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Prairie Swine Centre is an affiliate of the University of Saskatchewan
Prairie Swine Centre is grateful for the assistance of the George Morris Centre in developing the economics portion of Pork Insight.
Financial support for the Enterprise Model Project and Pork Insight has been provided by:
SELCO-Ecopurin pig slurry treatment system
Posted in: Environment by admin on January 1, 2005 | No Comments
A Checklist for Water Use
Posted in: Prairie Swine Centre by admin on | No Comments
John Patience and Ken Engele
Like energy, protein, minerals and vitamins, water is a nutrient that is required in the diet of the pig. Indeed, the pig can survive much longer without these other nutrients than it can without water. This becomes especially true in hot weather.
Pigs obtain water from three sources: water physically contained in the feed, water consumed by drinking, and water produced through chemical reactions as part of normal metabolism in the body. Maintaining water balance is extremely important, as even small changes in water balance can result in serious consequences to the pig. The water requirements of the pig have never really been defined. Research at the Prairie Swine Centre and elsewhere has found that free choice water intake in young growing pigs with free access to feed is about 2.2 to 2.8 times the intake of feed. Thus, a pig eating two kilograms (kg) of feed will normally drink at least 4.5 litres of water per day.
Nursing sows have a somewhat higher intake, approaching four times their feed intake, due to the water needed for milk production. The above estimates do not allow for wastage, which can be quite high (40+%), especially with nipple drinkers. Also, additional water must be added to the above intake levels to compensate for hot weather, excess minerals or protein in the diet, or to help the pig deal with certain health problems such as scours. Pigs do not drink only to satisfy their physiological need for water. Pigs will also drink water to alleviate a feeling of hunger, or out of boredom. The impact of “luxury” intake must not be underestimated, especially in gestating sows since they are limit fed; boredom and hunger can increase water intake many fold over basic requirements. One critical question for pork producers is what are the minimum and maximum flow rates necessary to optimize health and productivity?
While solid research on the subject is limited, reasonable estimates can be provided: weanlings and growers – 750 to 1,000 millilitres per minute (mL/min) and nursing sows – 1,000 to 2,000 mL/min. Water quality is also a common issue on the Prairies. Quality can be evaluated using microbiological, physical and chemical criteria. Within each, individual items relate to safety and/or aesthetics. For pork producers, iron and manganese can be problematic, since they plug screens and cause other delivery problems. For example, iron will cause problems in screens if it is above 0.3 parts per million (ppm); the tolerance for manganese is 0.05 ppm. Filters, chemical treatment or settling tanks can all be used to reduce iron and manganese in the water. However, the most common concerns of pork producers are associated with sulphates, which cause diarrhea and at very high levels, poor performance. A recent study, conducted with the cooperation of Stomp Pork Farms in Leroy, Sask., demonstrated that weanlings can perform quite well with water containing 1,600 ppm sulphates.
Panel Presentation: Water Management: Water Intake and Wastage at Nipple Drinkers by Growing-Finishing Pigs
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Minimizing the waste of water will reduce both water use and slurry volume. Researchers performed an experiment to investigate actual water intake and wastage of pigs at the recommended nipple height/flow rate, how nipple height and flow rate affect water intake and wastage, and the effectiveness of drinker management in reducing water wastage under commercial conditions. Water wastage was decreased when nipple height was adjusted to fit the size of the pig. Water flow rate had a minimal impact on water wastage. With good management, water usage from nipple drinkers can be reduced by 15% compared to unadjusted nipples, and achieve levels obtained using a bowl drinker.
Estimating the Impact of Voluntary Labeling of Trans Fats on the Market Demand for Processed Foods: A Nested PIGLOG Model Approach
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To analyze the market demand response to the introduction of voluntary trans fat labels, we build upon a well-developed microeconomic model of consumer choice that incorporates the role information plays in individual decision-making (Swartz and Strand; Smith, van Ravenswaay and Thompson; Brown and Schrader; Wessells, Miller and Brooks; Piggott; Piggott and Marsh; Kalaitzandonakes, Marks and Vickner; Marks, Kalaitzandonakes and Vickner). Mathios (2000) in particular investigated the impact of NLEA on a processed food market using a random utility model. Teisl, Bockstael and Levy (2001) used the Foster and Just (1989) framework in conjunction with an Almost Ideal Demand System (Deaton and Muelbauer) to investigate the impact of nutrient labeling in a small sample of stores in New England. Both the Mathios and Teisl et al. studies were limited in terms of data quality; lack of a representative sample and low frequency time series limit their findings.
Behavioural Vices in the Barn
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A “device” is a term used to describe abnormal behaviour. Pigs in a production setting show several vices, because some behaviour they show is not performed in a natural setting. Belly nosing and belly sucking/naval sucking occurs about 4 or 5 days after weaning and shows that the pigs have not adapted well to weaning (especially in early weaned pigs). This can lead to severe lesions on the belly and umbilical hernias. Preventative measures include weaning later, using bowl drinkers, provide baby bottle nipples for them to suck on, provide an artificial spot to nose, and liquid feeding. Tail biting occurs when light chewing breaks the skin on the tail and other pigs begin to eat away at it. It is most common in the grow/finish stages but can happen in nursery. Tail biting can result in infection of the spine that could lead to abscesses, paralysis, or even death. This can later lead to condemned carcasses at the packer. Temperature, drafts, overcrowding, and genetics are some of the suggested reasons for tail biting. Making destructible toys for the pigs such as a rope or cloth can divert the tail biting. Ear biting tends to occur at younger ages than tail biting. It can be detected by redness and scratch marks on the base or tip of the ear. Causes can include bacteria, ear sucking, restlessness and discomfort. Preventative measures similar to tail biting can be effective. Vulva biting in sows happens in-group housing. It can range from mild to severe damage. Fighting over feed or water is a plausible cause of this condition. Spreading out feed better, increasing water drinkers, feeding more often, or moving sows out of the group at an earlier date can help prevent it.
Effect of scattered feeding and feeding twice a day during rearing on indicators of hunger and frustration in broiler breeders.
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The welfare of broiler breeders during rearing is commonly impaired, as the restrictive feeding commonly practiced, and the management procedure leaves the chicks feeling hungry and frustrated about their inability to feed. This study attempted to improve the welfare of broiler breeders by making simple and practical changes to the feeding system. The effect on hunger and frustration experienced by the broiler breeders was compared when the feed was scattered in the litter and/or feeding the chicks twice a day. Scatter feeding and feeding two meals a day did not have a significant affect on various hunger indicators such as compensatory feed intake, plasma glucose/non-esterfied fatty acid ratio and plasma corticosterone concentration. Scatter feeding did reduce the amount of time the chickens spent pecking at an object, but they spent a large amount of their time performing foraging behaviours, thus it is not clear if scatter feeding was effective at improving the welfare of the broiler breeders. Feeding twice a day increased the amount of time the chickens spent walking, which could be how they expressed their frustration about their inability to eat, or they were searching for more food. Thus, the welfare of the broiler breeders during was not improved by feeding two meals a day, scatter feeding or by combining the two treatments as the birds still demonstrated behaviours that indicate that they are still hungry.
The presence of the dam during handling prevents the socialization of young calves to humans.
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Five groups of 10 Danish Friesian calves were used to test the effect of handling and hand-feeding with or without their dams present on their subsequent response to humans. The calves were either housed singly or next to the cow, and were subjected to handling or no handling for the first 4 days after calving. Another group was housed together with their dams for the first 4 days after calving, then moved to single pens and handled there for the following 4 days. Handling was carried out 3 times per day, consisting of a 6 minute milk feeding period from a teat bucket in conjunction with patting, stroking, and talking to the calf. After a period of 20, 40, and 55 days of being housed in their home pen, each calf’s approach behaviour to an unknown person was tested. Flight distance was determined on day 55. Results showed that calves that had been housed singly and subjected to handling during the 4 days after calving, as well as calves who had been housed with their dam for the first 4 days then housed singly and subjected to handling, had significantly shorter latencies to interact with the unknown person than calves in the other treatment groups. The same two handling treatment groups also stood at the front of the pen and faced the person more often than calves in the other groups. Conclusions stated that the presence of the dam was able to limit the effect of the handling treatment on the calves’ motivation to interact with humans. The primary socializing that occurs with the dam is likely to prevent any secondary socialization that would develop with humans until the calf was isolated from the dam.