Pablo Magallón, a technical service veterinarian at PIC Europe, shares his key points on sow management.
1. Gilt management
1. In the development of the gilt pigs, first ensure that all pigs can get sufficient feed and can eat freely at the whole stage. There should be a drinking fountain for every 10 pigs. Each head has at least one square meter of space in the later stages of incubation.
2. Start checking in 24-26 weeks. Late detection can lead to excess weight and has an impact on production, longevity and nutritional efficiency. At the same time, under normal circumstances, 70% of pigs should come into heat within 20-25 days after the boar is lured. The mating date should be 220-230 days old and weigh between 135-160 kg. Ideally, there should be two estrus records before breeding.
3. In the 3 weeks before mating, gilts should minimize stress (vaccination, adaptation to the stall) and avoid a decrease in feed intake. Avoid affecting the size and number of follicles before ovulation.
4. Ideally, or when designing a new farm, PIC recommends having an isolation barn that can accommodate sows for 9 weeks to be domesticated and checked for estrus.
5. Light selection 250 lumens.
6. Boars are individually placed and fed freely.
7. Even if the pen is tight, do not put the gilt in the positioning pen for rearing.
Second, gilt feeding
1. In 2022, PIC proposed a new feeding scheme based on its research. It is recommended to measure in net energy or metabolic energy (NE/ME).
For sows bred for the first time between 220 and 230 days of age, a flat feeding curve of 4.4 NE per day is recommended for the entire gestation.
3. Before farrowing, gilts should be fed the same amount of feed as during pregnancy. However, lactating or perinatal feed is fed at least twice to accustomed to multiple feedings. And make sure there is not too much time between the last feeding and delivery (to reduce stillbirth and delivery time).
4. After childbirth, food should be taken freely, although Magallón adds: "We prefer to give her a gradual increase in feed after childbirth rather than free feed".
5. Caliper measurement. Magallón: "We strongly advocate the use of calipers, which allow us to obtain objective measurements of our physical condition. What's really interesting is the measurement at the time of farrowing and weaning, because the measurement at the time of farrowing allows us to assess how the feeding curve during pregnancy fits the needs of the animal, while the assessment before and after farrowing allows us to know how much the physical condition is lost during lactation." Caliper values at farrowing should range from 12-15, with normal lactation loss of 1.5 points for multiple sows and 2.5 points for non-farrowing sows.
3. Feeding by farrowing sows
1. Sows in optimal body condition should consume 4.4 Mcal NE per day
2. Lean sows should eat 6.1 Mcal NE per day. Check once a week and return to the normal feeding curve when it returns to normal.
3. Fat sows have the same feed intake in the first month of pregnancy. At 30-90 days of gestation it is changed to 3.7 Mcal NE.
Sows with more than 4 litters will have an additional feed of 0.55 Mcal NE (about 250 g feed) during the last third of gestation, as their maintenance needs are higher.
5. For the first five days before the gestational sow is transferred to the large pen, feed an extra 300 grams of feed or straw to increase satiety and fight less on the first day of grouping.
4. Lactation
1. Since gilts are not familiar with the feeding system in the farrowing room, they need to adapt. Make sure they adapt well to the farrowing pen and start feeding. It is necessary to pay attention to postpartum recovery and gradually increase feed intake.
2. Take 14-15 piglets per gilt and minimize activities.
5. Monitor sow mortality
High sow mortality is an increasingly common problem on all farms and a concern for the pig industry. Magallón explained that according to the Cumborough benchmark data, the average mortality rate of 750,000 sows in Europe is about 10%. Doing both well can help reduce sow mortality:
1. Keep the sow's body condition within the appropriate range. Most importantly, avoid sows that are too old for gestational age and too heavy.
2. Carefully select seeds. A good sow requires correct leg morphology, at least 14 teats, and no damage to the tail. A selection rate of 75-80% is appropriate. Even so, when breeding, any pigs that are not in good condition must be eliminated. At weaning, it should be ensured that all sows are capable of reproducing litters. The sow renewal rate for large-scale farms is preferably 50%.