Foot problems In the feedlot

Posted in: Pork Insight Articles, Research Watch, Welfare by admin on March 5, 2012 | No Comments

Interdigital necrobacillosis also know as “foot rot” is common in feedlots. It occurs when bacteria that is common in feedlots is able to penetrate a cows skin between the toes. This causes lameness and swelling, and discomfort to the cow. This occurs when a cow cuts its foot in winter, or spends prolonged times standing in manure or water in the summer. Pen maintenance is a preventative action to fight the occurrence of foot rot. Anti-biotics have also been proven to cure foot rot, but it is hard to distinguish if a cow has foot rot or some other foot problem which the anti-biotics would not help.

Linking Lameness And Fertility

Posted in: Pork Insight Articles, Research Watch, Welfare by admin on | No Comments

Lameness could be an underlying cost to dairy producers which causes fertility problems. When a cow becomes lame it is being exposed to a stressor. Signals in the cows body will focus nutrients and energy on recovering or fighting the stressor. This will direct nutrients to focus on the immune system instead of reproduction, growth and milk production. Preventing lamness by early identification and treatment can be very beneficial to producers.

Quantifying and Understanding Tail Biting in Pigs

Posted in: Pork Insight Articles, Research Watch, Welfare by admin on January 5, 2012 | No Comments

This article tries to make sense of tail biting in pigs and the effects of tail docking. By giving a number value to the condition of a pigs tail at the time of slaughter, researchers were able to compare data sets and make inferences about tail biting. At slaughter it was found that over 50% of pigs suffered some tail biting despite have their tails docked at birth. The damage done to the tails of pigs who had not been docked, was worse then those who had been. In the EU tail docking is prohibited so a lot of research must be done to find the cause and prevention of tail biting in order to increase the welfare of the pigs.

Less Bedding Can Benefit In-Transit Market Pigs

Posted in: Pork Insight Articles, Research Watch, Welfare by admin on January 4, 2012 | No Comments

A study conducted in the United States found that the industry standard of using 4 hay bails as bedding in trailers might not be necessary. The study found using anymore than 3 bails had no significant effect on the pigs welfare. In winter, more bedding is used to supplement heat but after 6 bails there is no change in the effects on the pigs. This study hopes to reduce unnecessary costs to producers.

Evaluation of Temperature Conditions in Trucks during Transport of Market Pigs to Slaughter

Posted in: Pork Insight Articles, Research Watch, Welfare by admin on December 1, 2011 | No Comments

A study was done to find the different temperatures in a trailer of market pigs heading to slaughter. The study was done over a year tracking the temperature in each trailer compartment. The study found that  pigs in the belly of the trailer experienced lower temperatures, while pigs in the upper-front and middle-front of the trailer experienced higher temperatures.

Piglets Overcoming Post-Weaning Stress

Posted in: Pork Insight Articles, Research Watch, Uncategorized, Welfare by admin on November 28, 2011 | No Comments

After weaning there are several factors that contribute to piglets post weaning stress. Post-weaning stress can influence when a pig goes to market and how it converts feed. Being separated from other piglets, switching from wet to dry feed and being in a new environment, all put stress on the piglet which effects its eating habits and requires two to three weeks for the piglet to achieve an optimal feed intake. Organic acids have done a good job to limit the growth and spreading of pathogens in feed but pathogens still effect pigs in all phases of production. Combining organic acids, cinnamaldehyde and a permeabilising substance are some of the ways researchs are trying reduce the effects of pathogens.

A comprehensive approach to animal welfare science

Posted in: Pork Insight Articles, Prairie Swine Centre, Welfare by admin on October 5, 2011 | No Comments

The following article was adapted from presentations given by Harold Gonyou this spring at producer meetings in Manitoba, Saskatchewan and Alberta. It gives a brief discussion of the emerging field of animal welfare science and
how this science can be used in evaluating management practices and identifying production systems that optimize animal health, economic factors and consumer satisfaction.

Proof of Principle of the Comfort Class concept in pigs. Experimenting in the midst of a stakeholder process on pig welfare

Posted in: Economics, Production, Welfare by admin on August 23, 2011 | No Comments

Animal welfare in livestock systems is strongly dependent on husbandry conditions. ‘Comfort Class’ is defined as a specific minimal level of husbandry conditions of animals, at which the ability of animals to meet their needs is not compromised by husbandry conditions. It is assumed that if this level is attained, animal welfare (the quality of life as experienced by the animal) will not be restricted by husbandry conditions. This idea of a Comfort Class level originates from an early interdisciplinary innovation trajectory in pig husbandry and was adopted by the major Dutch pig farmers’ organisation and the major Dutch animal protection organisation. These two parties built a Comfort Class facility as a proof of principle to test and demonstrate the idea. The aim of the first study in this facility was to empirically test whether a facility that meets the Comfort Class level results in good animal welfare for pigs. In two batches each with 144 undocked pigs, housed in three group sizes, observations were made on tail integrity, skin lesions, activity patterns and degree of synchronisation and clustering of eating and lying behaviour. In the first batch, tail and skin damage was at a low level. The second batch, starting with 64% of the animals having bitten tails, ended with almost all tails recovered. Activity patterns were similar for group sizes and growing stages. Resting behaviour was highly synchronised, but rather spread out over the lying area. Synchronisation of eating was limited, as 52% of the meals were taken alone and a further 29% by two pigs together. The study offered support for the hypothesis, that the Comfort Class level results in a good quality of life for pigs, especially based on the absence of observed welfare infringements (conclusion 1). Results on space use, synchronisation and clustering indicated that the theoretically derived requirements on space allowance and number of feeders might be reduced without compromising the Comfort Class level. The expected limited statistical power of the experiment did not hinder further development, as, during the process, working on the scientific underpinning of the concept was more important than the actual rigidity of the conclusions. The concurrent scientific activities legitimated the stakeholders’ activities and emphasised their claim that practical animal welfare improvement is possible. The project initiated further experimentation and design in practice and contributed to market introduction of welfare improved pork. The methodology applied in the project turned out to be the start of a series of interactive innovation initiatives in animal production sector, leading to the RIO (“Reflexief Interactief Ontwerp”, Dutch for Reflexive Interactive Design) innovation approach. Conclusion 2 of this study is that this interactive approachto experimentation facilitates the implementation of science based welfare improvements in practice.

To view this complete article please visit: http://www.journals.elsevierhealth.com/periodicals/livsci/

Rolling behaviour of sows in relation to piglet crushing on sloped versus level floor pens

Posted in: Environment, Production, Welfare by admin on | No Comments

The study focused on the rolling behaviour of sows and the crushing of piglets by sows’ rolling behaviour. The experiment examined the influence of sloped floor in loose housed farrowing pens on the rolling behaviour of sows and crushing of piglets. The experimental unit was made up of 24 pens. There were two experimental pen designs with piglet creep in the corner of the pen and piglet creep across the end of the pen, respectively. Both of the experimental pen designs had a 10% sloped floor in the sow’s resting area. The two control pen designs were identical to the experimental pen designs, but with a level floor. The behaviour of 85 sows and their litters was continuously video recorded. Behavioural observations were made from birth of the first piglet and until 3 days after birth of the first piglet. Rolling behaviour of sows caused significantly more trapped piglets under the sow than lying down from standing. Rolling behaviour caused 64% of the trapped piglets and lying down from standing caused 36% of the trapped piglets. Rolling from udder to side without protection trapped significantly more piglets than rolling from udder to side near slanted wall or piglet protection rails and rolling from side to udder. With a certain pen design sloped floor reduced rolling from udder to side without protection and reduced the number of trapped piglets, but results concerning lying behaviour showed that sloped floor pushed sows to rest on the level part of the floor. The results indicate that rolling behaviour that crushes piglets can be reduced, and sows prefer to lie on a level floor.

To view this complete article please visit: http://www.journals.elsevierhealth.com/periodicals/livsci/

Effect of target slaughter weight on production efficiency, carcass traits and behaviour of restrictively-fed gilts and intact male finisher pigs

Posted in: Meat Quality, Production, Welfare by admin on August 22, 2011 | No Comments

The effect of 3 slaughter weights (85, 95 or 105 kg) on performance and carcass traits of 481 pigs in single-gender groups of 13 (18 groups of gilts and 19 groups of intact males) was evaluated. Pigs (39.5kg) were fed a liquid diet 3 times daily in a long trough. The behaviour of pigs slaughtered at 105 kg was recorded at 50, 60 and 70 days after the start of the experiment (5 groups of gilts and 4 groups of intact males). Behaviour (active, inactive, feeding) and posture (standing, lying, dog-sitting) of all pigs was recorded at 5-min intervals for 30 min prior to and 1 h after each feeding event. Slaughtering pigs at 95 kg and 105 kg delayed production by 7 and 16 days, respectively, compared to slaughtering at 85 kg. Gilts needed 4 days more than males to reach each slaughter weight, and chilled carcass weights increased with increasing slaughter weight. Daily feed intake and gain were not affected by slaughter weight; however, gain-to-feed ratio increased in males with increasing slaughter weight while the inverse was observed in gilts. The kill-out percentage was greater at the heavier weights. Backfat depth increased in males with increasing slaughter weight but there was no change in females. Muscle depth increased with increasing slaughter weight and therefore lean meat yield did not change. Behaviour did not differ between genders on the 3 days of observation, but the proportion of time spent active and standing before feeding increased as pigs grew from day 50 to 70. The proportion of posture changes was greater before than after feeding. Results of this study indicate that slaughtering intact male pigs at heavier weights improved growth performance but increased fat depth. Conversely, gilts were less efficient at converting feed into body weight at the heavier weights but carcass traits were not modified as slaughter weight increased. In the latter part of the finishing period, competition for access to the trough probably increased as trough space allowance decreased, and the increase found in standing before feeding could reflect an attempt by the pigs to gain immediate access to the feed.

To view this complete article please visit: http://www.journals.elsevierhealth.com/periodicals/livsci/