Swine Lab Flashcards
1
Q
Pig General Features
A
- the majority of the hogs produced in the US are confinement-reared
- Midwest has highest pork production
- this is because the Midwest also produces corn, the primary feed for pigs
- the number of pigs on a farm in the US is increasing
- the number of pig farms in the US is decreasing
2
Q
Domestication
A
- much later than other livestock because they were not as easy to travel with as sheep, cattle, or horses
- certain religions (Judaism, Islam) forbid the consumption of pigs
3
Q
Dressing Percentage
A
- pig carcasses have a very high dressing percentage, typically around 75%, meaning that a 60 kg pig will produce approximately a 45 kg carcass
- this dressing percentage is higher than that of both sheep and cattle
4
Q
Yorkshire
A
- white; erect ears
- very prolific
- good maternal quality
5
Q
Hampshire
A
- black color with white belt around shoulders; erect ears
- not very prolific and average maternal ability
- excellent carcass yield
- good meat quality
- leanest breed
6
Q
Duroc
A
- red; floppy ears
- very prolific
- poor mothers (do not lactate well, etc.)
- meaty body type; best rate of gain
7
Q
Landrace
A
- white; large floppy ears
- finer bone structure than Yorkshire
- very prolific and good maternal ability
- known for confinement adaptability
8
Q
Production Cycle of Swine
A
- see lab manual pg. 80
9
Q
Farrow-to-Wean Operation
A
- breeds and farrows sows/gilts and raises baby pigs until weaning at approximately 3-4 weeks of age
10
Q
Nursery
A
- weaned pigs are raised in a nursery for about 8 weeks after weaning
11
Q
Grow-to-Finish
A
- after leaving the nursery
- pigs are raised in this facility for 11-12 weeks until reaching market weight, going to slaughterhouse at approximately 23-24 weeks of age
12
Q
Farrow-to-Finish
A
- breeds, farrows, and finishes
- no longer common in the commercial swine industry
13
Q
Purebred and Show Stock Breeders
A
- similar to farrow-to-finish, except that the animals are used primarily as breeding boars and gilts or show pigs
14
Q
Boar
A
- intact male pig
15
Q
Sow
A
- mature female pig
16
Q
Gilt
A
- young female pig
17
Q
Barrow
A
- male pig castrated before sexual maturity
18
Q
Stag
A
- male castrated after reaching sexual maturity
19
Q
Hog
A
- mature/market pigs over 54 kg
- swine, hog, and pig are typically interchangeable terms
20
Q
Basic Husbandry Practices
A
- antibiotics not used in regular production
- antibiotics only for sick animals
- moving animals is done with as little stress as possible
21
Q
Biosecurity
A
- measures taken to prevent the herd from being exposed to pathogens it has not previously been exposed to
- includes segregation, cleaning, and disinfection
22
Q
Segregation
A
- control of animal entry from areas outside of immediate farm
- maintaining farm-only work clothing
23
Q
Cleaning and Disinfection
A
- high- and low-pressure washing of facilities
- personnel shower in/shower out
- foot baths
24
Q
UC Davis
A
- “specific pathogen free” facility
- strict about entry reqs but do not exclude students, etc., because of what we try and share
25
Piglet Processing
- multiple procedures, typically done together
- 1 day after birth: clip needle-teeth, dock tails, ear notch, maybe give antibiotics
- 3 days after birth: iron dextran injection, castrate males
26
Ear Notching and Anatomy
- see lab manual pg. 82
27
Breeding
- 90-95% of breeding done by AI
- breeding stock is generally purebred
- market animals are generally crossbred
28
Puberty
- gilts: 5-7 mo, 68-113 kg (150-250 lbs)
- boars: 5-8 mo, 79-113 kg (175-250 lbs)
29
Estrous Cycle
- 21 days
- non-seasonally polyestrous
30
Signs of Heat
- standing to be mounted (can apply pressure on sow's back with hands to check)
- restlessness
- frequent urination
- enlargement and discharge from the vulva
31
Ovulation
- 24-36 hours after onset of estrus
32
Gestation
- 114 days
- 3 mo, 3 weeks, 3 days
33
Normal Litter Size
8-10
34
Areas of Interest When Selecting Breeding and Replacement Pigs
- prolificacy (the number of pigs produced over a lifetime)
- weaning weight of the litter
- the effectiveness of selecting for pigs to breed that have desirable outcomes for these traits is dependent on the heritability of those traits
- traits w/ high heritability can have the most rapid improvement through generations
35
Heritability of Economic Traits
- carcass length: 60% heritability
- basically meat characteristics more heritable than breeding characteristics
36
Applied Nutrition
- swine diets are largely corn and soybeans
- other ingredients: milo, oats, barley, wheat, alfalfa meal, almond hulls, brewers grains, etc.
- primarily concentrates (below 18-20% crude fiber, such as corn)
- need good quality protein feeding
- protein must have all of the essential AAs
37
Digestive System
- non-ruminants, having a single, simple stomach
- they cannot utilize roughages (above 18-20% crude fiber, such as alfalfa hay) as well as ruminants (like cattle, sheep, and goats)
- pig has cecum and, w/ colon, allows some limited use of fibrous feeds under certain conditions
38
Essential Amino Acids
- when the amino acid cannot be made at all by the animal or be made fast enough to satisfy its requirements
- lysine is the limiting, essential amino acid for swine
39
Rules of Thumb for Diet
- 3-4% of body weight per day in dry matter
- pigs in maintenance require 1.5-3.5 gallons of water daily
- pregnant sows require 4-5 gallons of water daily
- lactating sows require 5-6.5 gallons of water daily
40
Housing
- farrowing room and nursery are kept constantly warm
- manure is flushed either under the pens (nursery, farrowing room) or at the back of the pens (growers)
- the waste water typically goes typically goes to a lagoon for spreading back onto fields
- ammonia gas is important to watch out for as it can be released from wastewater and can affect animal health
41
Porcine Stress Syndrome (PSS)
- shock-like syndrome that was most common in the 1960s and 1970s as the result of breeding almost exclusively for heavily muscled pigs
- partial or total confinement of pigs exacerbates the condition
- stress is induced through routine management procedures (moving, handling)
- symptoms include open-mouthed breathing, fever, tremors, and PSE (pale, soft exudative) pork
- when pigs with the condition survive through to slaughter the pork is PSE and unsellable
- the best control for PSS is not breeding pigs w/ PSS and DNA testing for PSS
42
Exudative Epidermitis
- skin disease that occurs in baby pigs aged 5-60 days old
- affects 10-90% of baby pigs
- skin lesions caused by Staphylococcus hyicus entering cuts that are caused by fighting between baby pigs (why you need to clip tails and needle teeth)
- immunity to this disease can be passed through the colostrum of mature sows who are immune themselves
- antibiotics can also be used to treat this disease (exudative epidermitis, N.D.)
43
Hog Panel (Hurdles)
- to move hogs, particularly when animals are in large groups
44
Ear Notcher
- used to place notches in the ears as a means of permanent identification
45
Farrowing Crate
- pens used to house and restrain the sow so that she does not crush the baby pigs
- the sow is brought in about 3-4 days prior to farrowing
- once baby pigs are born, they will remain in the farrowing crate for about to 21 days
46
Teeth Nippers
- to clip the needle teeth of baby pigs
- can also be used to dock the tails of baby pigs
