Is your animal acting like a toddler refusing to eat their broccoli? If you have ever poured a new supplement into your show animal’s feeder only to watch them sort around it, you are not alone. Picky eaters are one of the most common frustrations for show families, and it can feel like all that…
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Our recommended Show Pig Vaccination Protocol for receiving show pigs. This program helps you get off to a great start and stay healthy. If you buy pigs from one source with no commingling then the breeder’s vaccination program can augment this protocol. However, if you buy pigs from multiple farms, through an online sales (with…
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Read on for the whole story! Why should You Care: I’m a veterinarian working with show pig exhibitors for 30 plus years. One valuable lesson I’ve learned is that winning show pigs are healthy show pigs. When it comes to their health, nothing can undermine that more than parasites. Internal and external can wreak havoc…
Read MoreNo Matter what name you use cracked back / dippity pig this syndrome is a common problem in show pigs. It is dsomething we get asked about almost daily. WHAT IS IT: Pigs that develop painful bloody sores on the back, hind end weakness, and fever. It tends to be sudden onset so your pig may be fine…
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We all need to grow and nurture winning hair. That’s why it’s important to understand at least have a working knowledge of the science. The “Hair Cycle” One of the things people talk about all the time but don’t seem to understand is the hair cycle. There are actually 4 parts of a normal hair…
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One of the frequent things I get asked is what medications show pig families should have in their show pig medicine cabinet. Administering medications to food animals is serious business and proper care should be taken to use the right product at the right time the right way. Make sure that people that are doing…
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Why you should feed TrueTrac starting the first day you put a show pig prospect on feed. In 2015, a group of researchers from both private companies and Texas A&M University performed a study. They looked at the effects of chelated trace minerals as an intervention and prevention of degenerative joint disease (DJD) and osteoarthritis.…
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One of the topics that always come up are ulcers in show pigs. There are some infectious diseases that cause vomiting along with scours and certain mycotoxins can cause vomiting. With those exceptions when you see a show pig vomiting they almost certainly have a gastric ulcer. So what are the causes of gastric ulcers? …
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This time of year the question “We are getting ready to farrow. What do we need to have and know to farrow our first gilt?” shows up in our inbox and on social media a bunch. Facilities We aren’t going to go into facilities except to say you need somewhere that you can keep 70…
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Whether you call it bloody back or cracked back or dippity pig this syndrome is a common problem in show pigs and something we get asked about almost daily. WHAT IS IT: Pigs that develop painful bloody sores on the back, hind end weakness, and fever. It tends to be sudden onset so your pig may be fine…
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