एकीकृत कृषि पद्धति में सुअर और मछली पालन
Piggery is a highly profitable enterprise because of among the domestic animals, pigs are the most prolific. Feed conversion ratio is 3.0 to 3.5 kg feed per kg live weight gain. In India, pig farming and pork production are in the hands of traditional pig farmers belonging to lower income group people.
The food habits of Indians are changing and there is a great demand for pig meat. Integrated pig farming with fish is a demanding venture of enhanced income in the family of lower strata people.
Why to raise pig with fish ?
Pig can fit into diverse systems of management. It can be reared on kitchen wastes, industrial or agricultural by-products and slaughter house offal. Pigs are voracious eater and can convert agro-waste in to edible and highly nutritious meat.
One of the best feed converter and prolific amongst the all domesticated livestock. With short generation interval a sow can produce 16 piglets in a year. Dressing percentage is very high (65 to 70%) in comparison to sheep- goat (45 to 55%). Piggery can generate employment opportunity for rural population.
Pig Breeds suitable for integrated pig cum fish farming
- Large and Middle white Yorkshire
- Barkshire
- Duroc
- Hereford
- Landrace
- Chesterwhite
- Tamworth
- Crosses between exotic and indigenous pigs and pure local breeds are also available.
In Indian condition Large and Middle White Yorkshire and their crosses are most adaptable.
Management of Pig in IFS system
Housing Management-
The pigs are very sensitive to adverse climatic condition hence, a well protected housing is necessary for pig farming. It should be well protected from direct sunlight, rain and wind. The walls and floor should be strong enough to withstand the rooting habits of pigs.
To provide thermal comfort in hot summer days a wallowing tank may be provided in pig house. Pigs are kept under two housing systems viz. Indoor system and Open air system. A combination of these two systems is very advantageous and can be adopted in pig farming.
Space requirement-
For furrowing sows an individual furrowing pen with 10 to 16 sq ft/ sow having feed and water trough including guard rails & creep area should be provided. A concrete yard with feed and water trough is sufficient for fatteners. A sow with her litter requires 80 sq ft covered and 70 sq ft open area.
Feeding Management-
About 70% cost of the pig farming is feed cost. An economical balanced ration is required for rapid growth of piglets. Swill feeding including leftover of human food, vegetables, meat and fish culling can be provided to the pigs.
A 30 kg pig can reach 70 kg body weight in 70 days with kitchen waste. Old and putrefied swill feed should be avoided.
Feeding requirement-
An adult boar should be fed 2 kg concentrate mixture daily. For a pregnant sow the ration is 2.5 kg and for lactating sow it is 3.0 kg daily. Piglets consume about 10 kg creep feed up to 8 weeks of age.
Breeding management-
Pigs can be bred at the age of 8 to 9 month or 80 to 90 kg body weight and the boar-sow ratio should be 1:20. Generally, a sow can be bred 3 times in 2 year. Oestrus cycle in pig is 21 days.
After 24 hours of onset of heat is right time for mating, followed by a second mating after 8 to 12 hours. Gestation period in pig is 114 days.
Care of newborns-
Generally a sow give birth 8 to 12 piglets per furrowing. The piglets are weaned at 6 to 8 weeks of age when they attain body weight 10 to 12 kg. On second day of furrowing the piglets must be injected with 50 mg Iron injection (Inferon inj. 1 ml) to prevent piglet anaemia.
A second dose of injection may be given at 5 weeks of age. Creep feeding with 20% protein, vitamins and minerals should be ensured from one week age for optimum growth of piglets.
Health management-
Pigs are susceptible to heat stroke. Provision of wallowing or water sprinkling is very important during summer months. Vaccinations for Swine fever and Food and Mouth disease must be done periodically. Regular deworming is advised for a pig farm.
Integrated fish culture
In integrated farming system fish cultured for direct consumption of livestock manure or from spilled over feed. Livestock components help in the generation fish food organisms (planktons) which form the primary feed for fishes.
The integrated fish farming may be extensive, semi intensive or intensive sub system. Excess manure may lead to poor water quality, leading to depletion of dissolved oxygen level and fish mortality.
Selection of fish for integrated fish farming-
The only objective of integrated livestock fish farming is to produce a optimum level of phytoplankton, zooplankton and bacteria which are protein- rich natural feed for fish by livestock excreta. The suitable fish species for integrated fish farming system is which are able to filter feed plankton and bacteria from water.
The common filter feeders are carps and mixed feeders on algae- detritus are some species of tilapia.
Tilapia can survive on low levels of dissolved oxygen than the carps. Indigenous species like catla (Catla catla), rohu (Labeo rohita), mrigal (Cirrhinus mrigala) and kalbasu (Labeo calbasu) and the exotic varieties like grass carp (Ctenopharyngodon idella), silver carp (Hypophthalmichthys molitrix) and common carp (Cyprinus carpio) commonly used for composite culture.
Location of livestock shed and water tank
The livestock shed should be located at the higher side of pond nearer to the bank. The feed and excreta may be rinsed to the pond easily, so that the fish can utilize it properly. The animal house with cemented floor is preferred for better rinsing. Slatted floor design may be followed. The pig excreta and feed wastes allowed to pond directly.
Even locally available material like bamboo sticks can also be used in slatted floor. The management of pond is very important because the soil of the pond should be water retentive and adequate supply of water should be maintained. The pond should not be in flood prone area. In integrated fish farming perennial water is important.
The tank which retains water throughout the year is ideal for fish culture. The depth of the tank should be 2 to 3 meters (minimum 1.5 m). During peak summer at least 1.0 m water for 8 to 9 months also can be utilized for integrated fish farming.
A soil pH 6.5 to 7.5 is good for fish culture. To correct the soil pH lime may be used at the rate of 200 kg/ ha for 4.0 to 5.0 pH, 1200 kg/ ha for 5.1 to 6.0 pH, 1000 kg/ ha for 6.1 to 6.5 pH, 400 kg/ ha for 6.5 to 7.0 pH and 200 kg for 7.1 to 7.5 pH. The lime may be applied on 3 to 4 split doses.
Apart from maintaining soil pH lime also kills the parasites and hastens organic decomposition. Care should be taken to prevent excessive growth of aquatic plants, which will restrict sunlight penetration and oxygen circulation besides sheltering of fish predators.
The aquatic weeds can be controlled by manual, mechanical or biological means or by increasing the depth of the water tank. Predatory fishes should be eradicated by frequent netting. Mahua (Bassica latifolia) cake may be used at the rate of 2500 kg /ha of water for killing unwanted fishes.
It also acts as an organic fertilizer to the pond. Amonia, bleaching powder and tea seed cake also can be used to eradicate undesired fishes.
Stocking of fish in integrated livestock fish culture-
Depending on the availability of seed stocking can be done with 3,4 or 6 species according to the feeding habit of fishes like surface, column or bottom feeder. Catla and silver carp are surface feeder and the stocking density should be 30 to 35%.
Rohu is column feeder and the stocking density should be 15 to 20%. Bottom feeder like common carp and mrigal should be 40 to 45%. Herbivorous fish like grass carp may be 5 to 10% in a pond and can be fed with aquatic weed, land grasses or with vegetable refuse.
CIFRI recommended stocking density of 8500 fish/ ha for pig cum fish culture. ICAR Research Complex for NEH Region suggested stocking density to be 6000 fingerlings/ ha in pig cum fish culture integrated farming system.
Potentiality of pig manure-
The most important nutrients like N, P, K are available in livestock manure along with other micronutrients. The average dung productions in pigs are 0.25 tones per pig per year. Pig manure is also a good source of nitrogen and phosphorus.
In pig excreta N, P, K contents are 0.60%, 0.50%, 0.20% respectively. Pigs under 50 kg body weights on average produce 2.5 kg dung per day and 50 to 90 kg pig produce 5 kg per day and it contains 20 to 25% dry matter.
On an average 30 to 40 pigs are suggested for one hectre water bodies. The pi-fish integrated farming system is economically viable and recommended for sustainable integrated farming system.
Production performance of fish in pig-fish integrated farming system-
It was observed that in pig-fish integrated farming system the growth rate (gm/fish/day) of catla, grass carp, common carp and mrigal is 1.29, 0.87, 0.50 and 0.80, respectively.
The economic return in integrated farming system with livestock like pig- fish farming system in first year in terms of input- output ratio is 1:1.95 and 1: 2.11 in pig- duck- fish system. In second year the ratio is 1:2.23 and 1:2.42, respectively.
Constraints for integrated livestock- fish farming system-
- Non-availability of good quality fish seed.
- Non-availability of quality feeds with affordable market price.
- Scarcity of water during winter months.
- Non- availability of credit facility.
- Lack of extension facility or awareness among the farmers.
Thumb rule tips for optimum production from fish in livestock integrated farming system-
- Maintain optimum water level in pond (1 to 1.5 m)
- Lime application (1200 kg/ ha)
- Organic manure application (5000 kg cow dung/ ha)
- Eradication of predatory fishes
- Composite fish culture with catla, silver carp, rohu, mrigal, common carp and grass carp
- Stocking density @ 7000 fingerlings/ ha
- Monitoring water quality periodically
Authors:
Dr Asit Chakrabarti ¹, Dr P C Chandran, Dr J J Gupta, Dr Reena Kamal, Dr Shanker Dayal, Dr Rajni Kumari
Division of Livestock & Fishery management, ICAR Research Complex for Eastern Region
ICAR Parisar, P.O. Bihar Veterinary College, Patna- 800014, Bihar
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