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Know How / Farrowing

The successful production of piglets has a big impact on the profitability of pig breeding units. This area explores how farmers can breed and rear the optimum number of piglets per litter by looking closely at nutrition, housing and management.

Advice and tips

PIGS

How to avoid piglet losses in large litters

Litter size has increased in the past 10 years, but so have piglet losses, according to Steve Jagger, senior pig nutritionist at feed company ABN. The challenge for pig farmers…

BREEDING AND FERTILITY

Guide to managing big pig litters

Genetic progress in pig breeding is continuing to push up born alive numbers, with the top 10% of farms now averaging 18.4 pigs born alive and the top third, 16.65.…

PIGS

How to manage hyper-prolific sows at farrowing

Pig farmers need to think of hyper-prolific sows as top athletes and manage them appropriately in order to maximise piglet survival and sow welfare. Prolific sows experience longer farrowing durations…

FARROWING

Farrowing management advice for stockpeople

Piglet survival and sow health are likely to be compromised if a sound system is not in place during farrowing. Therefore, stockpeople need to ensure that attention to detail is…

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Case studies

WHATS IN YOUR LIVESTOCK SHED

What’s in Your Livestock Shed? visits a high-tech pig unit

A state-of-the-art indoor pig farrowing and dry sow unit, projected to produce more than 10,000 piglets a year, is showcasing some of the highest levels of indoor pig welfare and…

PIGS

Single-parity move lifts pig herd performance

Setting up single-parity herds has been central to improving pig health across the entire breeding and finishing pig operation at North Farm Livestock (NFL) in Holt, Norfolk. NFL was one…

HOUSING AND HANDLING

How freedom farrowing pens match crates on performance

Traditional farrowing crates are used in the pig industry as they give piglets the best chance of survival. However the supermarket drive to increase pig welfare in indoor systems could…

LIVESTOCK

Antibiotics-free pork label sees Danes opt-in per piglet

An antibiotics-free pork-labelling initiative worth 20-25p/kg hinges on the eye of Danish pig keepers in the farrowing house. The Danish Crown labelling scheme sees piglets tagged as antibiotic-free at the…

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Insights

HOUSING AND HANDLING

10 Danish loose farrowing pens compared

Ten European loose-housed farrowing pens are being assessed for pig, piglet and worker welfare in a world-leading product test. This follows industry targets for 10% of Danish sows to be…

LIVESTOCK

Farrowing pen design could boost piglet and sow welfare

Effective campaigns by animal welfare organisations have kept the farrowing crate issue in the public eye. As a consequence, a number of smaller national retailers are already sourcing pigmeat only…

LIVESTOCK

Can piglets be kept safe without farrowing crates?

Can piglets be kept safe without farrowing crates? It is a question that gets many pig producers debating, but according to SAC's Emma Baxter the answer is yes. Speaking about…

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News

PIGS

Strep suis vaccine tests show immune transfer to piglets

Research will start on developing a colostrum booster to protect piglets against Streptococcus suis after a trial showed that young piglets nursed by vaccinated sows were protected. An industrial research…

FARROWING

MP call for immediate ban on farrowing crates thrown out

Proposals for an immediate ban on sow farrowing crates have been dropped from animal welfare legislation progressing through parliament. The original clause was lodged by shadow Defra minister Daniel Zeichner…

FARROWING

German farrowing crate rule pressures UK sector

Cost and productivity concerns have reignited in the UK pig sector after farrowing crate rule changes were made in Germany last week. German farmers were told they have 15 years…

FARROWING

Farmer input must inform farrowing crate policy, says NPA

Pig farmers concerned about a potential farrowing crate ban should share figures in an industry survey detailing the cost implication of switching to alternative systems. This is the message of…

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