feeding show breeding gilts

[porcine]

We have added breeding gilts for the first time to are market projects. We are going on are 11th year in raising hogs and this will be are first and hopefully many more years to follow. Our purebred gilts weigh around 75lbs and we are targeting a few NJSA shows this summer. Do i feed them just like i was feeding them for market? Do i push them hard with the feed? What advice would you give on feeding them. I have both January and February born gilts Duroc and Yorks. We feed honor, and I have had good luck with their products, will be starting them soon on the new line 709 which is 18%. We have used the same breeder all this time and know what to expect in ADG and performance. I would appreciate any advice. Thanks

[mtbkmom]

I would keep with the 18% if they stay sound and not come up looking real hard--just like a barrow. BUT along the way, you need to start with filler/fiber along the way the help with their depth/width expression. If you add one now, their spring of rib will grow with them and then you can bust it out the last 2-4 weeks. They need a tad more cover also, but need to manage this so they do not get so much they look past their prime and have a big, fat jowl. I am not familiar with the national shows (just don't do them), but at our majors, the senior gilts need to be at least 300 up to around 320 pounds. The ones that win are usually not the most senior class because it is hard to keep them fresh and not past their prime, and have their chime issues etc. Since it is a NJSA show---look up picutres from last year and the winners of each class--should give some indication of the amount of cover and the approximate weight they should be for the various classes.

[Piggy]

well to compete you have to try and get them as big as you can. We hand feed 4 times a day and wet feed. We use milk replacer in the feed. We also add a fat additive to their feed. They need to be VERY fresh when they hit the ring and do NOT clip them too close, these are breeding gilts. Piggy