Thompson’s tip: Regular worm monitoring
Worms can still be a cause of financial loss in pigs. The main species of concern are ascarids (roundworms) which, in the course of the migration through the body, damage lungs and cause coughing.
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Netherlands - The Minister for Agriculture plans a reduction in the use of antibiotics in livestock
The Dutch Minister for Agriculture, Nature and Food Quality, Gerda Verburg, declared at the end of a recent government meeting that the use of antibiotics in livestock will have to be reduced by half in the next three years to reach the levels of 1999, and at least by 20% in 2011.
Environmental control in the growing phase (I): Checking the environment
Man is possibly the only animal capable of living in practically all places in the world, regardless of the climate. This is due to his capacity to construct buildings to isolate himself from the climate however extreme it may be, maintaining an environment which allows him to survive. As domestic animals live together with man, they have to take advantage indirectly of this capacity.
Why does good cleaning and disinfection matter on pig units?
To many pig producers cleaning and disinfection is a chore they view as an expensive tedious burden.
Organization of the replacements II
In previous chapters we have looked at the importance of maintaining the ideal parity profile within each batch.
Temple Grandin: Pig Behavior During Handling
Temple Grandin discusses the design of chutes, races, and crowd pens for swine. Low stress handling improves pork quality and reduces PSE.
Alternative to surgical castration without anesthesia (I)
The administration of local or general anesthesia, accompanied in all cases by a long-lasting analgesic, eliminates or considerably reduces the pain caused by surgical castration. However, the use of these products has certain limitations.
Incentive mechanisms for liver lesion control in finishing pigs in the Netherlands
This paper compares the effectiveness of two Dutch incentive mechanisms: a collective insurance – in place prior to July 2004 – and a reduction in producer payment for each delivered pig with a liver lesion – in place from July 2004.
Farrowing batches: keeping the breeding groups full
In the last chapter we looked at the importance of achieving homogenous farrowing batches (age distribution + nº sows). In this chapter we will begin to see how to achieve this.
Temple Grandin: Electric Stunning of Pigs and Sheep
Temple Grandin explains humane slaughter methods to insure good animal welfare at the pork processing plant.
Alternative to surgical castration without anesthesia (II)
Immunological castration also reduces sexual behavior and aggressiveness during the final weeks of fattening, in this way increasing the time dedicated to the ingestion of food
Gestation in stalls
This month we are setting you a new test, in this case on the welfare of sows accommodated in stalls during gestation.
Organization of the replacements I
We have already seen that in order to achieve a correct parity structure and homogeneity of the production batches, it is necessary to control the number of replacement gilts entering the herd.
Genetic resistance to PCV2
Anecdotal evidence from pig producers and veterinarians in the field suggests that there are genotype differences in susceptibility to PCVAD
TOPIGS: Flushing results in heavier piglets
An increased feeding of sows during the insemination phase results in a higher piglet birthweight.
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ArticleControlling time of sows farrowing
Injecting prostaglandin F2α (PGF) or its analogues is effective for induction of farrowing, although a large range in the interval between treatment and farrowing is usual. Experience has shown that only 50% to 60% of PGF-treated sows farrow during the working day after injection and only these sows are candidates for farrowing supervision.