglets. If you follow all the norms of feeding Vietnamese piglets, and provide good conditions for keeping, then the animals live up to 18 years.

Adult pigs are slaughtered at the age of 8 months. By this time, wild boars and pigs are gaining maximum weight. Not everyone can kill a pig. The technology of slaughter at home is significantly different from how slaughter is done on a farm, being less humane. So that the animal does not suffer, it is better to invite a person who can kill him with one precise blow.

Breed advantages

  1. Early maturity. Without talking about any particular breed, we can say that the average age of reaching puberty for these animals is 7 months. When breeding Vietnamese pigs, mating can be done as early as 4 months. If we talk about breeder reviews, then some pigs can be covered as early as 3 months.
  2. Breeding Vietnamese piglets at home is simplified by the fact that the sows have a well-developed maternal instinct. Human intervention is rarely needed.
  3. Also, raising Vietnamese piglets is simplified by the fact that they have good immunity - there is no need to do most vaccinations. It is worth noting that pigs quickly adapt to various conditions, so they can be kept in almost every region of our country.
  4. The maintenance of Vietnamese piglets is cost-effective due to the fecundity of the pigs and the speed of growth. Piglets grow up in 7-8 months.
  5. You won't have to think long about what to feed Vietnamese piglets at home. The basis of the diet is green fodder, which reduces costs during animal breeding.
  6. Care for Vietnamese piglets is simplified by their cleanliness. Such piglets clearly separate the bedroom from the toilet, which is not typical for other breeds.

If we consider the features of Vietnamese pigs, then it is worth mentioning the taste of meat. It turns out juicy and delicate in taste. Many restaurants are willing to pay high prices for Vietnamese pig meat. Since the breed does not belong to greasy or universal, the layer of fat is small and does not exceed 7 cm. At the same time, palatability is highly valued.

When organizing the feeding of Vietnamese pigs, it should be taken into account that they eat little and often. How to feed Vietnamese pigs, we will talk in more detail later. It should also be noted here that in order to get the maximum weight gain, the issue of catering must be approached responsibly.

It is worth noting that all of the above conditions will manifest in small Vietnamese piglets only if you take a representative of a pure breed with good genetics, which is why it is so important to acquire healthy and thoroughbred young animals.

Breeding and caring for Vietnamese pigs is simplified by the fact that the animal cannot boast of large sizes. Accordingly, there is no need to build a large pigsty. Animals get along well in one machine, but you should not abuse this. Depending on the size of the machine, no more than 3-4 pigs are lodged there.

When breeding Vietnamese pigs, you need to properly equip the pigsty. From a hygiene point of view, floors should be made of concrete that is easy to clean. It is best to opt for a slotted floor design. There must be ebb for liquid litter. To simplify the care of animals as much as possible, the floor is made at a slight slope.

To prevent piglets of one month of age and adults from catching a cold, lying on a concrete floor, a wooden platform is equipped in each machine. Due to the cleanliness of the Vietnamese herbivorous pig, they will not shit on the platforms, so keeping them clean is not difficult. In the absence of wooden platforms, small Vietnamese pigs will have to lay a thick layer of straw on the floor. Yes, and in adults it will not be superfluous to make a thick litter to protect the livestock from colds. And this will complicate the care of bellied Vietnamese piglets.

Ventilation and heating

When breeding Vietnamese bellied pigs, one should take into account the fact that individuals are quite thermophilic. The air temperature should not fall below 15°C even in winter. And in a pigsty where Vietnamese piglets are kept for up to 6 months, it is advisable to maintain the temperature at the level of 20-22 ° C, therefore, in winter, a heating system should work in the pen for sows and young animals. These can be electric heaters, potbelly stoves or infrared lamps.

You also need to consider a ventilation system, during which there will be no drafts. It is necessary to ventilate the pigsty, according to existing standards, daily.

Walking area

To simplify the organization of food for Vietnamese piglets, it is advisable to enclose a walking area. It has also been confirmed by practice that if you take time for walks when breeding and caring for a Vietnamese pig, the pet will have better health.

Despite the fact that the weight of Vietnamese bellied pigs is small, they need a spacious area for walking. A certain area should be under a canopy where animals can hide from bad weather or the scorching sun. The dimensions of the canopy depend on how many Vietnamese piglets will have to fit under them.

Based on the characteristics of not only Vietnamese bellied pigs, but also other breeds, there should be a mud bath in the aviary. It is an ordinary shallow pit filled with water. It is not necessary to strengthen the walls of the pit or dig in a container, as is done for ducks. Pigs need a mud bath. In the absence of rain, the pit is filled with water on its own. It is advisable to equip it in the far corner of the aviary.

Often you can see a photo of the Vietnamese bellied pig, which rubs against the logs. This is one of the pigs' favorite pastimes, so several thick and strong logs are installed in the aviary. It is advisable to dig them into the ground.

Pigs should be let out for a short walk even in winter, if there is no severe frost outside.

Nutrition

The diet of Vietnamese piglets must be balanced. Many farmers follow the simplest path, fattening animals only with grass and hay. But, despite the fact that the breed is sometimes called a herbivore, it will not work to achieve maximum weight gain with such fattening. When feeding bellied Vietnamese piglets, cereals, legumes and root crops should be added to the diet.

The basis of the diet is really grass. In winter, animals are given hay instead of grass. In addition to green fodder, pigs are given wheat, barley and rye. Oats, which some farmers give along with other crops, should not be carried away. It promotes the accumulation of body fat. The same goes for corn.

The nutrition of Vietnamese bellied pigs has specific features that are due to the original structure of the gastrointestinal tract. Pigs do not digest roughage well. Also heavy for animals is food that contains a lot of fiber (fodder beets, for example). But the grass is absorbed very well. When harvesting hay for the winter, alfalfa and clover are preferred. Such hay will not be difficult for the body. You can introduce potatoes into the diet, but not raw. Tubers are pre-boiled.

Regardless of the conditions in which pigs live, they need mineral supplements. Even if they walk around the pasture all day, they will not be able to replenish the body with a supply of all minerals.

Feed use

In addition to green fodder, you can purchase special compound feed. But good food is quite expensive, so it is advisable to make it yourself. To prepare it, you will need barley, wheat, oats, peas and corn. The basis of compound feed is the first 2 components. They account for 70% of the total weight. The remaining components are taken in equal amounts (10% each).

Before preparing mixed feed, grain crops are crushed to a state of flour. It is advisable to give compound feed in the form of wet mash. This improves the taste of the meat. Fill the compound feed with milk, after adding a small amount of salt to it.

Diet

In addition to what should be fed to Vietnamese piglets, you need to know how to properly organize a diet. We feed the livestock twice a day in the summer. It is advisable to give food in the morning and evening. During the day, we release the animals to the pasture, where they will find something to eat on their own. In winter, due to the lack of grazing, we add a third meal to lunch.

Features of feeding pregnant pigs and piglets

The care and maintenance of Vietnamese pigs during pregnancy is somewhat complicated. Dairy products and eggs should be present in the diet during this period. Since a pregnant pig needs many nutrients, all feeds must be fortified. Livestock specialists recommend purchasing special vitamins. But before buying it is better to consult a veterinarian. The choice of vitamin complexes is influenced by many factors. First of all, the choice depends on whether the animal is walking or sitting locked up.

Newborn Vietnamese piglets do not need to be fed: they feed exclusively on mother's milk. Only if, for some reason, the mother's milk disappears, newborns are transferred to artificial feeding. It is impossible to unequivocally answer the question of how many days you need to introduce complementary foods. It all depends on the weight gained by the piglet.

In general, the first complementary foods are introduced at the age of 10 days (if the weight of the piglet has reached the mark of 1 kilogram). Pure water, crushed chalk, charcoal and clay are introduced into the diet. At the age of 20 days, if the weight of the piglet exceeds 1.5 kg, the maturing livestock is supplemented with porridge and special compound feed. New types of feed are introduced into the diet gradually so as not to cause indigestion in young animals.

In order to avoid health problems, complementary foods for piglets must be of high quality. The black piglet of this breed eats with great appetite. But more than the norm to give wet cereals is not worth it. It is best if females farrow in winter or spring.

Breeding

First of all, it is worth answering the question of whether Vietnamese pigs are profitable on the farm. The meat productivity of this breed is lower than that of many existing hybrids. However, this breed is one of the most precocious and very prolific. In addition, pigs economically consume food. The market price of the Vietnamese bellied pig is on average 70-100 US dollars. All factors together allow us to say that breeding the described pigs is indeed a profitable occupation.

Breeding and raising pigs of this breed is a simple task. In addition, piglets are relatively inexpensive. The main thing is to follow some rules. In numerous videos about breeding Vietnamese pigs, livestock specialists emphasize that the boar and the pig should not be relatives, otherwise there will be no viable and healthy offspring. Pigs are carefully selected for mating. Despite early puberty, individuals whose weight has not reached 30 kg should not be covered. They will not be able to bear strong piglets. In addition, too early fertilization will adversely affect the health of the pig itself.

It is possible to determine that a pig is ready for mating by a number of signs. During sexual hunting, she behaves restlessly, from the genitals, which turn red and swell, discharge appears. When pressing on the croup, the animal ready for mating freezes and does not try to escape. During the sexual hunt, the breeding boar and the pig are placed in the same cage or paddock and kept there for 24 hours. Sexual hunting does not last long. In order for pregnancy to occur, it is important to plant a boar to the pig in a timely manner.

Pregnancy and childbirth

Pregnant pigs give birth 116 days after mating. This is the average duration of pregnancy. The pig bears well, complications are rare. The readiness of the pig for childbirth can be judged by the restless behavior of the woman in labor and the desire to build a nest. From the beginning of the arrangement of the nest, in which the pig carefully lays hay, until the onset of childbirth, a little less than a week passes.

Also, the fact that childbirth will soon come can be judged by the lowered belly, swollen nipples and formed milk lobes. Just before farrowing, small amounts of colostrum are secreted from the teats. Also at this time the animal does not eat. Childbirth lasts an average of 4 hours. The end of this process is the release of the placenta, which the sow should not eat. It is usually buried in the garden.

Vietnamese newborn piglets in the photo look unusually cute. In the first hour of life, you need to have time to cut the umbilical cord and properly treat the wound, clean the black piglets from films (especially in the respiratory tract), wipe and feed, attaching to the sow's nipples. If newborns do not receive colostrum within the first hour, this will negatively affect the formation of immunity.

At first, the pig itself takes care of the offspring. Using tables of correspondence between height and weight, they monitor how the piglets grow. At the age of 1 month, piglets are weaned from the sow. Weaning from the mother is carried out gradually: this will help prevent the appearance of mastitis in the pig. First, young animals should be separated from their mother several times a day for several hours, then young individuals are completely separated.

Prepare for childbirth in advance. They thoroughly clean the pen in which the pig will give birth, prepare a drinker with water, which should always be near the woman in labor, prepare rags for wiping newborns, in winter they think over the heating system in the pen where the sow will be with young animals.

Diseases

In general, growing pigs of this breed simply because of their strong immunity. However, with poor care or nutrition, native animals can get sick. Consider which diseases are most common, how they differ from each other and what treatment is best to use.

One of the most common diseases is erysipelas. Symptoms of the disease are falling to the feet, the appearance of purple spots on the skin and trembling. If untreated, the animal dies within a few days. It is transmitted by airborne droplets, so sick individuals are placed in a separate pen.

Often, erysipelas are confused with plague, as they have similar symptoms. But with plague, in addition to red, purple spots appear on the skin.

Dysentery is another dangerous disease. Its symptoms are loose stools with blood and fever.

Often after giving birth, the pig goes bald. This is due to the lack of iron in the body. In this case, you need to inject preparations containing this trace element.

Disease prevention

First of all, all necessary vaccinations should be done in a timely manner and the pig room should be kept clean. It is also necessary to systematically monitor the pigs. If it becomes noticeable that the growth of the piglet has stopped, its skin is flaking, it itches, or there are wounds that fester, turn sour eyes, you should consult a doctor. Any, even minor signs (the animal does not eat well, for example) indicate discomfort. We need to find out what caused it.

You also need to remember that pigs get worms from time to time, so you need to give helminth preparations systematically according to the instructions, which also indicate the frequency of deworming with this medicine. It is advisable to puncture piglets with broad-spectrum antibiotics. But you can give only those drugs that will be prescribed by a qualified doctor.

Buying young animals

When breeding pigs of this breed, you need to purchase piglets. Today you can make this purchase even through the Internet. But experts advise you to go to a farm where qualified livestock specialists work.

When buying, you should ask to see all individuals. It is better to stop the choice on the most active piglets with a good appetite, without visible defects.

It will not be superfluous to look at the parents of the pigs. If there are deviations from the standards in their exterior, it is worth looking for other breeders. A specific feature of the representatives of this breed is a straight tail that does not twist into a donut and a short muzzle resembling that of a pug.

Before buying, it is advisable to show the young to the veterinarian, although the health of the pigs is carefully monitored on farms. As a rule, individuals already vaccinated against dangerous diseases are sold.

Before going shopping, the pigsty is properly prepared. Young animals need a warm room without drafts and with a normal level of humidity. Best suited for this breed is a building made of wood or brick. When purchasing young animals, they take into account the size of the pigsty: one adult should have 2.5-3 square meters. m.

You also need to consider that the breed needs large amounts of green fodder and daily walks. In the absence of pasture for walking, another breed should be looked after. According to current standards, one adult pig needs at least 1 acre of land. It is advisable to sow the land with forbs in the spring, which improves the taste of meat. First of all, it is alfalfa and clover. Young nettle also has a positive effect on the taste of meat.

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