The Rural Voice, 2005-06, Page 20RYAN
CONSTRUCTION
LANDSCAPING &
MUNICIPAL DITCHING,
DOZING & EXCAVATING
Fence Lines,
Earth Moving, Ditching
Aggregates & Top Soil
Foundation dug or buried
Large and Trim Dozers
Excavator
By the hour or contract
RR 2, Brussels
Phone 887-6916
Fax 887-6949
Greg Jim
519-887-2638 519-887-6916
A pig uses the one-way gate (centre)
sorted on a Thursday, with the
animals being shipped out on
Mondays.
"We try to get them up to 255
pounds before we ship them," said
John. "They are re -weighed just
before we ship them."
As animals pass through the
automatic sorters, they are weighed,
then directed to go into a holding pen
for shipping or back to the main pen
if they are not heavy enough.
"The (truck) drivers and the
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to leave the food court area of the pen.
packing plants enjoy getting these
pigs because they are easier to work
with and know how to follow one
another," he said, adding they are
easier to load and unload.
He explained because they have
been trained to go through gates to
get to the feeders, they are more
controllable when they get to the
packing plant.
He said the animal rights
people would be pleased with
this barn as the animals need
very little touching or prodding as
they are loaded for market. They are
not in a crowded pen and are bedded
on straw.
"We are still learning the ins and
outs of the barn," said John. "We are
fine tuning the systems."
John said the pen is cleaned two
times per week. When it comes time
to clean the pen, the pigs are
collected on one side of the partition,
with removable gates. It usually takes
two people to dean out the pen and it
can be done in about 90 minutes.
Ann usually helps in the pen
cleaning.
"We'd clean one side of the pen,
and carry a Targe square bale of straw
in with our skidsteer," he stated. "We
put all the pigs back on this side and
start cleaning out the other side."
Before a building permit was
approved, a nutrient management
plan had to be done for the barn. The
barn also had to be engineered. The
plans had to be inspected by both an
engineer and the municipal building
inspector.
"It took about a year to get the
nutrient management plan approved,"