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Enrichment for sows
Posted in: Pork Insight Articles, Prairie Swine Centre, Uncategorized by admin on August 11, 2016
Author: Victoria Kyeiwaa
Reference: Western Hog Journal Summer 2016
Enrichments are known to be beneficial to piglets and young pigs, reducing aggression, fear, behavioural vices and increasing growth. However, it is not known if this data can translate to sows because older pigs show different behaviours. This study aims to discover the most effective type of enrichment for gestating sows.
Four treatments will be provided: rope, small amounts of straw, wood on chains, and a control where no enrichment is provided. Because pigs are social animals and their social status can influence enrichment use, the effects of social status will also be examined. Social status is determined in a feed competition trial whereby six focal sows – three dominants and three subordinates – are selected for additional data collection. Mostly, in a social environment, subordinate animals are being bullied and driven away from available resources by dominant ones. Dominant and subordinate sows are selected in this study to determine if all sows, irrespective of social status, will benefit from enrichment use. Sows can lose interest in enrichments over time. Rotations of enrichments will be done to determine if this can generate more interest as opposed to a constant enrichment.
Cameras are mounted over the pens and time lapse photos taken on selected days to determine the level of enrichment use, and the activities and postures of sows. Stereotypic behaviours are recorded by live observation of sows, and levels of aggression are determined using skin lesion scores, ranging from 0 (no injury) to 3 (severe injury) on both sides of the body. Accelerometers are used as automated measuring tools to record the mobility of animals, similar to pedometers used to record fitness activities in people. Accelerometers are being used in this research to compare the activity levels of dominant and subordinate sows. Saliva samples are also taken in early, mid- and end of each trial to determine cortisol levels as a measure of stress.