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Swine management
Pig production is the systematic rearing of pig breeds on scientifically based management principles for economic benefit. The main objectives of pig production are to provide consumers with pig meat and related products and to generate income for farmers.
Pig production plays a significant role in the livestock industry, providing an important source of protein and other valuable products. The systematic approach to pig rearing ensures that the pigs are healthy and well-cared for, which in turn leads to better quality products and higher yields. The focus on scientific principles and efficient management helps to reduce waste and increase profitability for farmers.
A swine producer who masters the art of good management has excellent profit opportunities. This is especially true with disease prevention and control. A healthy herd of good-growing, quality breeding animals — adequately fed and housed — provides maximum profit opportunities for the owner who does not over-spend for facilities and/or feed.
Introduction The “Five Freedoms” (FAWC, 1993) are used widely as a framework for the assessment of animal welfare and the basis of much legislation for animal protection. Whilst not all Freedoms receive universal agreement, “Freedom from pain, injury and disease” is accepted as important by all stakeholders. Pain can be defined as “an unpleasant sensory and emotional experience associated with actual or potential tissue damage” (IASP, 1979)....
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INTRODUCTION Several factors influence piglet performance after birth. In general, pig producers aim at heavy birth and weaning weights because they are associated with better performance during subsequent rearing phases. This association was first described in the 1980s by Powell and Aberle (1980) and has been recently studied and discussed in the literature. However, Surek et al. (2014), working with litters of 11 piglets each standardized by birth weight, observed that...
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Introduction Sow longevity is defined as the time elapsed from gilt entry into the breeding herd until removal as a result of culling or death. Increasing herd retention rate is important to maximize sow lifetime productivity. Higher removal rate implies an increase in the percentage of young females in the herd, a category with lower production potential, and a higher risk of early culling. Systematic gilt replacement is required for genetic gain. Still,...
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One of the most pressing problems that has attracted considerable publicity in the last few years is the prospect of widespread multidrug resistance leading to a breakdown in human healthcare systems throughout the world. The O’Neil report (O’Neil et al 2016), estimates “that by 2050, 10 million lives a year and a cumulative 100 trillion USD of economic output are at risk due to the rise of drug- resistant infections”. The O’Neil report recommends a...
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Introduction While meat production generates food and a livelihood for billions of people around the planet, it is also associated with environmental and health consequences (OECD 2016). Among production animals, chickens and pigs are species of enormous economic importance for humans, with chickens being the most consumed meet source in the world (13.8 kg/capita in 2016) followed by pigs (12.3 kg/per capita in 2016) (OECD 2016). Given the cultural...
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Animal emotions – and what about the pig? With some notable exceptions Darwin’s 1872 book on expressions of emotions in man and humans, ‘feelings’ or emotions have historically been viewed as non-scientific and not a subject fitting for scientific enquiry. However, during the last decades we have seen a resurrection of scientific interest in the field of mechanisms of emotion, not at least because of the increasing prevalence of...
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The first batch of early bird registration is available until 11:59 PM, January 31st, 2022
Registration for the 26th Congress of the International Pig Veterinary Society (IPVS), the world´s most important scientific event...
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United Pork Americas, an event to be held in September 2022, was designed to spread knowledge about the international market and also the main technical issues of pig farming on a global level.
Networking is one of the strong points of the event, with the...
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Introduction As the economic success of sow husbandry relies very much, but not solely, on the ability of sows to produce a high number of piglets per sow per year, a high sow litter size contributes to this goal. Genetic selection for higher litter size has resulted in a steady increase in sow litter size in the last decades, and this increase in litter size still continues. For example, in the Netherlands, sow litter size (total number born) has increased...
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Introduction Despite the wealth of information on the many factors that affect sexual maturation and the early breeding performance of gilts, it has been difficult to establish the needed protocols that produce a consistent supply of “good quality” replacement females. In the context of the latest genotypes available to the production industry, it is important to keep addressing the changing biology of the nucleus sows from which replacement...
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Introduction Pork’s historic position as the world’s most popular meat is no more. 2019 was characterized by the explosion of African Swine Fever in China and subsequent slaughter of approximately half of that country’s pigs, representing about 25% of the world's production. Allowing for this catastrophe the exorable rise in the global consumption of chicken ensured it always going to result in its accession to No.1 spot worlds, but...
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This systematic review aimed to assess the effectiveness of pre-harvest interventions to control the main foodborne pathogens in pork in the European Union. A total of 1180 studies were retrieved from PubMed® and Web of Science for 15 pathogens identified as relevant in EFSA's scientific opinion on the public health hazards related to pork (2011). The study selection focused on controlled studies where a cause-effect could be attributed to the interventions tested, and...
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Guilherme Rosa (University of Wisconsin-Madison) mentions training, adaptation and possible costs among the challenges, in this Swine It interview with host Laura Greiner....
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Mike Tokach (Kansas State University) comments on complex diets and feeder adjustments, in this Swine It interview with host Laura Greiner....
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Guilherme Rosa (University of Wisconsin-Madison) talks about the benefits of technology in this Swine It interview with host Laura Greiner....
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Liz Wagstrom (National Pork Producers Council) talked about surveillance and sample collection, in this Swine It interview with host Laura Greiner....
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Maternal investment, sow behavioural needs and criteria for housing design The reproductive strategy of producing large broods and smaller young, resulting in a higher mortality rate, fits the picture of domestic pigs remarkably well (reviewed by Drake et al. 2008). The average litter size in domestic sows is around 12 to 14 piglets, but litters of above 20 piglets are not uncommon even in gilts, although the number of functional teats is usually between 14...
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The Animal AgTech Innovation Summit will be live online on October 19-20, 2021 for two days of interactive live-streamed sessions, roundtable discussion groups and 1-1 video meetings.
David Speller, OPTIfarm CEO/Founder, will be one of the distinguished speakers at the event and in this...
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INTRODUCTION Estrus synchronization is a well-established tool for the reproductive management of a variety of livestock species. Manipulating the estrous cycle of domestic animals is thus essential for improving livestock productivity, as it helps to generate more income for the farmer through the utilization of assisted reproductive techniques like artificial insemination, in vitro fertilization and embryo transfer technologies. In gilts, estrus manipulation is being...
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Introduction During the last decades, the use of data by farmers has been limited. Most of the systems used were simple and mainly focused on the management of farm tasks, with limited or no capacity of analysis. Integration of data from different devices or farms was also difficult, and there was little applied knowledge on the value of data in the strategic decision-making. Another weak point, not solved so far, is the lack of support services in use of...
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