Articles - Management

A much higher percentage of piglets prefer milk supplement over creep feed. Here are the results of the latest studies on this subject.

Why is it important to take sow temperatures after farrowing? How does feed intake affect litter size?

Here's how to make a modular gate that is adjustable in length and can easily be installed in all the aisles of the sow farm.

The four most common mistakes on pig farms, illustrated with real examples.

Preventing the entry and spread of diseases should be an objective on any swine farm, so adequately designing biosecurity aspects is key. In this article, we continue to discuss biosecurity measures with two experts: Lara Ruiz and José Casanovas.

We went to visit an Italian farm where the sows are free housed in the farrowing room. We asked some questions to better understand the system.

Does co-mingling during lactation benefit piglets in the long term? See how socialisation influences pigs behaviour and physiology.

What factors can help with managing piglets without in-feed antibiotics and ZnO?

How to improve the characteristics of a chain as environmental enrichment. The secret is pigs being able to play together.

How should you decide if your current routines on colostrum are working? How much intake is enough?

How is the growing demand for greater animal welfare on farms articulated?

To conclude this series of articles, swine reproduction and artificial insemination specialist Javier Gil explains the importance of proper post-service management in terms of when to move sows and how to feed them.

Changes at weaning can have significant detrimental impacts on the piglet's gastrointestinal tract structure and function. Sexual dimorphism, weaning weight, and weaning age play a role.

Key biosecurity messages to move dead pigs out of the clean area of the farm to the deadstock management area prior to their treatment: external deadstock container, incinerator or hydrolysis container.

Pros and cons of rendering carcass disposal systems, alkaline hydrolysis, anaerobic digestion, gasification, and homogenization.

Pros and cons of the most used carcass disposal systems: burial, composting, incineration, and rendering. Impacts on environment and biosecurity.

A high dose of oxytocin given in the 16 h following the end of farrowing prolongs the colostral phase which can improve the quality of milk in early lactation.

In this article we will talk about how to start a farm from a human resources point of view: how and where to look for and organize workers.

In the fourth article of our series, we review the opinions from our group of global swine health experts on the potential relationship, if any, between the rise in nursery mortality that some countries have observed over the last few years and antibiotic reduction strategies.

The movement of live animals out of the farm can compromise farm biosecurity. A meticulously designed transfer facility and safe load out protocols are key to prevent the risk of cross contamination.

The design of this DIY chute allows sows' claws to be trimmed quickly and comfortably.

Put more piglets on than teats? When to start fostering? Am I cross fostering piglets too many times?

In this series of articles about internal biosecurity we will review McRebel and other strategies that we perform to control the movement of pathogens within the farm as we complete our daily work