Determining Optimum Space Allowance for Nursery Pigs
Studies were conducted in 2 phases to determine the eff ects of six diff erent space allowances (k= 0.0230, 0.0265, 0.0300, 0.0335, 0.0370, and 0.0390) on nursery pig behavior, growth and welfare from 3 to 8 weeks of age. Phase 1...
High Fibre Diets for Swine
Feed cost represents more than 60% of the variable cost of swine production and a major part of the feed cost is to ensure that pigs have adequate energy and protein supply to reach their optimum potential in terms of the production goals. Corn, wheat,...
Alternatives for control & detection of boar taint in market hogs
Castration of piglets is a common practice in Canada, as in many other countries, to avoid boar taint in pork meat. There is, however, a growing interest in raising non-castrated males for animal welfare reasons and because intact males are more growth efficient than castrates....
Ventilation System Requirements for Converted Gestation Barns
Computer simulation was utilized to assess the performance of different ventilation system configurations needed for a sow gestation barn newly converted to group housing. Various configurations of the ventilation system involving varying capacities and locations of exhaust fans as well as size, design and...
Are Sows Motivated for Movement?
The Canadian Code of Practice for the Care and Handling of Pigs requires that as of July 1, 2024, all mated gilts and sows must be housed in groups, or individual pens. Mated gilts and sows may also be housed...
Feeder Design Considerations
The minimum width of a feeding space is based on the shoulder width of the largest pig in the pen, plus 10 % to accommodate variation in body shape. The formula used to calculate the width of a feeding space...
Feeding Mycotoxin Contaminated Grain
Mycotoxins are chemicals (secondary metabolites) produced by moulds or fungi infecting grains. There are over 400 known mycotoxins; however only a small number of these probably affect pig performance on a regular basis. It is important to note that the presence of the mould...
Reducing Water Consumption in Swine Barns
Demonstrating Management Practices that Enhance the Sustainability of Pork Production Activity 1.3 – Reducing Water Consumption in Swine Barns The following publications will assist producers in making effective decisions to optimize water usage within their production units.
Auditing On-Farm Best Management Practices
ACTIVITY 3. Auditing On-Farm Best Management Practices Objective: Measure the pork industry’s adoption of best management practices that reduce cost of production, enhance sustainability and reduce labour commitments.
Improving Biosecurity in Swine Transport
While on farm biosecurity measures are increasingly stringent, a major gap that can allow for transmission of disease is biosecurity in transport. As such, new cleaning procedures for trailers must be developed to make sanitizing trailers easy and effective. Problems...
Performance Response of Piglets to Acid-Preserved, High-Moisture Wheat
One objective of this trial was to determine the effectiveness of feeding acid-preserved, high moisture wheat as an alternative to directly supplementing acid to the wheat diet of weanling pigs. Acidification of wheat with propionic acid resulted in a significant...
Transitioning to Loose Sow Housing
One producer’s (John Van Engelen, Ontario) lessons in making the transition to group sow housing. As presented to a Group Sow Housing Seminar in the fall of 2017.
