Give all the piglets the same opportunity:
Secure colostrum-intake for all
Combine different interventions
Iron supplementation from day 3 or later
Preventative pain treatment = not only for male piglets
Apply pain-relieving/ anti-inflammatory medication with a broad spectrum of activity for docked tails or arthritis
Sucking pigs have an irrepressible desire to live. However, painful events may have a negative impact on the further development of pigs by:
Lowering milk-intake
Restricting self-preservation instinct (reflex to flee)
Early and excessive iron supplementation can negatively influence health
Piglets are born with minimal iron-reserves (40 mg). This low iron concentration is a natural defence mechanism directed at combatting bacterial infections during and after birth.
Sow milk provides piglets with about 1 mg Iron/day. With a daily need of about 7 mg there is only sufficient iron for about 4 to 5 days.
Systematics in sucking pig management:
Checklist for a good start
1. Number of functional teats checked and recorded
2. A number of pigs, to leave two fewer piglets than the number of functional teats, are fostered out of a litter
The sow should lie in a recumbent position and invite piglets with specific sounds expressing the desire for milk let-down. Piglets will normally try to have facial contact with the sow’s head to stimulate milk release. To ensure optimal interaction between a sow and her piglets, it is important to avoid treating piglets during the first 10 days after birth and, thereafter, when multiple treatments are required, they should be grouped together to minimize the number of interventions.
Although there are few externally visible changes in gestating sows, it is during this time that physiological preparation is made for a successful suckling period. The following factors need to be considered.
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