Swine (Exam 2)

Question 1

Where are most commercial pigs located?

Answer 1

North Carolina
Iowa
Minnesota

Question 2

Where are most feral pigs located?

Answer 2

Texas
California

Question 3

Why are many larger swine enterprises relocating to remote (low human population density) sites? Where is a common relocation site?

Answer 3

Oklahoma panhandle
Isolated to mitigate odor and dust complaints from humans & achieve isolation from other pig herds to protect against certain infectious diseases

Question 4

Define: Wild Boars

Answer 4

Male or female members that have never been domesticated
Not present outside captivity in the US

Question 5

Define: Feral Pigs

Answer 5

Commercial pigs that have escaped/been released from farms to live in the wild
Closest breed to domestic pigs in terms of genetics
Living and feeding conditions represent those of wild boars

Question 6

Define: Commercial Pigs

Answer 6

Domesticated pigs
Smaller breeds

Question 7

What are environmental concerns associated with wild boars and feral pigs?

Answer 7

Cause environmental issues = invasive species
Destroy forest, cause erosion through digging, and can displace wildlife

Question 8

What are infectious disease concerns associated with wild boars and feral pigs?

Answer 8

Means of carrying new infectious agents into commercial swine herds (especially small farms that have outdoor operations)

Question 9

Identify warm piglets based on body posture and behavior

Answer 9

Not piled on each other, but close

Question 10

Identify chilled piglets based on body posture and behavior

Answer 10

Piled on top of each other, lethargy, back hunched, dirty, shivering
Difficulty walking, limping, or getting traction to start walking
Patchy hair loss, hair standing on end

Question 11

Describe all-in-all-out facility management

Answer 11

Common practice in most swine herds
Pigs of a given age brought into unit at same time, filled to capacity (all in)
When pigs complete this stage, entire facility is emptied (all out
Empty facility is steam-cleaned, disinfected, and dried before new group of pigs brought in

Question 12

What is the goal of all-in-all-out management?

Answer 12

Greatly reduce role of environment as a reservoir for pathogenic infectious agents on pig farms

Question 13

What is the trend of housing in the swine industry?

Answer 13

Trend towards large, confined pool of pigs which creates new challenges for infection control

Question 14

What do modern swine operations look like?

Answer 14

Pigs housed in enclosed building for protection from health, predators, and separated by age to limit disease spread (ALL IN ALL OUT)

Question 15

What is an SPF operation?

Answer 15

Threat of new infections promoted development of specialized and strict biosecutiry/disease control guidelines for specific herds that wish to achieve particular high degree of biosafety status
Farm has implemented very strict biosecurity practices for several years - facility and personnel isolation, rodent and bird control, disease monitoring, maintenance of closed herds

Question 16

What are SPF pigs used for?

Answer 16

Test documentation that pigs on site do not harbor specific infectious disease agents (e.g. respiratory pathogens, swine dysentery)
Pigs desirable as new stock for new farms, breeding stock for farms with specific disease control measures in place, or farms that have depopulated because of infectious disease outbreaks

Question 17

What are the 4 biggest food safety issues for the swine industry?

Answer 17

Salmonella spp.
Campylobacter spp.
E. coli 0157:H7
Trichinella spiralis
*Higher risk with ground products than cut products
*Reduce risk by cooking product until grey inside - no pink

Question 18

What do gestation crates look like?

Answer 18

Iron cages that allow the sow to lie down and stand up, but not to turn around

Question 19

Compare gestation crates to pens and free stalls (nutrition)

Answer 19

GC & FS: tailor feed to each sow without dominant sows stealing food from submissive ones

Question 20

Compare gestation crates to pens and free stalls (safety)

Answer 20

GC & FS: prevent fighting among sows
Pens: sows normally don’t congregate in larger groups in nature and co-mingling of large numbers of sows in pens = serious bite wounds

Question 21

Compare gestation crates to pens and free stalls (welfare)

Answer 21

GC: not great, resulting in changes in pork industry due to consumer concerns
FS/Pens: better because they can walk around
FS: channels to walk around, gated area to eat, tag reader feeds appropriate amount, individual stalls to rest in (70%)

Question 22

What is the consequence of co-mingling all sows?

Answer 22

Behavioral traits cause harm
Naturally dont congregate - submissive sow typically vacates if dominant one is around = minimize fighting
Severe biting

Question 23

What is a farrowing crate, when is it used?

Answer 23

1 week before birth, moved to these crates = metal cage within a pen
Prevents the sow from laying down on piglets = designed to protect piglets from crushing
Piglets free to move in creep area that surrounds the farrowing crate

Question 24

Why are farrowing crates safer for piglets than open stalls (pigstys)?

Answer 24

Prevents crushing of piglets

Question 25

What is the optimal equipment design for loading pigs onto trucks?

Answer 25

Spotlight directed into ramp/trailer - facilitate entry (lit)
No downward slopes - loading ramps should be upwards (20 degrees
Tandem (side-by-side) movement optimal - natural
Smaller operations = hand-held panels used to direct pigs into trailer

Question 26

What biochemical processes occur prior to slaughter?

Answer 26

Metabolism os intramuscular glycogen = primary role in conversion of muscle to meat and expression of different attributes of fresh pork
Post-mortem metabolism of porcine muscle is faster than beef/lamb - results in pale, soft, exudative (PSE) and dark, firm, dry (DFD) pork
Level and extent of postmortem pH decline is glycogen-dependent as anaerobic conversion of glycogen to lactic acid results in achieving acceptable/non-acceptable meat pH

Question 27

When is pale, soft, exudative pork created?

Answer 27

Occurs when intramuscular lactic acid accumulates quickly (<1hr) while carcass temp is still high
LOW PH
Initiation of glycolysis due to (1) genetic predisposition, (2) pigs prone to high excitability, (3) pre-slaughter stress, (4) combination of all 3

Question 28

What causes pre-slaughter stress and what problems are caused by this? How can it be avoided?

Answer 28

Pigs transported in hot conditions, experience fights, or roughly handled
Problems: (1) welfare, (2) heat and glycolysis = poo-quality pork
Can be avoided by improving welfare during transport and rest = better mood and higher product quality

Question 29

When is dark, firm, dry pork created?

Answer 29

Related to acid production in pork muscle after slaughter but nature of chemical change different
HIGH PH
Results from lack of acid production in muscle = low levels of glycogen = restricts amount of acid that can be produced and limits expected postmortem reduction in pH
Extended stress, caused by factors (weather, long transport, unfavorable holding conditions) = deplete muscle glycogen and cause DFD condition in pork muscle

Question 30

What is lairage at the slaughter plant?

Answer 30

Rest after transport and before slaughter (at least 2hrs)
Placement of animals in holding pens to allow them to rest
Critical for pigs, especially if stress from transport prior to slaughter = animal welfare concern and carcass quality decreases

Question 31

What are important things to consider with lairage and transport?

Answer 31

Transport to new facility/slaughter = key time to understand pig behavior
If pig already stressed by transport = co-mingling with new pigs at slaughter produce disastrous results (hurt each other during fights)
Keep pigs with their social groups = alleviate issue
Rest after transport and before slaughter = lairage

Question 32

Why should pigs not be introduced to new pigs during lairage?

Answer 32

Stressed by transport and then co-mingling with new pigs at slaughter facility = produce potential disastrous results = injury to pigs during fights
Maintain in same social groups to prevent

Question 33

Describe methane entrapment (capture). What type of manure handling system enables this to happen?

Answer 33

Most manure handled as liquid
Falls through slotted floor into gutter or concrete storage pit (3-12 months storage)
Flushed/drained by adding water to create slurry and directing to outside storage
Modern slurry containment systems have methane entrapment = used as fuel to tun the farm
Methane generated by microbial anaerobic digestion of nutrients in manure
Contain within tank = gases liberated are contained and harvested for use
Liquid manure is then applied to soil surface or buried in soil