How Much Feed Should a Pig Eat
Introduction to pig feed chart and pig weight chart
Pig farming is the raising and breeding of domestic pigs as livestock and it is not only a profitable business but also a very popular and lucrative business. In comparison to another livestock rearing, the main advantages of pig farming are extremely high. The growth rate of the pig farming business is high. Within a short period, one can increase the quantity of livestock as pigs are the prolific breeders with high fecundity and shorter generation interval. A sow can be bred as early as 8 to 9 months of age and can farrow twice a year. They have a very short gestation period of 114 days and able to produce 6 to 12 or even more piglets in each farrowing. Pig farming provides quick returns since the marketable weight (80-100 kg) of fatteners can be achieved at the age of 7 to 9 months. The pig has got the highest feed conversion efficiency that means they produce more live weight gain from a given weight of feed than any other class of meat-producing animals except broilers.
A step by step guide to the chart of the pig feed and pig weight
A male pig is called a boar and a female pig is called a gilt if she hasn't had piglets yet and a sow if she has. The important part of swine production is in knowing the correct way to feed pigs. Whether browsing through a piglet feeding guide or studying swine management methods, pigs need a high energy diet that is low in fiber that contains ample protein. Pigs will consume enormous amounts of food quickly. To raise and maintain a healthy stock, maximize growth and reproduction, and increase production, it is essential to feed them the right food and a balanced diet from wean to finish.
The pig can utilize a wide variety of feedstuffs like grains, forages, damaged feeds, and garbage and convert them into valuable nutritious meat. Though, feeding of damaged grains, garbage, and other unbalanced rations may result in lower feed efficiency. Pig farming business requires a small investment in buildings and equipment.
How to put weight on a pig rapidly
Several factors can affect the rate at which a pig gains weight, among them breed and gender, age, feed type, and quality, feeding frequency and quantity, ambient temperature, and exercise amount. Though you can't control all factors, you can control enough of them to reasonably expect to help a pig to gain weight as rapidly as possible.
Essential nutrition
A pig's dietary requirements change with his size. Younger, smaller pigs must be allowed to eat as much pig starter as they want. Pig starter feeds are 75 percent to 80 percent carbohydrate sources like corn and sorghum. When a pig reaches 170 pounds, switch to a feed that is lower in fat; otherwise weight gain will be mostly fat.
Pig feed supplements as part of the chart
Encourage feed intake by adding flavor-enhancing supplements to pig's food. Doing so works best when you are not employing free-feeding and a pig whose feedings are scheduled will eat till all the food's gone, by habit so you can add a little more at a time. Boost consumption by adding up to a half-pound of whey, milk replacer, and liquid protein supplements on top of food at each feeding. A pig should always have fresh, clean water.
5 weeks to 3 months
After weaning, each piglet must receive a 3/4 cup of food per day, using at least a 16% protein grower ration. About 3/4 cup per day per pig is the minimum for this age range. Then, this age pig requires a hefty amount of food so that the nervous system, organs, and bones develop properly.
3 months and older
To maintain a pig in good condition then feeding a 14% protein maintenance ration. Start increasing slowly as the pig grows with a maximum of about 2 cups daily for an adult pig. Try not to underfeed or overfeed sweetie pig.
Weather is a factor to consider when determining your pigs' food rations, whether young or old, male or female, breeder, or pet. Be sure to increase the ration of pigs housed out of doors when winter weather prevails. Pigs will be burning calories just keeping warm. Pigs have access to lots of fresh grass, you may find it necessary to decrease the amount of pig chow provided. All adult pigs (over one-year-old) receive two cups of food daily, with alteration as dictated by their body condition, weather, grazing availability, and where they are in their breeding cycle.
Table for growing pig daily feed chart and water intake
| Age of pig (weeks) | Weight (kg) | Daily gain (g) | Feed consumption per day (kg) | Water Consumption per day (l) |
| 4 | 7 | 210 | 0.35 | 0.9 |
| 6 | 12 | 400 | 0.75 | 1.9 |
| 8 | 21 | 625 | 1.0 | 2.5 |
| 10 | 30 | 655 | 1.2 | 3.0 |
| 12 | 40 | 710 | 1.4 | 3.6 |
| 14 | 51 | 805 | 1.7 | 4.2 |
| 16 | 65 | 970 | 1.9 | 4.8 |
| 18 | 80 | 1020 | 2.2 | 5.5 |
| 20 | 95 | 1120 | 2.4 | 6.0 |
| 22 | 110 | 1100 | 2.65 | 6.6 |
Tips for feeding pigs
Feeding pigs is a challenging work for pig operations when pig farming. Feeding pigs is essential and right feedstuffs and proper feed combination for pig farmers, particularly for those who are keeping pig for profits.
1. Pig farmers know what weight of pigs they want to achieve. Because the fat content of the pig is measured when sold, and the pig is priced accordingly and the thickness of fat that covers the meat of the pig is dependent on what is fed to it and in what quantity.
2. To keep the pig big and healthy, the suitable kind of feedstuffs can be fed with it. The pig farmer who is dependent on feeds, should not feed their pigs leftovers as the leftovers will ruin the appetite of pigs. It is very important to seek the advice of an expert when feeding pigs, regarding the amount of feed to be given when raising pigs. And, also take enough time to consider what feeds the pigs are responding best to, which will help make feeding swine's easier.
3. There are several kinds of feedstuffs can be chosen for hogs, so they are not that hard to feed
- It is possible for pigs to get tired of eating the same feed things for a long duration. Variation of feed materials should be included for the swine food, depending on the swine age. The food that is given to a young pig is different from that for an older pig in so several ways. Usually, a young pig of 8 weeks should be given feed with 17-18% protein; older pigs must get around 15%.
- Bred pigs are given a special mix of feeds to ensure that they can give birth to many young pigs. Tankage and meat scraps are one good source for protein, and soybean oil meal is a good choice for pig feed mix for the best result.
- Barley, wheat, and sorghum can be used, but do not use the bird-proof sorghums, because they have reduced palatability. Also, yellow or white sorghum is better than the red one.
- If the pig feed is self-made by pig farmers, the grain needs to be ground (but not too finely) and mixed with the protein sources for a complete meal. If the feed is bought from stores, buy a ground meal for a large number of pigs or feed pellets or cubes for a smaller number of pigs.
4. Select the proper pig feeders, because the right feeder can greatly help pig feeding efficiency. Usually, there are many types of pig feeding equipment like automatic cylindric pig feeder used for fattening pigs; dry wet pig feeder suitable for powder and pellet feedstuffs; feed troughs for sows, piglets and fattening pigs.
How to formulate good pig feed as part of the chart
Formulating a good pig feed will mainly help achieve the optimum growth of your stock. Feeds should meet the animal's needs for maintenance, growth, and reproduction, and have sufficient energy, protein, minerals, and vitamins.
Farm grains are the common and best source of food to feed pigs. Most typically corn-based feeds are used because they are high in digestible carbohydrates, low in fiber, and cost-effective. The feed must be supplemented with other vitamins, proteins, and some antibacterial compounds to their feed to slow the growth of naturally occurring bacteria that may be harmful to the animal or your stock. Feeds mixed with rice bran, broken rice, maize, soya beans, cassava, vegetables, and distillers' residues have shown the best results.
Pig feed/ration – mixing ratio (in kg)
| Ingredients | Pig weight (15-30 kg) | Pig weight (30-60 kg) | Pig weight (over 60 kg) |
| Soya beans | 25 | 20 | 15 |
| Rice bran | 25 | 30 | 35 |
| Maize | 20 | 25 | 30 |
| Broken rice | 5 | 5 | 5 |
| Wheat bran | 20 | 15 | 10 |
| Leucaena tree leaves | 5 | 5 | 5 |
| Total (100 kg) | 100 | 100 | 100 |
| Crude protein (%) | 16 | 15 | 14 |
Pig feed requirements as per the chart
A pig's food and also water requirements change as pigs grow.
Piglets (Under 40 lbs.) – Piglets, younger pigs that weigh less than 40 pounds, must be introduced to a solid diet through creep feeding while they are still suckling. Dietary needs will increase daily with the weight of pigs.
Growing and Finishing Pigs (40+ lbs.) – Growing pigs, those weighing 40 to 125 pounds, and finishing pigs, those weighing 125 pounds to market weight approximately 230 pounds or more should transition from the grower feeds that are nutrient-dense with more protein to the finisher feeds that are less dense.
Expected pig growth rate
Because a pig eats about 4% of its body weight per day, they require several essential nutrients to meet their daily needs, i.e., water, carbohydrates, fats, protein (amino acids), minerals, and vitamins. With a proper diet, expect weight gains of about 1.5 to 1.7 pounds per day up to about 110 pounds. After that, weight gains of 1.8 to 2.2 pounds per day.
Calculate the weight of your pig in pounds
Heart girth can be used to estimate the weight and can be helpful if only a few pigs need to be weighed because it reduces scale setup and teardown time and transportation of pigs. Get a fabric measuring tape or a piece of string to use as a measure. If using string mark the dimensions on the string and measure the dimensions using a steel tape measure.
Place the tape or string under the pig just behind the front legs and measure the circumference of the pig's girth in inches. This measurement is called the Heart Girth. Measure the length of the pig along its back from the base of its ears to the base of its tailin inches.
Then, calculate the pig's weight, first square the Heart Girth to get the Girth Result. And, now Multiply the Girth Result by the Length and divide by 400. You now weight pig in Pounds.
Calculate bodyweight of pig using the formula;
HEART GIRTH x HEART GIRTH x BODY LENGTH / 400 = PIG WEIGHT IN POUNDS.
For example, if an adult pig has a heart girth equal to 45 inches and a body length equal to 54 inches, then the weight would be (45 x 45 x 54) / 400 = 273 lbs.
If the sow or hog weighs less than 150 lbs., add 7 lbs. to the final answer. For example, if you have a young hog whose total body weight you have calculated to be 125 using the above formula, use the formula 125 + 7 = 132 lbs.
You may also check this: Sheep Feed Chart and Weight Chart.
What to feed a pig for weight gain as part ofthe chart
What to feed pigs is an important step to ensure maximum weight gain for the herd. Feeding and nutritional strategies for pigs, no matter the age, is one of the main keys to success. Certainly, several considerations can influence production, and your farm's profits when managing your herd. The success of any commercial pig enterprise will be affected by a different variety of factors, such as genetics, health, environment, feed intake, and ability to meet nutritional requirements with the right ingredients at the right price. Each of these factors has to be considered. Pork producers who properly design feeding and nutritional programs can increase production. One of the best signs of success is directly related to knowing what to feed pigs for the utmost weight gain.
Increasing pig weight requires giving it the right food. If the pig doesn't gain weight as fast, you'd like, you must reduce its fiber intake while adding fat and sugar to its diet. Choosing the right protein and grain sources are also important elements of making pig gain weight. Beyond making the right dietary choices, keeping pig healthy and housed comfortably will encourage weight gain.
Balancing nutrition
Because genetics, environment, and feeding patterns of the herd will play a role in nutritional strategy, you will need to have the right diet formula in place to meet those needs. Then, this means developing a feeding program that will fit the production needs of the herd. Decide on an assortment of ingredients in formulating the diet for nutritional programs. A balance of energy sources and protein is necessary.
- Energy Sources are Corn, Milo, Wheat, Barley, and Tallow
- Protein Sources are Soybean meal, Field peas, Synthetic amino acids, and Canola meal
Quality and quantity of pig feed chart
Quality and quantity, along with selecting the right feed, play an important part in maximizing an increase in pig weight. Your feed must be low in fiber. It takes considerable energy for pigs to digest fiber and the more calories burned in high-fiber diets, the fewer calories a pig absorbs, and the less there is available to turn into growth.
Choosing the right protein source is necessary for maximum weight gain, too. Thus, the protein must be high in the amino acids and peptides that pigs need for growth. Then, they are the structural units of protein, not just crude protein. More importantly, amino acids are required in all stages of a pig's life to continue to grow muscle and weight and enable normal body function. Cereal grains and corn are a necessary energy source, they are a crude source of protein and deficient in essential amino acids for pigs.
In case if you are interested In How to Start a Livestock Feed Production, Cost, Profit.
Source: https://www.agrifarming.in/pig-feed-chart-and-pig-weight-chart-for-beginners
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