JASON FRANCHUK
SIU Media Services
CARBONDALE â Kathryn Prus, the new manager of Southern Illinois University Carbondaleâs Swine Center, quickly embraced a demanding part of her job last summer: spending 24/7 around pigs, needing a blanket for herself, while the expanding sounder of pigs bore offspring over a span of a few days.
âI slept with the baby pigs at the farrowing barn,â Prus said. âThe sow has to be checked every 30 minutes, and itâs amazing how fast there can be complications. I eventually got to the point where I just knew I wasnât going to sleep.â
Prusâ arrival is part of SIUâs research into raising swine. Pigs are big business throughout the state as a food source, but theyâre also valued for much more.