pigs Flashcards
juvenile pigs
- sucker or piglets
- weaner
- grower
- finisher
sucker or piglet
pig between birth and weaning
weaner
pig that has been weaned up to around 30kg (around 8 weeks of age)
grower or porker
20- 60 kg
sale/ market porker
sold at 9-16 weeks 70kg
finisher
about 50-100kg
sale/ market baconer
sold at 17-24 weeks 100+kg
mature pigs
- boar
- barrow
- sow
- gilt
boar
entire male over 9 months
barrow
castrated male
sow
adult female which has had one or more litters
gilt
female that has not yet given birth
herd size
number of sows in a herd
giving birth is called
farrowing
farrowing rate
number of sows mates that actually farrow
weaning
permanent separation of sow and suckers
2 domestication events recorded (but up to 6 possible)
- near east 9000 years before present
- far east (china) around 5000-7000 years before present
in 18th/19th centures
asian bigs hybridized with european pigs
our domestic pigs originated from
eurasian wild boar (sus scrofa)
what family are pigs in, how many species
suidae
16 species
wild boar
- wild pigs, not in aus
feral pig
domestic animals that have reverted back to wild pop
in australia
pigs are highly
adaptable; able to thrive in large range of environments
large white
- most common in aus
- large framed, long middle and light shoulders
- erect ears
- pink skin
- perform well in intensive farming
- quick growth rate, deep sides for bacon
- excellent dow
landrace
- second most pop in aus
- developed for bacon market
- drooped ears cover most of face
- white/pink
- long middle, light forequarters, excellent hams and good for pork production
- improved carcass quality
- more fat than large white
- early maturing, smaller litters, good mothering
duroc
- red/brown
- droopy ears
- used in cross breeding
- good sows, produce large litters
- late maturing
- heavy carcass, fast growth, good feed efficiency
- often used as third breed mated to white cross sow
berkshire
- oldest registered breed
- black with varying amounts of white (more on leg)
- good quality meat
- erect ears and more dished face, shorter necks
hampshire
- one of oldest breeds in usa
- black in colour w white belt totally circling body, including both front legs and feet (wearing a longsleeve)
- erect ears
welsh
- can be yellow-white but possible to be spotted black and white
- floppy ears
wessex saddle back
- black and white, similar marking as hampshire but more white (also wearing longsleeve)
- more of a combo of 2 breeds from essex and wessex
large black
- large black w floppy ears
- not common
tamworth
- red like duroc but more adapted to extensive systems
pet breeds/ minis
- combo of breeds
- it is illegal to keep feral pigs
F1
F1 gilts are first cross daughters of pure bred parents, 100% hybrid vigour
F1 attributes include
litter size, milk production, growth rate and lower backfat
terminal sire line (TSL)
boars are selected for growth and carcass attributes, not litter size
usually crossbred beeds
F1 X TSL will give
F2 slaughter pig
F2= second cross
slaughter= because TSL
desired selection characteristics (sow)
- high preg rates
- large litter size
- high milk production
- mature early
- short rebreeding interval (weaning to service interval of 5-6 days)
desired selection characteristics (boar)
- average daily gain
- carcass quality
- feed conversion efficiency
pig sale price relates to
hot carcass weight and fat depth at F2
producers; trending more to
larger vertically integrated corporates
location depending on resources and markets
challenges for aus industry
- low pig meat prices
- high feed grain prices (drought)
- water availability
- environmental constraints
- access to skilled stock people
- AW requirements
pork is
2nd most consumed meat in aus and most consumed meat globally
queensland animal care and protection act places
a legal duty of care on people in charge of animals
administered by biosecurity qld: PIC (property id code) number
model code of practice (MCOP)
- defines aw standards
- parts of the adopted pig code and compulsory under animal care and protection act
- documents stock-person competencies, food, water accommodation, husbandry, transport euth and QA info
industry requirements
australian pork limited APL; accreditation programs
stock attendants must be able to recognize
signs of ill health, including behavioural anomalies in pigs and mist take appropriate action when any such signs are observed in pigs under their care
if person is not able to identify causes of ill health and correct them the must seek advice
stock attendants must
be personnel who are skilled in pig husbandry and competent to maintain the health are welfare of the animals in accordance with the standards listen in MCOP (the code) or are under direct supervision of such personnel
pigs inspected at least once each day by competent stock person
sick weak or injured pigs must be
treated and if necessary isolated
dead pigs must be
removed as soon as practical
pigs with incurable sickness, injury of painful deformity must
be humanely euthanized
animals that cannot move must be euthanized on location
preventative health program
herd health program
vaccines and others must be administered by competent person or under direct supervision
there are codes and guidelines that provide detailed requirements that must be followed to ensure
appropriate standards are upheld
herd health is often
vertically integrated
3 main categories of production systems
indoor, deep litter, outdoor
majority of aus pigs are housed
indoors
environmental requirements change as
the pigs mature
animals flow in one direction for
biosecurity
housing needs
- shelter
- freedom for necessary movement; stand, stretch and lie down
- readily accessible, appropriate and sufficient food and water
- variation in feeding systems and feed
- allow for handling
- display appropriate behaviour
- visual and social contact w other pigs
housing must provide appropriate environment for the
class of stock
air quality and ventilation
- harmful hases; ammonia co2, co, H2S
- humidity at 60-85%
- air movement; avoid droughts near piglets
temperature is
very important!!!
specific for different classes of stock
dry sow stalls; laws
prevents bullying and limited mobility
in DSS for no longer than 6 weeks of 1/2 of pregnancy
when are sows in stalls
5 days after mating and one week before farrowing
all piglets must be checked within ____ of birth
24 hours; check they are feeding, have received colostrum
is a sow dies prior to weaning or piglets have inadequate nutrition
the piglets must be fostered, weaned, hand reared or euthanized
ideal temp for newborn piglets, suckers and sows
- piglets 27-35
- suckers; 24-30
- sows; 18-22
outdoor farrowing
- allows expression of nest building
- less confined
- more piglets crushed
- fewer stillbirths
indoor DMA
- designated mating area
- when sow in weaned, moved to DMA
- boars housed in this area
- access too mating pens
indoor weaner shed group housing
temp, how are they split
- first time weaners mixed into new groups; stressful
- big change in feed; GIT issues
- temp 20-30 degrees
- split by sex and size
indoor grower finisher shed
- wider range of environment that can be tolerated
- same groups as possible
- slatted flooring
gilt shed
- females in group housing
- solid and slatted flooring
- can see other pigs
- moved into this shed in prep for mating
- normally cycling 10-30 days after exposure to boar
- boars housed here too but not mixed, and not in groups due to aggression
deep litter bedding
- ecoshelter w barley straw bedding
- can also use rice hulls, saw dust
- housing for weaners to finishers
pigs kept outdoors have
same requirements to indoors
pig must NOT be raised on land that is
contaminated w toxins, chemical residues, toxic plants or disease causing organisms
optimum temps
- newborns; 27-35
- suckers; 24-30
- weaners; 20-30
- others; 15-25
are pigs predator or prey
both
wild/feral vs domestic in extensive
quantitative differences
pigs are a ____ animal
herd; so housing should ensure they are not isolated
wild/ feral pigs run in ___ herds
sow; usually 2-4 sows; often genetically related; collegial approach
pig cognitive function
- very trainable
- outperform 3 year old humans
vocalisation
important part of communication; feeding, distress, sexual behaviour, mothering
smell
very developed
eyesight
have colour vision, 310 degree panoramic and 35-50 binocular
males and females in the wild
- sow herd vs bachelor herds
- separate
2 social orders in pigs
teat order (nursing and litter mates)
dominance hierarchy (fight to establish dominance); mostly established within 24 hours
dominance
- not correlated with sex or weight
- social rank influences growth rate
- best to keep in one group
- increased stocking density can adversely affect hierarchy stability
- intensity relates to how important resource is; food/water, mating, environment
ideal group size for class of pigs
- weaners; 12
- growers; 15
- finishers; 20
- sows; 10
- sows on straw w electronic feeding; 20-60 (more access to resources)
tail and ear biting are not
aggressive behaviours
nest building how long
6-24 hours before parturition
away from group
same nest can be used for long period; communal nest, dependent on resources
indications of approaching farrowing
- increased activity in nest
- up and down/ tail twitching
- swollen vulva 4 days before
- udder enlarges; springing
- 30 mins before resp rate increases
- 8 hours before milk spurts (letdown)
- pelvis drops
farrowing (2-3 hours)
- start; nest is finished, activity reduces
- lateral recumbent
- semi-comatose states
- delivery time between piglets 15-30 mins
- no acknowledgement of piglets during farrowing (no cleaning, licking)
- placental expulsion normally at the end
- in wild may eat placenta and dead piglets
piglet crushes
- almost all in first week, most in first 3 days and 50% in first 24 hours
commercial conditions w no confinement what percent of crushes
10-25%
colostrum constantly available for
2-3 hours after birth
rapidly decreases at 14 hours and fully milk by 34 hours
how often to newborns feed
every 30 mins for the first 24 hours and then hourly
who initiates nursing
- can be either sow or piglets but more often piglets
teat hierarchy established during first
2-3 days
how many phases of nursing and how long
6 phases; 100-120 seconds
not every nursing is successful!!
phase 1 of nursing
- 20-60 seconds
- piglets: locate udder, get to their teat (vocalizing, fighting) start butting
- sow; moves to expose teats; 1 grunt per second
phase 2 of nursing
- 30-40 seconds
- piglets; start of suckling, jostling ends
- sows; laterally recumbent, 1 grunt per second, no letdown
phase 3 of nursing
- 20 seconds
- piglets; sucking; 1 suck per second, slow
- sows; grunting rate peaks! 2 grunts per second, no letdown/ v limited letdown
phase 4 nursing
- 10-20 seconds
- piglets; suck fats; 3 sucks/ seconds, 40-80 mls of milk
- sow; grunts back to 1 per second, max milk flow
phase 5 and 6 nursing
phase 5
- piglets; loud sucking
- sow; grunting stops
phase 6
- piglets; sucking ends, can restart stimulating udder if hungry
- sows; milk flow ends
in the 6 phases of nursing when is max grunting and when does milk actually flow
- phase 3; max grunting from sow
- phase 4; milk letdown
in wild describe estrus
seasonal anoestrus; related to day length
- in summer and early autumn
courtship (before smash)
- 1-5 mins
- vocalization; jaw chomping and frothing at mouth for males
- both nudging
- boar more active
- sow activity depends on timing; - sow on heat standing, urinating, ears pricking
- sow not on heat aggression, running
courtship is important as it relates to
litter size
copulation
- 2-10 mins
- only if sow is in standing heat
- locking of spiral glands into cervix and ejaculation
- wild; mate 3-4 x daily
- domestic; 2 matings
sow heat behaviours can change depending on
- stage of heat
- differences between stock-persons
- differences between boars
- heat is best detected by boar
play
- first seen at 2 days old
- peaks 2-6 weeks old
- head movements
- spinning around
- play fighting
- toys
- vocalization
what is important/ rewarding activity to pig in terms of feeding
investigating their environment; stems from foraging
in wild pigs what percent of day is rooting/ exploring/ feeding
80%
in extensive domestic what percent of day is rooting/ exploring/ feeding
half of wild, ie 40%
in intensive pigs what percent of day is rooting/ exploring/ feeding
10-20% (in wild its 80%)
abnormal behaviours
- tail and ear biting/ sucking
- canibalism
- abnormal dunging
- belly nosing
- prepuce sucking
- stereotypes
- snout rubbing
factors for tail biting
- genetics
- insufficient stimulation
- stocking density
- environment
- access to water
- feed
prevention of tail biting
- environmental enrichment
- reduce stressors
- tail docking last resort; before 7 days of age
3 forms of feed available
mash
crumble
pellet
water
- available at all times
- automatic systems checked daily
- stockperson takes action if bullying is restricting access to water
diet composition and type changes
with class of stock
crumble vs pellet
- crumble; creep, weaner
- pellets; porker, grower, finisher
crude protein requirements
- weaner; 20%
- grower; 18%
- finisher; 16 %
- dry sow; 12.5%
- lac sow; 16%
farrowing shed for late preg sow
- moved a week before farrowing
- lac sow diet
- just before farrowing see a reduced feed intake
- requires slow start back on feed after farrowing, increasing volume over first 7 days
- will be eating around 5kg/day
- sows will drop in bcs due to lactation; 3 to a 2.5 is normal
growth rate is measured as
average daily gain in grams per day
feed intake measured as
kg/ day
feed conversion efficiency/ rate (FCE or FCR)
how much feed required to produce 1 kg of lean meat
are younger or older pig more efficient feed converters
young
ADG formula
weight over time
convert to grams per day
FCE formula
average feed consumed over average pig weight = ___ kg of feed to 1 kg of weight
ideal BCS for preg sows up to weaning
- mid to late gestation 3
- by weaning 2.5
swill feeding
- feeding of food scraps containing meat or imported dairy products
- illegal in aus
- risk of introducing exotic disease
target KPI for litter size
- sow: 12 alive
- gilt; 11 alive
total 13/ litter
KPI piglet mortality
no more than 8%
KPI sillborn and mummified piglets
no more than 8%
gestation length
114 days (less than 4 months)
lactation length
28 days
weaning to estrus
6 days
gestation length (114 days) + lactation length (28 days) + weaning to estrus (6) days = 148 days means potenital for
2.4 litters/ sow/ year (actual is 2.2)
27 piglets/ sow/ year (actual is 24)
estrus cycle length
21 days
estrus period 2-3 days
estrus detection
back pressure test or boar test
mating management
- good heat detection
- mate twice 24 hours apart
- use mature boars older than 10 months
- supervise
- 3 min ejaculation
- facilities and experienced operators important
preg detection
- best is estrus detection 18-24 days post mating
- doppler US reliable 28 days
- real time US best at 21+ days
litter marking
- tail docking
- clipping of needle teeth
- ID
- other
litter marking; tail docking
- avoided if possible
- removal of 1/2 to 1/3 of tail
- where tail biting a problem
- before 7 days old
litter marking; teeth clipping
- removal of needle teeth
- tips of the 8 needle teeth
- before 3 days old
- only done if aggression and injury is occurring to littermates or to sows udder
- only tips, no more than quarter of tooth
litter marking; ID
tattooed, tagged, notched or punched ear
body tattooed or microchipped
ear notching should be avoided, and if it is happening before 7 days old
castration
- surgical
- after 2 days but before 7 days
- if older than 21 days must be performed by vet under anaesthesia
- alternative is immuno-castration using vaccine called improvac
why is weaning stressful
- diet change; scours
- pig movement and mixing
vaccines
- parvo
- 3 in 1: lepto, erysipelas, e. coli
tusk trimming
- when injury to humans or animals is likely
- embryotomy wire
- restrained and or anaesthetized
- analgesia NOT required; tusk lacks sensory nerves
- do not remove entire tusk; destabilize jaw
- should be severed cleanly above level of gums
nose ringing
- avoid, last resort to prevent adverse effects to environment (if rooting is messing up pasture)
