Tag Archives: pigs

Early intervention with enrichment can prevent tail biting outbreaks in weaner pigs

Early intervention with enrichment can prevent tail biting outbreaks in weaner pigs
Lahrmann et al. 2018. Livestock Science.

Highlights

• Providing extra enrichment as an early intervention reduced tail biting outbreaks.
• Tail damage was observed among weaner pigs with intact tails in 58 of 60 pens.
• Solitary tail damage did occur without escalating into tail biting outbreaks.

Abstract

Tail biting is a serious animal welfare problem in the modern pig production. A frequently studied preventive measure is enrichment materials, and increasing levels of enrichment materials, especially litter materials, reduces the risk of tail biting. However, permanent access to litter materials, can cause blockage of the slurry system and increase production cost. The aim of the present study was, therefore, to investigate if providing extra enrichment material, when observing the first tail damage could reduce the prevalence of tail biting outbreaks. The study included 1804 weaner pigs from 7 to 30 kg distributed in 60 pens with intact tails. As basic enrichment material, pens were equipped with two wooden sticks and daily provided with approximately 400 g of fine chopped straw. From outside the pen pigs were checked for tail damages three times weekly. When the first tail damage (fresh or scabbed) was recorded, the pen was assigned to one of four treatments; chopped straw (approximately 200 g/pen) on the floor (straw), haylage in a spherical cage (haylage), hanging rope with a sweet block (rope) or no extra material (control). From first treatment day and until a tail biting outbreak, tails were scored three times weekly. A tail biting outbreak occurred when four pigs in a pen had a tail damage, irrespective of wound freshness. The experiment was designed to compare the prevalence of tail biting outbreaks in each of the extra material group with the control group. A treatment was carried out in 44 of the 60 pens: 10 pens with straw, 8 pens with haylage, 7 pens with rope and 19 control pens. The risk of a tail biting outbreak was significantly lower in pens with haylage and straw compared with control pens (P < 0.05), and there tended to be fewer tail biting outbreaks in rope-pens compared with control pens (P = 0.08). The results should, though, be interpreted with caution due to the relatively small sample size. In control pens with no intervention, a tail biting outbreak developed in 42% of the pens within two to five days after the first tail damage was observed, whereas a tail biting outbreak did not occur in 32% of the control pens. In conclusion, a regular tail inspection and the use of extra enrichment material, when the first minor tail damage occur, could be one way to reduce the prevalence of tail biting outbreaks.

PhD defence on preventing tail biting in pigs online Monday April 9, 2018

Dear all,

I will defend my PhD on Monday, April 9 at 13.00 (UTC +2, due to summertime CEST).

The title is “Two strategies to prevent tail damage in finishers: removal of risk factors and early detection”.

The defence will be in English.

It will begin with a 45 min lecture, a short break and then continue with questions from the opponents until latest 16.00.

The opponents are Emerita Professor Sandra Edwards and Dr. Rick D’Eath.

I have arranged that the defence will be live streamed. It is possible for everyone to join and it is very easy:

  • You will need Java, Adobe Flash Player and do not use the web browser Google Chrome for this
  • Go to vc.au.dk
  • Choose “Live Videos
  • Choose the one named “Foulum Auditorium
  • Now you should be connected and be able to choose between seeing the room, the power point presentation more closely or a combination if you wish

Also, if you know of anyone that could be interested, please just forward this email. Everyone is welcome!

Looking forward to seeing all of you in the future!

Best wishes,

Mona Lilian Vestbjerg Larsen

Curious pigs

Weaned littermate piglets seem less socially connected and prone to becoming tail-biting victims

Understanding Tail-Biting in Pigs through Social Network Analysis

By Yuzhi Li, Haifeng Zhang, Lee. Johnston and Wayne Martin 2018. Animals 2018, 8(1), 13

The objective of this study was to investigate the association between social structure and incidence of tail-biting in pigs. Pigs (n = 144, initial weight = 7.2 ± 1.57 kg, 4 weeks of age) were grouped based on their litter origin: littermates, non-littermates, and half-group of littermates. Six pens (8 pigs/pen) of each litter origin were studied for 6 weeks. Incidence of tail injury and growth performance were monitored. Behavior of pigs was video recorded for 6 h at 6 and 8 weeks of age. Video recordings were scanned at 10 min intervals to register pigs that were lying together (1) or not (0) in binary matrices. Half weight association index was used for social network construction. Social network analysis was performed using the UCINET software. Littermates had lower network density (0.119 vs. 0.174; p < 0.05), more absent social ties (20 vs. 12; p < 0.05), and fewer weak social ties (6 vs. 14, p < 0.05) than non-littermates, indicating that littermates might be less socially connected. Fifteen percent of littermates were identified as victimized pigs by tail-biting, and no victimized pigs were observed in other treatment groups. These results suggest that littermates might be less socially connected among themselves which may predispose them to development of tail-biting.

Curly pig tail farming in Finland and Italy (two EC videos)

EU legislation on the welfare of pigs (Council Directive 2008/120/EC laying down minimum standards for the protection of pigs) does not allow routine tail-docking and requires farmers to provide to their pigs “manipulable material” such as straw, hay or sawdust.
To better inform farmers how to prevent routine tail docking, the Commission developed educational materials. The two videos present success stories in achieving the goal of rearing not-tailed pigs.

A Finnish farming with an intensive system rearing piglets with intact, curly tails.

An Italian farmer proud of rearing curly tails on straw

New book: Advances in Pig Welfare

New book: Advances in Pig Welfare
1st Edition
Editors: Marek Špinka
Hardcover ISBN: 9780081010129
Imprint: Woodhead Publishing (Elsevier)
Published Date: 10th November 2017
Page Count: 506

Table of Contents

Part One: Pig Welfare Hotspots
1. Overview of commercial pig production systems and their main welfare challenges* – Lene Juul Pedersen
2. Sow welfare in the farrowing crate and alternatives*
3. Piglet mortality and morbidity: inevitable or unacceptable?*
4. Lifetime consequences of the early physical and social environment of piglets* – Helena Telkänranta, Sandra Edwards
5. Tail biting* – Anna Valros
6. Manipulable materials* – Marc Bracke
7. Mitigating hunger in pregnant sows*
8. Aggression in group housed sows and fattening pigs
9. Handling and transport of pigs
10. Slaughter of pigs

Part Two: Pig Welfare Emerging Topics
11. The pain-sensitive pig* – Mette S Herskin, Pierpaolo Di Giminiani
12. On-farm and post-mortem pig health status assessment
13. Pig-human interactions: Pig-human interactions: creating a positive perception of humans to ensure pig welfare*
14. Breeding for pig welfare; opportunities and challenges*
15. Positive pig welfare
16. Pigs as laboratory animals* – Jeremy Marchant-Forde, Mette S. Herskin

Chapters marked with * have (co-)authors involved in FareWellDock. Chapters with stated authors only have FareWellDock partners as (co-)authors.

Description

Advances in Pig Welfare analyzes current topical issues in the key areas of pig welfare assessment and improvement. With coverage of both recent developments and reviews of historical welfare issues, the volume provides a comprehensive survey of the field.
The book is divided into two sections. Part One opens with an overview of main welfare challenges in commercial pig production systems and then reviews pig welfare hot spots from birth to slaughter. Part Two highlights emerging topics in pig welfare, such as pain and health assessment, early socialization and environmental enrichment, pig-human interactions, breeding for welfare, positive pig welfare and pigs as laboratory animals.
This book is an essential part of the wider ranging series Advances in Farm Animal Welfare, with coverage of cattle, sheep, pigs and poultry.
With its expert editor and international team of contributors, Advances in Pig Welfare is a key reference tool for welfare research scientists and students, veterinarians involved in welfare assessment, and indeed anyone with a professional interest in the welfare of pig. View less >

Key Features
•Provides in-depth reviews of emerging topics, research, and applications in pig welfare
•Analyzes on-farm assessment of pig welfare, an extremely important marker for the monitoring of real welfare impacts of any changes in husbandry systems
•Edited by a leader in the field of pig welfare, with contributing experts from veterinary science, welfare academia, and practitioners in industry

Readership
Animal Welfare research scientists, Postgraduate students, Policy makers and stakeholders, R&D managers

The book may be ordered here.

Pig enrichment affects immune response to disease

Effect of enriched housing on levels of natural (auto-)antibodies in pigs co-infected with porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus (PRRSV) and Actinobacillus pleuropneumoniae.
Lu Luo, Ingrid Daniëlle Ellen van Dixhoorn, Inonge Reimert, Bas Kemp, Jantina Elizabeth Bolhuis and Hendrik Karel Parmentier 2017. Vet Res (2017) 48:75.

Abstract

Housing of pigs in barren, stimulus-poor housing conditions may influence their immune status, including antibody
responses to (auto-)antigens, and thus affect immune protection, which will influence the onset and outcome of
infection. In the present study, we investigated the effects of environmental enrichment versus barren housing on the
level of natural (auto-)antibodies (NA(A)b) and their isotypes (IgM and IgG) binding keyhole limpet hemocyanin (KLH),
myelin basic protein (MBP), and phosphorycholine conjugated to bovine serum albumin (PC-BSA) in pigs co-infected
with porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus (PRRSV ) and Actinobacillus pleuropneumoniae (A. pleuro-pneumoniae). Pigs (n= 56) were housed in either barren or enriched pens from birth to 54 days of age. They were infected with PRRSV on 44 days of age, and with A. pleuropneumoniae 8 days later. Blood samples were taken on 7 dif-ferent sampling days. Housing significantly affected the overall serum levels of NA(A)b binding KLH, MBP and PC-BSA, and before infection barren housed pigs had significantly higher levels of NA(A)b than enriched housed pigs, except for KLH-IgM and PC-BSA-IgG. Infection only affected the IgM, but not the IgG isotype. Moreover, changes in MBP-IgM and PC-BSA-IgM following infection were different for enriched and barren housed pigs. These results suggest that the effect of infection on NA(A)b is influenced by housing conditions and that NA(A)b, especially IgM may be affected by infection.

Docking piglet tails: How much does it hurt and for how long?

Docking piglet tails: How much does it hurt and for how long?

By Pierpaolo Di Giminiani, Abozar Nasirahmadi, Emma M. Malcolm, Matthew C. Leach, Sandra A. Edwards. 2017. Physiology & Behavior 182: 69-76.

Highlights

• Short and long-term behavioural changes due to tail docking in pigs are described.
• Vocalisations suggested the procedure to be painful for piglets.
• The behaviour sampling adopted detected no changes up to 2 days post-tail docking.
• Long-term effects of tail injury on mechanical nociceptive thresholds were absent.

Abstract

Tail docking in pigs has the potential for evoking short- as well as long-term physiological and behavioural changes indicative of pain. Nonetheless, the existing scientific literature has thus far provided somewhat inconsistent data on the intensity and the duration of pain based on varying assessment methodologies and different post-procedural observation times. In this report we describe three response stages (immediate, short- and long-term) through the application of vocalisation, behavioural and nociceptive assessments in order to identify changes indicative of potential pain experienced by the piglets. Furthermore, we evaluated the following procedural differences: (1) cautery vs. non-cautery docking; (2) length of tail removal. Sound parameters showed a significantly greater call energy and intensity exhibited by docked vs. sham-docked piglets (P < 0.05). Observations of general activity of the animals in a test situation failed to detect a difference among treatments (P > 0.05) up to 48 h post-tail docking. Similarly, no difference in mechanical nociceptive thresholds indicative of long term pain was observed at 17 weeks following neonatal tail docking (P > 0.05). The present results highlight the potential for the use of measures of vocalisation to detect peri-procedural changes possibly associated with evoked pain. Nonetheless, activity and nociceptive measures failed to identify post-docking anomalies, suggesting that alternative methodologies need to be implemented to clarify whether tail docking is associated with short- and long-term changes attributable to pain experienced by the piglets.

Gene expression of mechanistic pain in pig spinal cord and dorsal root ganglia

Determination of stable reference genes for RT-qPCR expression data in mechanistic pain studies on pig dorsal root ganglia and spinal cord.

By Sandercock DA, Coe JE, Di Giminiani P, Edwards SA. 2017. Res Vet Sci. 2017 Sep 28;114:493-501.

RNA expression levels for genes of interest must be normalised with appropriate reference or “housekeeping” genes that are stably expressed across samples and treatments. This study determined the most stable reference genes from a panel of 6 porcine candidate genes: beta actin (ACTB), beta-2-microglobulin (B2M), eukaryotic elongation factor 1 gamma-like protein (eEF-1), glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase (GAPDH), succinate dehydrogenase complex subunit A (SDHA), Ubiquitin C (UBC) in sacral dorsal root ganglia and spinal cord samples collected from 16 tail docked pigs (2/3rds of tail amputated) 1, 4, 8 and 16weeks after tail injury (4 pigs/time point). Total RNA from pooled samples was measured by SYBRgreen real-time quantitative PCR. Cycle threshold values were analysed using geNorm, BestKeeper and NormFinder PCR analysis software. Average expression stability and pairwise variation values were calculated for each candidate reference gene. GeNorm analysis identified the most stable genes for normalisation of gene expression data to be GAPDH>eEF-1>UBC>B2M>ACTB>SDHA for dorsal root ganglia and ACTB>SDHA>UBC>B2M>GAPDH>eEF-1 for spinal cord samples. Expression stability estimates were verified by BestKeeper and NormFinder analysis. Expression stability varied between genes within and between tissues. Validation of most stably expressed reference genes was performed by normalisation of calcitonin gene related polypeptide beta (CALCB). The results show similar patterns of CALCB expression when the best reference genes selected by all three programs were used. GAPDH, eEF-1 and UBC are suitable reference genes for porcine dorsal root ganglia samples, whereas ACTB, SDHA and UBC are more appropriate for spinal cord samples.

Can enrichment help reduce tail docking?

In several episodes, leading welfare researchers explain the results they obtained within the international framework ‘FareWellDock’. This project investigates how to steer away from tail docking. Swedish and Danish researchers took a look at straw – does its use reduce the occurrence of tail biting?

Read more in Pig Progress.

From the article:
Tail docking is completely banned in Sweden, Finland and Switzerland.

Science suggests that lack of proper manipulable material is one of several major risk factors for tail biting.

A moderate amount of straw (150 g/pig/day) reduced the risk of injurious tail biting by more than two-fold, while docking seemed to be more effective as it reduced the risk by more than four-fold.

A combination of straw and increased space (1.2 m2 per pig) reduced the risk (of first occurrence) in undocked pigs to the same level as found in docked pigs kept under high stocking density (0.72 m2 per pig) without straw.

To provide a suitable outlet for exploratory behaviour under production conditions, materials have to be varied and complex, and are most effective when easily destroyed by chewing, or if they are edible.

Increasing the amount of straw from 10 to up to 400g/pig/day had multiple positive effects by progressively reducing the occurrence of tail injuries and stomach ulcers, increasing growth rate, increasing straw-directed behaviour, and reducing redirected behaviours towards other pigs.

Left-over straw may be a promising candidate method to screen for appropriate level of straw allocation.

Characterization of short- and long-term mechanical sensitisation following tail docking in pigs

Characterization of short- and long-term mechanical sensitisation following surgical tail amputation in pigs. By Pierpaolo Di Giminiani, Sandra A. Edwards, Emma M. Malcolm, Matthew C. Leach, Mette S. Herskin & Dale A. Sandercock. 2017. Nature Scientific Reports.

Commercial pigs are frequently exposed to tail mutilations in the form of preventive husbandry procedures (tail docking) or as a result of abnormal behaviour (tail biting). Although tissue and nerve injuries are well-described causes of pain hypersensitivity in humans and in rodent animal models, there is no information on the changes in local pain sensitivity induced by tail injuries in pigs. To determine the temporal profile of sensitisation, pigs were exposed to surgical tail resections and mechanical nociceptive thresholds (MNT) were measured in the acute (one week post-operatively) and in the long-term (either eight or sixteen weeks post-surgery) phase of recovery. The influence of the degree of amputation on MNTs was also evaluated by comparing three different tail-resection treatments (intact, ‘short tail’, ‘long tail’). A significant reduction in MNTs one week following surgery suggests the occurrence of acute sensitisation. Long-term hypersensitivity was also observed in tail-resected pigs at either two or four months following surgery. Tail amputation in pigs appears to evoke acute and sustained changes in peripheral mechanical sensitivity, which resemble features of neuropathic pain reported in humans and other species and provides new information on implications for the welfare of animals subjected to this type of injury.

See also our article in PigProgreess.