Pigs replaced cows on this farm
LAUREL SCHAEFFER
Staff Correspondent
AMBURG - Changing a
iiy farm into a hog fat
ting operation may not
E>eal to every farmer but
it’s what Stanley Derstine
I. When Derstine and his
nily decided threee years
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ago that they didn’t have to
milk cows to continue far
ming, hogs were not
necessarily what they were
planning on raising.
The hog fattening
operation grew gradually
from the time Derstine
bought a group of feeder
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pigs. Once he started raising
the first group he began
planning for more.
Feeling it was too ex
pensive to build a new setpup
designed for raising hogs,
Derstine remodeled his
stanchion barn after looking
at other operations and
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getting ideas on how to
change his existing facilities
so they would accomodate
his new interests. “I also
feel,” explained Derstine,
“that old buildings con
verted to your needs seem to
perform better than new
buildings sometimes.”
To accomodate the new
operation, Derstine took out
the stanchions and built pens
along both sides of the bam,
leaving an aisle down the
center of the bam. The pens
were constructed out of
cinder blocks and average
about 12 feet by 16 feet in
size. The bam cleaner was
left in and covered with slats
to make cleaning easy. Sash
blocks were used in the
doorway of each pen and
three-eighths inch plywood
is slipped in for the doors.
When full, the bam can
hold between 400 and 500
hogs at a time. The pens are
scraped down daily, which
this farmer feels is well
worth the half hour it takes
to do it. The gutters can hold
the manure for a few days so
hauling is only done a few
times a week. But a manure
pit is also in the plans for the
near future.
The hogs are bought as
feeders at about 40 pounds
and fed until market weight.
Derstine had been feeding
all the hogs high moisture
shelled com but has found
that feeding the smaller pigs
a commercial pelleted feed
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Lancaster Farming, Saturday, March 11,1978
Farming with hogs, instead of dairy cows, is less
demanding on Stanley Derstine's time. The Berks
Countain made the switch about three years ago.
gives them a better start. “I
have learned a lot so far,” he
remarked, “but still have a
lot more to learn.”
When the hogs reach about
70 pounds they are switched
to the high moisture com
and are given a 16 per cent
protein supplement at a four
to one ratio until they weigh
about 125 pounds. From
there they are cut back on
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supplement to a seven to one
ratio until sold.
The com is fed whole,
which seems to work well.
The hogs eat the whole com
before they clean up the
“fines” explained Derstine
and there doesn't seem to be
any whole com in the
manure. They are fed twice
a day and given only what
they will clean up at a
feeding.
Derstine docks the tails
when the pigs first arrive if
they were not docked before.
He has found this beneficial
in preventing tail biting
which occurs whenever hogs
are under a stress. The hogs
are also wormed on a
regular basis.
Derstine likes to market
his hogs every week to
produce a more regular flow
of income. He has found that
his fattening operation is
less demanding than the
dairy was as far as his time
is concerned. “I can get
away with feeding only once
a day if it is necessary,” he
said.
The Winter weather has
not caused him any problem
with hauling his manure but
he feels the pit he has
planned will fit his operation
even better. Derstine plans
to use liquid manure to top
dress his alfalfa because of
the good results he got when
he did it with Ms dairy
manure.
There are still a few
problems he feels he has to
work out on this enterprise,
but he is optimistic that they
will be solved. It has been
taking too long to finish some
of the hogs. Switching to the
pellets for the young pigs
seems to be part of that
answer, since they are
getting a better start.
“You have to be optimistic
m fanning or you won’t be in
it long,” he said. “From
what I’ve learned I will be
that much further ahead in
the future.”
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