Andersson, Emma
(2018).
Impact of litter size on sow health and welfare.
Skara :
Sveriges lantbruksuniv.
, Avhandling (Sveriges lantbruksuniversitet, Institutionen för husdjurens miljö och hälsa), 1652-750X
; Thesis 7
ISBN 978-91-576-9600-7
eISBN 978-91-576-9601-4
[Licentiate thesis]
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Abstract
Genetic improvement of litter size has been the main breeding goal in piglet production during the last decades, resulting in a steady increase in total number of born piglets in each litter both in Sweden and in other European countries. It has been suggested that large litters pose a major welfare problem for sows and piglets. However, there is a lack of recent studies investigating the impact of litter size on the health and welfare of sows. Therefore the objective of this thesis was to investigate the association between litter sizes and sow health and welfare. The two studies included in this thesis were performed as observational studies and investigated by retrospective analysis of available pig production data. The first study investigated the association between litter sizes and sow stayability, and the second study the association between litter size and medical treatment of sows during farrowing and lactation. The final dataset used in the first study included a study population of 38 878 sows in 24 herds and the final dataset in the second study included observations from 1 947 litters from 655 sows.
Associations between litter size and sow health and welfare was found. There was an association between litter size and stayability of the sow, as well as association between litter size and medical treatment of the sow. The results from both studies imply that sows with medium sized litters have a better lifetime production than sows with very small or large litters. Piglet producers should therefore pay even more attention to prophylactic management of sows during gestation and lactation. In planning of breeding strategies and annual removal of sows, piglet producers should also aim for keeping sows giving birth to a medium-sized litter, with approximately 12 to 14 piglets born in total in their breeding program, as this seems to improve sows’ stayability and decreasing the risk of unplanned removal which would favour health and welfare of both sow and piglets.
| Authors/Creators: | Andersson, Emma | ||||||
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| Title: | Impact of litter size on sow health and welfare | ||||||
| Alternative abstract: |
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| Series Name/Journal: | Avhandling (Sveriges lantbruksuniversitet, Institutionen för husdjurens miljö och hälsa) | ||||||
| Year of publishing : | 2 November 2018 | ||||||
| Depositing date: | 4 November 2018 | ||||||
| Number: | Thesis 7 | ||||||
| Number of Pages: | 41 | ||||||
| Papers/manuscripts: |
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| Place of Publication: | Skara | ||||||
| Publisher: | Department of Animal Environment and Health, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences | ||||||
| ISBN for printed version: | 978-91-576-9600-7 | ||||||
| ISBN for electronic version: | 978-91-576-9601-4 | ||||||
| ISSN: | 1652-750X | ||||||
| Language: | English | ||||||
| Publication Type: | Licentiate thesis | ||||||
| Full Text Status: | Public | ||||||
| Agris subject categories.: | L Animal production > L01 Animal husbandry L Animal production > L70 Veterinary science and hygiene - General aspects | ||||||
| Subjects: | (A) Swedish standard research categories 2011 > 4 Agricultural Sciences > 402 Animal and Dairy Science > Animal and Dairy Science. (A) Swedish standard research categories 2011 > 4 Agricultural Sciences > 403 Veterinary Science > Clinical Science | ||||||
| Keywords: | stayability, removal reason, piglet production, oxytocin, antibiotics | ||||||
| URN:NBN: | urn:nbn:se:slu:epsilon-e-5091 | ||||||
| Permanent URL: | http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:slu:epsilon-e-5091 | ||||||
| ID Code: | 15729 | ||||||
| Faculty: | VH - Faculty of Veterinary Medicine and Animal Science | ||||||
| Department: | (VH) > Dept. of Animal Environment and Health | ||||||
| Deposited By: | Emma Andersson | ||||||
| Deposited On: | 05 Nov 2018 11:21 | ||||||
| Metadata Last Modified: | 10 Sep 2020 13:41 |
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