Piglets are born with 8 sharp "baby teeth" in their small mouths, which are used to compete for milk in the first few days of life. However, while these small teeth help to compete for teats, they can also cause unintentional injuries between piglets or to the sow's udders. To avoid this, within one day of birth, the farrowing room performs a "tooth cutting" operation, in which the tips of some or all of the piglet's baby teeth are removed.
There are different methods and techniques for cutting teeth, and tools such as electric grinders or side scissors can be used. The key to this procedure is that we only need to remove the sharp top of the tooth and not the whole tooth, in order to avoid touching the pulp cavity that contains blood vessels and nerves to prevent infection. In addition, proper cutting tools and techniques are crucial to reduce the likelihood of tooth fragmentation or breakage, as this can puncture the piglet's tongue or gums, triggering an oral infection.
Tooth cutting should be done within 72 hours of birth, as this is the time when the piglets naturally develop the sequence of sucking the teats. After this period, tooth cutting is not only meaningless, but may increase the risk of infection.
The clipping process does not affect the concentration of ACTH, cortisol or lactate in the blood of the piglets, but the piglets whose teeth are treated by grinding may have slightly higher concentrations of β-endorphins than piglets who cut their teeth directly. When cutting or grinding teeth, piglets may exhibit behavioral responses such as grunting, trying to escape, and screaming, which are normal signs of stress.
No chemical methods have been found to significantly reduce the behavioural or physiological response to tooth clipping, and since tooth clipping is usually performed on the first day of piglets, when the piglet's body functions are not yet fully developed, the use of painkillers that may affect the piglet's mobility may also increase the risk of being crushed by the sow. In addition, given the additional cost and potential time consumption, many pig farmers consider conventional scaling to be more cost-effective, especially in North America, where the high cost of labor and the risk of oral injury and infection that can result from the scaling operation must be weighed against minor surface injuries caused by fights between piglets. As a result, more and more North American producers are re-evaluating the necessity and implementation of this traditional operation.