How to Raise Pigs on Milk Replacer

Twenty percent of newborn pigs die shortly after birth because of crushing injuries inflicted by the sow or because of hypothermia (cold), say livestock experts at the New South Wales Department of Primary Industries. In their article ̶0;Basic Pig Husbandry--The Litter,̶1; Graeme Taylor and Greg Roese state that piglets that are the smallest in the litter will not only suffer these ailments, they will die from starvation because they cannot push themselves to a teat. Farmers and pig owners should hand-raise these runts on sow milk replacer to let them survive.

Things You'll Need

  • Sow colostrum
  • Syringe
  • Pig rearing quarters with heating pad or heat lamp
  • Sow milk replacer
  • Human baby bottle with nipple
  • Iron Dextran with needle and syringe; or iron paste
  • Pig creep
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Instructions

    • 1

      Feed your new piglets 20 to 30 ml of sow̵7;s colostrum using a syringe. They need feeding with the colostrum every two hours from birth for the first seven to eight hours of life to ingest the mother̵7;s antibodies and receive necessary nutrients. If sow̵7;s colostrum is not available, you can use cow colostrum.

    • 2

      Keep your piglets in rearing quarters that are clean, free of drafts and warm; 85 to 90 degrees Fahrenheit is vital for survival of the litter since they cannot generate their own heat. Some commercial rearing units come complete with heating elements, a meshed dunging area and automatic feeders.

    • 3

      Hand-feed your litter 40 to 50 ml of sow milk replacer every four to six hours using a human baby bottle and teat after they ingest the colostrum. Allow the babies to eat 20 to 30 ml of milk every 60 to 90 minutes if you feed with an automatic feeder. Continue this schedule, gradually increasing the amount, until the piglets eat 80 ml to 100 ml per feeding without stopping. Feed this increased amount of milk replacer to the litter on their regular time schedule until weaning occurs in approximately 30 days.

    • 4

      Inject the orphans with 2 cc of Iron Dextran intramuscularly or administer a weight appropriate dose of iron paste when the babies are two to three days old. Dispensing this mineral protects the piglets from the anemia that occurs when the newborns do not receive the sow̵7;s colostrum.

    • 5

      Introduce the litter to a semi-solid food gradually once they are seven to 10 days old. Wean the piglets totally to a milk-based starter feed (semi-solid creep) once they reach 12 to 14 pounds of weight, usually a month after birth.