Weaning of pigs in group housing and in conventional housing systems for lactating sows
1997
Rantzer, D. | Svendsen, J. (SLU, Alnarp (Sweden). Inst. foer Jordbrukets Biosystem och Teknologi) | Westroem, B.
A group housing system for 4 lactating sows and their litters (GS), with a more enriched environment (i.e. more space, more social contacts and better conditions for mother-offspring behaviour) was studied and compared to a conventional housing system (CS) with one sow with litter per pen, and with emphasis on the period around weaning. The trial period began about a week after farrowing when each system received 4 sows and litters and stopped 4 weeks after weaning. The pigs were weaned at 5 weeks of age and moved in intact groups to weaner pens (i.e., the 4 GS litters in the same pen). A total of 36 litters were studied in each system. Before weaning, no differences in growth rate or feed intake were found between the housing systems. However, the GS pigs had higher injury scores than the CS pigs. Post weaning growth rate and feed intake were poorer for the GS pigs, but not feed conversion. The diarrhoea score and the proportion of pigs with haemolytic E. coli dominating the intestinal aerobic bacterial flora did not differ between the systems during the 4 week post weaning study period. No difference in blood plasma levels of immunoreactive cationic trypsin (IRCT) between the systems was found. Before weaning the average blood plasma cortisol level was higher among the GS pigs than the CS pigs. The week after weaning the cortisol level showed an increase for the CS pigs but a decrease for the GS pigs. No difference in behavioural changes at weaning between the pigs in the two systems was found, but after weaning the pigs in both systems were generally more active. The pen hygiene was poorer in the large GS weaner pen than in the smaller CS weaner pens. In this study, the enriched environment of the lactational group housing did not show any apparent advanages for the pigs up to 4 weeks post weaning in comparison to conventional housing.
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