Sow replacement rate is very high in many farms, which leads to an increase in need for replacement gilts. Therefore it should be a goal to improve gilt management to increase breeding herd productivity and reduce the amount of replacements needed. Time should be put into improving current gilt programs. With good management of gilt replacement, it is possible to improve labor efficiency and space usage. Three keys to good gilt replacement are: 1) Effective selection program to identify 75 to 80% of the most fertile animals; 2) Achieving adequate body condition at first mating; and 3) Minimizing non-productive days.
Selection should include 3 stages. Stage 1 should be implemented when the gilts leave the nursery. Here gilts can be checked for growth rate and 12 to 14 teats. Stage 2 should entail weight, growth rate, and back fat depth. Here, they MUST have a growth rate of 0.6 kg/day, teats should be rechecked, and hernias or ruptures should be checked for. Stage 3 should be the beginning of puberty induction. This helps to reduce the amount of days until puberty (reduce non-productive days).

Early puberty induction allows the identification of prolific gilts. Non-select gilts are gilts that do not show sexual maturity at 180 days of age. They will have poorer reproductive performance throughout their life. Proper stimulation via boar helps to identify those 75 to 80% of gilts mentioned earlier. It is suggested that puberty induction begin at 160 days of age until first estrus OR until 190 days of age. The weight target at first breeding is 135 to 150 kg. This ensures that gilts have proper body conditioning in order to lead a quality reproductive life, as well as reduce non-productive days.