Nest-building behaviour in sows and consequences for pig husbandry

Wischner, Diane; Kemper, Nicole; Krieter, Joachim

doi:10.1016/j.livsci.2009.01.015

Cited by 102 publications

(80 citation statements)

References 89 publications

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“…Nest building phase: nest-site seeking, isolation and building Sow behaviour and physiology Nest building is a well-documented behavioural pattern in pigs (Gundlach, 1968;Frä drich, 1974;Stolba and Wood-Gush, 1984;Jensen, 1986), with a recent review highlighting its continued interest in animal science (Wischner et al, 2009). It is an innate behaviour, unaltered by domestication (Jensen, 2002) and displayed by all members of the family Suidae, with the exception of the Common warthog (Phacochorerus africanus) which tends to burrow in order to give birth to the young (MacDonald, 2000).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Alternative farrowing systems: design criteria for farrowing systems based on the biological needs of sows and piglets

Baxter

Lawrence

Edwards

2011

Animal

114

112

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The construction of a suitable farrowing environment is a continuing dilemma: the piglet's needs must be matched with those of the sow and the farmer during the main phases that constitute farrowing: nest building, parturition and lactation. Difficulties exist in resolving the various conflicts of interest between and within these three parties (e.g. sow v. farmer: space needed for nest building v. space needed to maximise the amount of farrowing accommodation, or sow v. sow: ensuring the survival of the current litter v. maintaining condition for future litters). Thus, the challenge is to resolve these conflicts and design a system that maximises sow and piglet welfare while maintaining an economically efficient and sustainable enterprise. In order to successfully design a farrowing and lactation environment, it is necessary to consider the biological needs of both the sow and her litter. The natural behaviour of the sow has been well documented and very little variation exists between reports of peri-parturient behaviour observed in extensively kept domestic sows and their wild counterparts. The failure for domestication to significantly alter these behavioural patterns provides evidence that they are biologically significant and that the commercial farrowing environment should attempt to accommodate this behavioural repertoire. In addition, the behavioural needs of the piglets, as well as the physiological needs of both sows and their offspring should be considered. This article aims to review the considerable body of literature detailing the behavioural repertoire of sows and their offspring during the different phases of farrowing, and the accompanying physiological processes. The focus is on identifying biological needs of the animals involved in order to synthesise the appropriate design criteria for farrowing and lactation systems, which should optimise both welfare and animal production.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Alternative farrowing systems: design criteria for farrowing systems based on the biological needs of sows and piglets

Baxter

Lawrence

Edwards

2011

Animal

114

112

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“…The major issue with any confinement system is that it precludes certain behaviours that the animal has a strong motivation to perform and, in the case of all crated systems reviewed, the sows are confined during their most active phase of nest-building. This behavioural pattern is partially reliant on feedback from the farrowing environment and thus is strongly influenced by stimuli within that environment (Jensen, 1986;Wischner et al, 2009;Baxter et al, 2011a). However, even when the sow is not restrained at all, the system can still score poorly when attempting to meet biological needs.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Alternative farrowing accommodation: welfare and economic aspects of existing farrowing and lactation systems for pigs

Baxter

Lawrence

Edwards

2012

Animal

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There is growing societal pressure, expressed through government legislation and consumers' purchasing choices, to abolish livestock systems considered detrimental to farm animal welfare. Such systems include farrowing crates, which are behaviourally and physically restrictive for sows. Therefore, identifying less restrictive farrowing systems for commercial implementation has become an important focus of pig research. Despite numerous attempts to develop indoor alternatives to crates, there is as yet no universal acceptance of such systems at the commercial level. The primary concern is piglet survival, because often favourable figures are reported at the experimental level, but not replicated in commercial evaluation. Alternative farrowing systems should equal or surpass survival levels in conventional systems and perform consistently across a range of farm circumstances for widespread commercial implementation. In addition, it is important that alternatives consider ease of management, operator safety and economic sustainability. Utilising a large database of literature, 12 existing alternative indoor systems were identified and compared against each other, conventional crates and outdoor systems. An assessment of how well alternative systems satisfy the design criteria for meeting animals' biological needs was carried out by developing a welfare design index (WDI). The physical and financial performance of these systems was also evaluated and summarised. The derived WDI yielded values of 0.95 for conventional crates, with higher scores for commercial outdoor systems of 1.10 and indoor group farrowing or multi-suckling systems (e.g. Thorstensson 5 2.20). However, the high total piglet mortality (23.7% 6 s.e. 2.26) in indoor group systems compared with conventional crates (18.3% 6 s.e. 0.63) and outdoor systems (17.0% 6 s.e. 2.05), together with the added capital cost (92% more than conventional crates, 249% more than commercial outdoor huts), mainly as a result of extra building space provided per animal, question their feasibility to deliver from an economic perspective. Designed pen systems offered the best compromise, scoring 1.64 from the WDI, with a total piglet mortality of 16.6% (6s.e. 0.88) and capital costs and labour input more comparable to farrowing crates (17.5% more than crates). The critical review of different systems was hampered by the lack of comprehensive data and detailed system descriptions. When attempting to assess welfare and economic attributes of systems, there are certain caveats that require discussion, in particular weighting of the contribution of different design attributes to pig welfare, the relative importance of the sow and her piglets and the many potential confounding factors that arise. Also, when judging any system, it must be emphasised that the maternal characteristics of sows and the quality of stockpersonship will be integral to its success.

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“…Nest-building behavior is an important part of the maternal process that exclusively manifests itself pre-and postpartum (WISCHNER et al, 2009), demonstrating that there is motivation to perform seemingly unnecessary behaviors in intensive situations even if there is apparently no reason. Therefore, nesting materials also have important biological significance for the animal (BAXTER et al, 2011).…”

Section: Need For Nest-building Before Deliverymentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Nest-building behavior is influenced by endogenous and exogenous stimuli that, when combined, can determine whether nest building will be completed successfully (WISCHNER et al, 2009). It is gradually reduced when oxytocin levels start to increase approximately 6 hours before parturition, and females then enter before delivery to start nest-building in a quiet phase (ALGERS; UVNÄS-MOBERG, 2007).…”

Section: Need For Nest-building Before Deliverymentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Necessidade e desafios do uso de materiais de enriquecimento ambiental na suinocultura industrial

Silva

Manteca²,

Dias

2016

Sem. Ci. Agr.

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Pigs have certain needs that, when unfulfilled, can affect their behavior and their productive efficiency thus promoting welfare problems. Exploration and the search for food are inherent behaviors in pigs at all stages of production, and nest preparation is an exclusive antepartum need for females. In intensive rearing units, providing environmental enrichment materials is a way to meet these needs that allows the animals to fully express their behavior and avoid problems such as tail biting, stereotypes and, specifically in the case of breeding arrays, the onset of labor due to stress, which can result in impaired births and piglets. Straw is known as an enrichment material that best meets these demands, and it is an important requirement of animal welfare legislation in several countries. This study was developed to highlight the importance of meeting the biological needs of pigs through the provision of environmental enrichment materials and to demonstrate the positive results that these materials have on pig welfare. The challenges to the viability of the regular use of these resources in industrial pig farming are also addressed. Key words: Welfare, tail-biting, stereotypes, nesting, straw, pigs ResumoOs suínos possuem necessidades natas que quando não atendidas afetam seu comportamento e sua eficiência produtiva, promovendo o surgimento de problemas de bem-estar. A exploração e a busca por alimento é um comportamento inerente dos suínos em todas as fases de produção, e a preparação do ninho é uma necessidade exclusiva da fêmea durante o pré-parto. Nas unidades de criação intensiva o fornecimento de materiais de enriquecimento ambiental é uma forma de atender estas necessidades, permitindo que os animais expressem plenamente seu comportamento, evitando problemas como caudofagia, estereotipias e, especificamente no caso das matrizes, o início do parto sob estresse, resultando no comprometimento do parto e dos leitões. A palha é reconhecidamente o material de enriquecimento com as características que melhor atende estas demandas, constituindo um item primordial descrito nas legislações de bem-estar animal de vários países. Assim, este trabalho foi desenvolvido com o objetivo de destacar a importância em atender as demandas biológicas dos suínos por materiais de enriquecimento ambiental; demonstrar os resultados positivos que estes materiais exercem no bem-estar dos suínos, ao mesmo tempo em que são abordados os desafios para a viabilização do uso regular destes recursos na suinocultura industrial.

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Nest-building behaviour in sows and consequences for pig husbandry

Cited by 102 publications

References 89 publications

Alternative farrowing systems: design criteria for farrowing systems based on the biological needs of sows and piglets

Alternative farrowing systems: design criteria for farrowing systems based on the biological needs of sows and piglets

Alternative farrowing accommodation: welfare and economic aspects of existing farrowing and lactation systems for pigs

Necessidade e desafios do uso de materiais de enriquecimento ambiental na suinocultura industrial

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