For Those That Use Bought Pig Food.

[Scully]

The family are currently buying bought in pig food before starting to mix their own food when they have found the cheapest source for the mix.

My question is however hungry pigs are they will not eat the powder content of pig food, we try and mix it in again with the grain however it still ends up in the bottom of the trough.

What do other people do with it? Is it best just to chuck it to the fish? Is there a way of making them eat it?

Thanks in advance.

[IsaanAussie]

Scully,

Refer to Live Pig Prices post 14 by RedBullHorn. Maybe the grade of bran being used isnt as palatable to the pigs as what is being added.

IA

[WatersEdge]

What exactly are the ingredients?

Pigs turning down food is unusual.

They will eat most everything eventually,

just out of desire for curiosity and variety

If they won't eat dry stuff,

1. Try a taste of it.

Is it moldy or rancid?

Or is the other part so much more tasty that by comparison they don't care.

2. Pigs prefer wet to dusty feeds.

They don't like the trouble of licking up dry dust,

then running over for a drink of water.

They will eat much more quicker if it already is soaked in water.

If it is wet, the powder will cling to the granular material,

so they can't sort it out.

Having said this,

I frequently feed dry mix of

Rice Bran 25 kg

Laemtong 169 Concentrate 8 kg

Calcium Hydroxide Ca(OH)2 500 gram

Vitamin Mineral Premix 65 gram

Copper Sulfate CuSO4.5H20 50 gram

The reason that I feed this mix dry is that

when wet it attracts flies by the millions.

It would be a very good bait if you were trying to destroy flies.

I don't find a problem with pigs eating rice bran that's been in the bag a while.

The old stuff does taste a bit bitter, as the high oil content goes rancid,

but the protein and carb aren't as perishable as the oil

so they still eat it just fine.

They certainly prefer fresh to old.

If the rice bran will not make a cake

after squeezing tightly in your fist,

then it has too much hull blended,

and pigs won't eat that unless they are starved to it.

They know that it's not food.

That's a common stunt that mills play.

One small mill near me actually has a special grinder to mill the hull,

then he intentionally mixes it with perfectly good bran.

I haven't figured out if he's dishonest or just stupid,

but he offers that as a product.

and apparently someone buys it.

If it won't hold a cake then it's not worth my money.

[Scully]

Thanks again.

I added a little water to the powder and they licked the trough clean.

Can you tell I am a novice .

Edited October 20, 2010 by Scully

[WatersEdge]

That's it?

I was hoping for a complicated problem to tear through.

As Murdoch says,

"I love it when a plan comes together"

Well, get out there and stir up another problem!