Best Practices for Pig Farm Setup: Housing and Infrastructure

Proper housing and infrastructure are fundamental to the success and well-being of pig farming operations in Kenya. Creating a suitable environment for your pigs not only ensures their health and productivity but also contributes to the overall efficiency and profitability of your farm. In this article, we will explore the best practices for housing and infrastructure when setting up a pig farm in Kenya.

A house is the most important consideration for new pig project. It is unfortunate that many new pig farmers do not consult well on pig houses before embarking on construction. It is not enough to copy a pig house you have come across. It’s good to  understand that pig houses are constructed according to how pigs behave. The same reason that zero-grazing units are built in a particular way to make cleaning easier and have the cows comfortable.

The basic infrastructure depends on how many pigs you want to keep. The design should ideally allow for adding further pens as your operation grows.

Starting off by buying weaners (young pigs already on solid food, usually older than 28 days) and growing them out.

In this way, you’ll soon learn about pig behaviour, management techniques and daily feed requirements.

Your cash turnover cycle will also be quicker, as you will not need to feed a sow for four months while it is pregnant, manage the birth process, and then feed the piglets until selling them.

It is crucial to consider the economics. Is it worth your while to feed the sow for so many months, or should you let another farmer do this for you, leaving you only the task of growing the weaners out to ‘porker’ or ‘baconer’ size?

If you start with six weaners (a practical number), one holding enclosure is fine but two are better in case you need to separate weaker feeders from greedy or aggressive ones, a common problem in pig farming.

Pig shelters can be built in several ways, with some designs being more solid than others. You can also use the structure of an existing outbuilding, adding internal compartments as needed.

Factors To Consider Before Building a Pig House

1.Pig pens must be kept warm.

2.Pens must be kept as dry as possible to avoid multiplication of pathogens.

3.Enough air circulation must be allowed at all times.

4. The units must be kept clean and hygienic all the time. Unit should be cleaned at least twice a day and the waste disposed correctly in the biogas unit or composting area.

5. Enough space must be allocated per pig. Avoid over stocking in cubicles.

6. Select well drained site.

7. Pig houses to be accessible by vehicles.

8.Wind direction to be considered so that wind does not blow towards people’s houses.

9. Do not site unit next to neighbors’ houses.

10. Pig unit to be set apart from other livestock.

11. Have good perimeter fence for security.

12. Have disinfection dip for vehicles at gate.

Selection of housing locations

• The site should be at an elevated place that cannot be flooded by rain water.
• The site should be protected from the sun (shade from trees) and have ample fresh air.
• Away from residences (around 8-10 meter away downwind).
• In case of a large-scale pig farm, the site selected needs also to be: well connected to roads throughout the year,
• Suitable for manure disposal, connected to reliable water and electricity sources.

Construction plan for good pig housing

The important points about the pig house are as follows:

• The floor of the house must be 3 x 3 m.
• The floor of the house must be raised about 60 cm above the ground.
• The floor boards should have spaces of 2 cm between them.
• The roof must be rain-proof.
• The high side of the roof should face in a direction where some sun can shine a little way into the house on this side: but there must always be shade in some part of the house.
• The house must be strongly built.

A pigsty can be constructed cheaply by using locally available materials. It needs to be constructed according to climatic conditions and according to the pig production system.

• The pigsty should be comfortable for the pigs: good ventilation and ample shade, no overheating, no smells, no draft and no dampness.
• The building should be constructed with its length axis in an East-West direction (protected from sun and rain).
• The pig building needs to be divided into different pens for each phase of the production cycle. The number and the size of the pens depend on the expected numbers of pigs to be housed in each production phase.
• The costs of constructing the pigsty should fit the pig production systems. An efficient pig production is required to cover high construction costs.