Implementing the transformation of crop and livestock structure, in recent years, farmers in Minh Hung ward, Chon Thanh town (Binh Phuoc) have switched to a number of new livestock models. Among them, porcupine farming is a newly developed model, bringing in a good income for local livestock households.
For the past 2 years, Ms. Nguyen Thi Ha in Quarter 9, Minh Hung Ward (Chon Thanh Town, Binh Phuoc) has invested in building a porcupine farm on an area of 400 square meters. Currently, the farm has more than 300 porcupines, of which nearly half are parent porcupines. The porcupine cages are made in a high, airy place, avoiding stagnant water. The cage system is arranged in 2 rows, with a path in the middle for easy transportation of food for the porcupines.
The cage is divided into many compartments, each compartment has an area of 4-9m2. Each compartment has a compartment for concentrated food, a compartment for drinking water, and an area for the hedgehogs to live. Depending on the area, each cage can hold 4-8 hedgehogs. The walls are 1.2m high, and each compartment is covered with B40 mesh to prevent the hedgehogs from escaping.
According to Ms. Ha, porcupines are easy to raise, and their food includes fruits, vegetables, tubers, berries, and corn kernels. Every day, porcupines are fed twice, in the morning they are fed fruits, vegetables, tubers, berries, and in the evening they are fed corn kernels to supplement starch. In the large garden, Ms. Ha has dedicated 4,000 square meters of land to grow super early Thai jackfruit to create a long-term food source for the porcupine farm.
Ms. Ha said: “Raising porcupines takes advantage of food sources from vegetables, tubers, and fruits in nature. I often take spoiled fruits, vegetables, and tubers from the market and bring them home to feed the porcupines. Thanks to taking advantage of leftover food, a batch of porcupines can be raised for more than a year before being sold, but without spending much on food.”
The porcupine farming model brings a good income to Ms. Nguyen Thi Ha's family in Quarter 9, Minh Hung Ward (Chon Thanh Town, Binh Phuoc).
Regarding care techniques, hedgehogs are wild animals with high resistance and are rarely sick. However, when eating strange, infected food, hedgehogs are susceptible to diarrhea. To treat the disease, just feed the hedgehog guava leaves and green bananas. After a few days, the disease will gradually decrease and disappear completely.
Baby porcupines raised from 12 months old and up start to reproduce. Each year, porcupines give birth to 2 litters. Depending on age, the reproductive ability of porcupines is also different. Young porcupines can give birth to 2-3 babies/litter, but old porcupines only give birth to 1 baby. Baby porcupines raised from 15 months old and up can be sold for meat. Each adult porcupine weighs from 10-12kg, some weigh up to 15kg. Recently, Ms. Ha sold more than 100 porcupines, each kilogram costs 300,000 VND. After deducting expenses, the profit is about 150 million VND.
Currently, Ms. Ha's porcupine farm is supplying porcupine meat to wedding restaurants in Minh Hung ward and neighboring areas. When customers order porcupine meat for a party, she usually prepares it and delivers it to their doorstep. In addition to commercial porcupine farming, Ms. Ha also sells breeding animals and guides local people on breeding techniques. Each 2-month-old porcupine weighs 2-3kg and costs 2.6 million VND/pair.
Porcupine meat is a delicious specialty in restaurants and pubs, and is popular with many people. Commercial porcupine meat is sold for 450,000 VND/kg. From the porcupine farming model, Ms. Ha's family earns nearly 200 million VND in profit each year.
The authorities of Binh Phuoc province recommend that when establishing a porcupine farm, breeders should buy breeds from reliable sources, choose domesticated breeds, and avoid buying wild porcupines which are difficult to care for and reproduce. Note that porcupines are wild animals, and when raising them, they need quarantine papers and certification from the Forestry Department.
Source: https://danviet.vn/nuoi-loai-dong-vat-hoang-da-long-nhu-gai-nhon-trong-han-vuon-mit-thai-cho-an-chi-nong-dan-binh-phuoc-thu-200-trieu-20250206145510008.htm
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