Changes in piglet and litter characteristics across parities in two highly prolific sow hybrids in an outdoor organic herd

AbstractHigh piglet mortality constitutes a welfare challenge in organic pig production. Litter characteristics were investigated from parities 1 –5 of two hyper-prolific hybrids with different selection traits in an organic commercial herd (DanBred vs. Topigs Norsvin [TN70]). TN70 sows had more functional teats than DanBred sows, and their offspring had higher birth weights. Several interactions between hybrid and parity were found. The to tal born increased with higher parity and was more pronounced for DanBred sows. Litter weight at weaning was higher in parities 1–4 for TN70 compared with DanBred, and within DanBred parities 4 and 5 had higher litter weight at weaning than parity 1. The survival rate was higher for TN70 in pariti es 1 and 2 compared with DanBred, and for both hybrids, the survival rate was higher in parities 1 and 2 compared with parities 4 and 5. The number of weaned piglets was stable across parities 1–4 but lower in parity 5 for both hybrids. Thus, despite a lower number of total born piglets in TN70, T N70 sows weaned the same number of piglets as DanBred, with a lower mortality rate and a heavier litter at weaning.

Source: Animal Science Journal - May 30, 2023 Category: Zoology Authors: Cecilie Kobek ‐Kjeldager, Mona Lillian Vestbjerg Larsen, Lene Juul Pedersen Tags: RESEARCH ARTICLE Source Type: research