Annoying. This is how Ib Nielsen and his four employees briefly describe the ear wounds that until recently hit many pigs after weaning. "We saw the first ear wounds a week after weaning," he says. There were usually one or two pigs with ear wounds

Annoying. This is how Ib Nielsen and his four employees briefly describe the ear wounds that until recently hit many pigs after weaning. "We saw the first ear wounds a week after weaning," he says. There were usually one or two pigs with ear wounds per year. path. There were no antibiotics that worked, but extra straw was always provided as a dispersion for pigs in pathways with ear ulcers, just as blue wound spray was applied once a pig had ear ulcers. The cause of ear ulcers is not clear, nor is Ib Nielsen. It may be bacterial, it may arise from tearing after fighting or because the pigs suck or bite into each other's ear during fights. Ib Nielsen does not have a specific indication as to why there are ear wounds in his crew that have good gastric health and are not affected by respiratory disorders. His pigs are neither nervous nor aggressive. Ear ulcers have been in the herd year-round. This year the number rose in the middle of summer. SEDOLINE Through his veterinarian, Tage Rødbro, LVK, he heard about the product Sedoline, which the pharmaceutical company Huvepharma distributes. It should have an effect against, for example, ear ulcers by soothing the pigs. It contains, for example, a medicinal canopy and a white eagle, which is known to have a sedative effect. He started in September to mix one kg per day. tons of feed from the pigs is 10 kg. "We saw the effect right away," says Ib Nielsen. The number of new cases decreased and the wounds healed on pigs that already had ear wounds. Today, there are still pigs with ear wounds, and new ones are also emerging, so the problem has not disappeared, but greatly reduced. "Otherwise I do not think that the pigs have changed behavior and have become more calm, but there are fewer ear wounds," he notes with satisfaction. He couldn't sell pigs with ear wounds, so he kept them at home in a small butcher's barn. What was surprising was that as soon as the pigs were moved to the slaughter pig house or to one of his three customers, the problem stopped. "But of course I couldn't sell pigs with significant ear wounds," adds Ib Nielsen. FIVE HERBS WITH EFFECT IN THE EARNY YEAR Sedoline is a French product. If you read and translate the table of contents on the bag, you will find that it contains enriched white eagle, passion flower, medicinal dandelion, hops and lemon balm and magnesium salt. These are herbs that have been known for generations for their calming effect on humans. Magnesium is known to have an effect on, for example, tail bites by attenuating aggression among pigs. »As a derived effect of a lower level of activity, the pigs are losing interest in biting, sucking and fighting. This reduces the risk of infecting each other with tears and wounds that can later be infected with bacteria such as staphylococci, ”explains veterinarian Leif Meedom, Huvepharma, who markets Sedoline in Denmark. Veterinarian Tage Rødbro, LVK, estimates that there are serious problems with ear wounds in 5 to 10 percent of Danish sow holdings. "In addition, more than half of the crews have minor ear problems," Tage Rødbro says. He sees most problems in the summer, so the temperature can catch up. Antibiotics rarely have a good effect. It points out that it is not due to infections. "Or maybe the damage has already happened when we see the wounds," Tage Rødbro explains. He sees most problems in piglets of white breeds, ie in home breeders, where there is a certain proportion of piglets without duroc genes. As a home breeder, Ib Nielsen also has pigs with shelter / wool lineage in his stables. He has tried to find a breeding relationship, but has not found it. Ib Nielsen also sees no connection to the grain of new harvest. "This year we saw an increase in the number of ear wounds before we started using the new grain," he says. This article is from www.svinet.dk