Pigs 101 (A Start)

[COXYATCITY]

Check out http://www.rakbankerd.com for the official prices every day.

Today the price for live pigs in Thailand varied from 54 to 66 THB/kg. A big difference, I think.

Maybe a backup to sell at higher prices?

Frank

This difference is normal. Sell in Chiang Mai or sell in Isaan. TIT, prices go with the territory and the pocket books. I am in Isaan as are you, we are approaching lent and the prices will go down. Don't think backup plan, think basic market!

This price @ 66 THB is in Buriram (Isaan as you know)

it must be a mistake Frank,my wife has phoned a couple of people in Buri-ram,they laughed. ;

[COXYATCITY]

big problem with a sow just given birth.7 piglets.1 which looked nearly dead(and died) and the others looked ok.but the problem was that they came out very slowly the wrong way(breached),the sow we have treated with ya which what we were told to use ,she is very sick ,skin turned blue a lot over her body,no milk from her,2 more have died,and the 4 that is left have been moved to a new sow that gave birth to 10 piglets,but 1 of the 4 looks very sick,so i hope the 3 survive,and the sow makes it,. i know this is pig farming,ups and downs,but this month , Ian

[Brabo]

Check out http://www.rakbankerd.com for the official prices every day.

Today the price for live pigs in Thailand varied from 54 to 66 THB/kg. A big difference, I think.

Maybe a backup to sell at higher prices?

Frank

This difference is normal. Sell in Chiang Mai or sell in Isaan. TIT, prices go with the territory and the pocket books. I am in Isaan as are you, we are approaching lent and the prices will go down. Don't think backup plan, think basic market!

This price @ 66 THB is in Buriram (Isaan as you know)

it must be a mistake Frank,my wife has phoned a couple of people in Buri-ram,they laughed. ;

I checked today again, Last prices from friday 20/07, same farm in Buriram @ 66 THB. Maybe they have golden pigs ?

Maybe you can ask the wife to check the site. The name of the farm is mentioned.

[Brabo]

big problem with a sow just given birth.7 piglets.1 which looked nearly dead(and died) and the others looked ok.but the problem was that they came out very slowly the wrong way(breached),the sow we have treated with ya which what we were told to use ,she is very sick ,skin turned blue a lot over her body,no milk from her,2 more have died,and the 4 that is left have been moved to a new sow that gave birth to 10 piglets,but 1 of the 4 looks very sick,so i hope the 3 survive,and the sow makes it,. i know this is pig farming,ups and downs,but this month , Ian

Ian,

Really sorry to read this.

I also lost a sow a few months ago. It's verry depressing but as you say "Pig farming has ups and downs".

I wish you a huge UP, afther this !

[chrisnouy]

By coincidence a dutch friend visited me on sunday When he saw my black , brown and white pigs which i thought were poland china duroc large white mix breeds he told me about a breed which he called ??/ portrainer ??-- which was the main meat pig in Holland. been around for a long time apparently

Why was the Duroc 'replaced'?

Post or PM me a few pics of these pigs. I am interested.

I have only knowledge of Pietrain(=portren?) It is the main finishing breed in Holland.

The Pietrain is from Belgian origine, so more used in Europe.

The Duroc has Canadian origine and more used in the states.

Duroc and Pietrain are both used as finishing boars.

With replaced I meant that in Thailand, Duroc was used and now they try with Pietrain.

pictures are billy big balls

The sow missy

browny

inky

these are keepers

These are keepers

black gilt

three mixed

all these from same litter???

[revar]

Chris, on your question pf the costs of the Betagro diet as I described it. Depends a bit on the prices your supplier charges (you can cat discounts if you buy a lot) but it with normalprices itwill be around 3400 bath to105 kg. Also depand a lot on the piglets. I have got t to 110 for 2900 but also sold at 85 kg after they ate their full quotem. The 105 kg adter this diet is an average but asumes healty piglets. For pigletss who prove to be less healty or which I buy under 10kg actually switch to another brand 'selectfeed' which contains different medicines in their different types of foods. Prices are simular.

Sent from my GT-S6102 using Thaivisa Connect App

Edited July 23, 2012 by revar

[COXYATCITY]

big problem with a sow just given birth.7 piglets.1 which looked nearly dead(and died) and the others looked ok.but the problem was that they came out very slowly the wrong way(breached),the sow we have treated with ya which what we were told to use ,she is very sick ,skin turned blue a lot over her body,no milk from her,2 more have died,and the 4 that is left have been moved to a new sow that gave birth to 10 piglets,but 1 of the 4 looks very sick,so i hope the 3 survive,and the sow makes it,. i know this is pig farming,ups and downs,but this month , Ian

the sow never got better,not feeding ,only drinking,so we had her slaughtered as she was getting worse,there were 7 piglets still in her so she was suffering for a few days,

3 piglets left are doing well with another sow

[revar]

Ian

Very sorry to hear this. Must be a difficult descision. I find it hard to decide to slaughter pigs which are not growing well and these are fattening pigs which I only keep for 4months. A sow with which you bond, that mustbe terrible hard. At least you made the right descision. Hope things go well with the surviving piglets and with you and your pigs on the future. Most of the time raising pigs is fun, but sometimes...

Rene

Sent from my GT-S6102 using Thaivisa Connect App

[COXYATCITY]

Ian

Very sorry to hear this. Must be a difficult descision. I find it hard to decide to slaughter pigs which are not growing well and these are fattening pigs which I only keep for 4months. A sow with which you bond, that mustbe terrible hard. At least you made the right descision. Hope things go well with the surviving piglets and with you and your pigs on the future. Most of the time raising pigs is fun, but sometimes...

Rene

Sent from my GT-S6102 using Thaivisa Connect App

Thanks Rene

[jompa67]

I want to commit a warning to all who use medication that must be kept cold.

We are about to recover from Svine fever outbreaks. How could it happen? We follow a strict vaccination program in which swine fever vaccine is included.

We believe that the problem lies with the provider, in this case is a local farm store. Our vaccines must be stored at a temperature not exceeding 6 degrees. What if the power goes off for two hours in the middle of the night? The vaccine will obviously be destroyed, but is there anyone here on the forum who think that farm store will account for a loss of 50 +100 KBath? They're going to sell the vaccine to clients who believe that it is fully functional.

I dont want to accuse any dealer/provider for cheating but you are the buyer and must do everything you can to make sure that vaccined is not destroyed. Just ask what happen if they got problem with electricity. If they answer "No problem No problem" then u know u have a BIG problem.

[revar]

jompa,

I hope it wasn't too bad and you recover quickly. With the margins as small as they are any setback can turn a profit on a loss.

I Totaly agree with your warning., I don't vacinate much because I dont trust the suppliers having seen how they store their vaccines and having experienced some sickness despiye ofvacination. Medicines which have to kept cold I keep in the icebox.. Much more reliable than electricity around here.

Sent from my GT-S6102 using Thaivisa Connect App

Edited July 31, 2012 by revar

[COXYATCITY]

back to sunny Surin(lol) later today,the last couple of sows have been good,9 - 10.looking strong and healthy,can,t wait to see them with my own eyes ,had a couple of good results in the last 3 days,5 bags of food from birth,108 kg + 98 kg.they say there are some big ones left as well ,,but there are some about 80 + out of the 16 left.,,this is an old picture

Edited July 31, 2012 by COXYATCITY

[IsaanAussie]

Jompa,

Sorry for the loss and good luck with the recovery. This type of thing has happened to me as well and it was unbelievable that a vet would administer or sell faulty or suspect drugs. The problem I had was introduced by the drugs.

But I have also been caught buying something in a major store that has been returned to the shelf after a customer has found it faulty and taken it back to the shop. Attention to detail is not a strong point here, and perhaps the attitude on responsibility to your customers could be be improved. Still it is what it is, buyer beware.

[Brabo]

back to sunny Surin(lol) later today,the last couple of sows have been good,9 - 10.looking strong and healthy,can,t wait to see them with my own eyes ,had a couple of good results in the last 3 days,5 bags of food from birth,108 kg + 98 kg.they say there are some big ones left as well ,,but there are some about 80 + out of the 16 left.,,this is an old picture

Enjoy your staying at the farm. I envy you. Would like to be in Sisaket myself.

Take some new pics and make me even more jalous.

[Brabo]

A few days ago, I got a phonecall from a forum-member who asked me if I would like to buy some Pietrain gilts and piglets.

Today I received a phonecall from another verry nice forum-member. Would I like to buy some Packchong 5?

Offcourse I would like to, but dam_n, I don't have any empty pens and the new sty is still in progress!!!

My in-laws are working verry hard but there is still a lot of work to do. On top of this, my plan of going to the farm is delayed with a few weeks becourse several customers from my other bussines just arrived in LOS.

For the moment, I am trying to find out the differences between Packchong 1-2-3-4 and 5. I do know that 3 and 5 are the most wanted but I don't have any clue why.

Are the Packchong concidered as breeds or hybrids?

Does anyone have pics of them?

Many thanks to the forum-members !!!

[IsaanAussie]

To my pigfarming friends a gentle nudge on pricing and costs. IMHO two things are likely to happen sooner rather than later.

First, the lent period is on us and usually live prices will start to decline from now until close to the end of the year. Remember last year, 80+ baht become 48 Baht in a matter of weeks.

Second is commercial feed costs. These are set to jump, the commodity prices for feed materials is rising with low yields in principle producing countries like the US. This is effect prices globally and we can expect to pay more per bag very soon.

[revar]

Betagro prices went up 3% on1august.

Sent from my GT-S6102 using Thaivisa Connect App

[IsaanAussie]

Betagro prices went up 3% on1august.

So I found out this morning at the feed store. But I feel there will be another jump yet. It would not surprise me to see another 3 to 5% before year end.

[Brabo]

Betagro prices went up 3% on1august.

So I found out this morning at the feed store. But I feel there will be another jump yet. It would not surprise me to see another 3 to 5% before year end.

Bought today Betagro 304 @ 370 THB. First time, think price is ok.

[Brabo]

Betagro prices went up 3% on1august.

Sent from my GT-S6102 using Thaivisa Connect App

I am looking for the " DO NOT LIKE THIS" button ...

[RedBullHorn]

Betagro prices went up 3% on1august.

So I found out this morning at the feed store. But I feel there will be another jump yet. It would not surprise me to see another 3 to 5% before year end.

Bought today Betagro 304 @ 370 THB. First time, think price is ok.

Not only Betagro but all producing company 3% for pigs feed 5% for fish feed due to soya and corn price up, but farm gate price for catfishes up by 1 Baht

So if you have some fund, stock up...

Edited August 3, 2012 by RedBullHorn

[revar]

Only my Selectfeed contact is saying that they will not raise their prices. Saving up to have a truckload delivered (the local dealer has quit and they want me to be their dealer). with the others price rising I might give it a try since it has now become cheaper than Betagro and has a lot of medicines mixed in on the different types. Until now I have mainly used it for my sickbay. Another benefit is monthly free visits from their vet.

Sent from my GT-S6102 using Thaivisa Connect App

[revar]

Brabo,

304? I assume you are not using it for fattening but just as maintenance feed.

Sent from my GT-S6102 using Thaivisa Connect App

[Brabo]

Brabo,

304? I assume you are not using it for fattening but just as maintenance feed.

Sent from my GT-S6102 using Thaivisa Connect App

Indeed, for maintenance feed only. Is the price correct?

[revar]

Brabo, normal retail price for 304 was 360 so if this is after the 3% its ok

Sent from my GT-S6102 using Thaivisa Connect App

[revar]

broke my fattening record yesterday. One pig went from 15 kilo to 116 kilo in 105 days. feed cost less then 3000 bath. Other pigs from the same piglet supplier were between 94 and 104 kilo (same age and feed costs). Still very good. Illustrating how important the quality of the piglets is is the fact that another pen with other piglets took over 5 months to reach 85-90 kilo with feed costs around 3500.

Sent from my GT-S6102 using Thaivisa Connect App

[IsaanAussie]

Very impressive Revar. I have been getting gains from our probiotic in the drinking water and am now keen to start making feed on farm. The vast reduction in smell is a really welcome additional benefit.

The week before and two weeks after weaning are where you can make a big difference to a pigs performance. I have been working hard on the weaning cycle. The transition to solid feed alone is critical and I have increased the time to weaning to 5 weeks, now 6 to track the intake of creep feed longer. The difference is noticeable and the piglets are now choosing to either suckle first or head for the feeder. With the largest going for the food. My next step is to introduce a fermented bran feed which I will make here. By fermenting the vegetable protein sources, I can breakdown the fibre and protein to ease the digestion. The probiotic content also assists and I can eliminate scouring at less cost. As young piglets often do not drink much water it is hard to get probiotic into them other than in the feed. The intention is to produce a starter feed that is antibiotic and growth hormone free at less cost. With 12% milk powder as well as the cereals and a reducing fish meal content, it will be a lot easier dietary transition.

Another test underway is using a fermented cereal feed as a 50% replacement for commercial feeds.

[revar]

wow, The more I read about your business and knowledge the more impressed I am. I am now at a stage where I can often select the better piglets based on look and breed and I have a supplier who consistently delivers 80% very good piglets. The other 20% are acceptable.

The more I read from your writing and from some of the other members the more I start to doubt of I should start breeding myself at this stage. Now to convince my wife...

Sent from my GT-S6102 using Thaivisa Connect App

[IsaanAussie]

wow, The more I read about your business and knowledge the more impressed I am. I am now at a stage where I can often select the better piglets based on look and breed and I have a supplier who consistently delivers 80% very good piglets. The other 20% are acceptable.

The more I read from your writing and from some of the other members the more I start to doubt of I should start breeding myself at this stage. Now to convince my wife...

Revar,

You flatter me, much of my "knowledge" is recently acquired through research like most of us. No decades of experience here. I have been down most tracks and been disappointed with the results. Commercial EM being a good one. Definitely helped but only marginally, the fermentation I am able to do now really makes the difference since starting brewing this LAB probiotic. Before that just using standard feed components was not worth the effort at the scale of purchasing I am at. Now looking at alternate feed materials that can be used to replace the high priced ones the cost difference is potentially very high.

In your case, you are positioned of the supplier side already from what I read and accepted as having vet skills by potential buyers of piglets, so it would be a good bet if you can sell them. The counterbalance is that with the saving you have by buying wholesale and selling retail on feeds, your COP is lower so you can afford to buy quality piglets and eliminate the disappointments involved in breeding.

But for me, the breeding herd are different and are really what it is all about. The rules are simple and you pick them up as you go. The pigs will teach you most of it if you observe. You get to know the quirks of each and every sow and boar, more as pets than pigs. If you are remote from the day to days then I wouldn't do it. It is boots and all for me. To be blunt, growout is easy, just read the bags or have someone else do it all. Breeding needs passion and a lot of your time or a dedicated herdsman who loves your pigs.

[RedBullHorn]

broke my fattening record yesterday. One pig went from 15 kilo to 116 kilo in 105 days. feed cost less then 3000 bath. Other pigs from the same piglet supplier were between 94 and 104 kilo (same age and feed costs). Still very good. Illustrating how important the quality of the piglets is is the fact that another pen with other piglets took over 5 months to reach 85-90 kilo with feed costs around 3500.

Sent from my GT-S6102 using Thaivisa Connect App

I've done 135kg x 35 (among a 70 herd) in 120 days before... Yes from 17kg each, certified piglets make a different.