Pig Welfare and the Codes of Practice: ENRICHMENT FOR SOWS AND PIGLETS Jennifer Brown Research Scientist Prairie Swine Centre
Why Enrichment? Requirement in the current Code of Practice for the Care and Handling of Pigs!
Enrichment Requirements “Pigs must be provided with multiple forms of enrichment that aim to improve the welfare of the animals through the enhancement of their physical and social environments.” “A way of changing the environment of the pig to their benefit.”
Enrichment Goals • Increase the number and range of normal behaviours • Prevent, or reduce the severity, or abnormal behaviours • Increase positive utilisation of the environment (e.g. use of space) • Increase the animal’s ability to cope with behavioural and physiological challenges All are proven effects- studied mostly in grow-finish
Social enrichment Direct or indirect (visual, olfactory, auditory) contact
Nutritional Enrichment
Sensory: Visual, auditory, taste Tactile
Occupational and Physical
Enrichment alters Pigs • Chewable enrichment (rope/paper) provided before weaning reduced tailbiting severity in the later growth stages: C: 32% vs Enr: 9% (P<0.0001) (Telkänranta et al. 2014) • Post-weaning, oral-nasal manipulation of pen mates significantly lower, and manipulation of objects significantly increased (Telkänranta et al. 2014)
Enrichment alters Pigs • Gilts with higher genotypic production characteristics (higher litter size, growth, low backfat) show higher levels of mal-adaptive biting behaviour (Ursinus et al. 2014) • Provision of jute sacks reduced mal-adaptive biting behaviour in such gilts by 50% -profound effect (Ursinus et al. 2014) • Reduces mixing stress – greater exploration of environment rather than aggression (De Jong et al. 2000 ).
Benefits of enrichment • Reducing fear & excitability (Grandin, 1989) - More willing to walk down chutes, and to approach unfamiliar humans • Barren raised pigs show a stronger reaction to novel stimuli than enriched pigs (De Jong et al. 2000). • Reduced: manipulation of pen mates, fighting, inactivity in piglets. Improved weight gain (Vanheukelom et al. 2011).
Enrichment alters Development • Barren raised pigs have been shown to have blunted circadian rhythm of cortisol (de Groot et al. 2000) • Pigs given enrichment performed better in spatial learning tasks (Grimberg-Henrici et al. 2015) Enrichment – much more than just giving a pig a toy!
Properties of effective enrichment • Complex • Malleable • Chewable • Ingestible • Destructible • Encourages foraging and exploratory behaviour • Straw bedding one of the most effective
The Six Simple Criteria for Choosing Enrichment SAFE! Sanitary Suspended The Six S’s Site Soft Simple
Commercial Pig Enrichment Increasing amount of pig enrichments on the market
Enrichment: How to do it well! • Consider correct features of enrichment
Enrichment: How to get it right! On ground = rootable
Enrichment: How to get it right! Suspending enrichment improves cleanliness But ensure pigs can comfortably reach it Secure it well and sensibly!
Enrichment: How to get it right! • Spatial access affects use by pen group Feeder
• Spatial access will influence use • Pigs synchronise exploration Feeder
Piglets • Less destructive than growers or sows • More diverse enrichments can be used – Eg dog toys, peat moss, hay pellets Enrichment in farrowing • Stimulation and learning – Creep pellets or liquid mash feeds – Peat moss or sterile earth- rooting – Encourage foraging- easier transition to feeding • Pigs are precocial!
Social development Precocial Species Pigs- 0-3 wks? Altricial Species Puppies- 4- 8 wks ‘window’ for socialization
Enrichment in the nursery • Manipulable objects – Greater impact than in farrowing – Reduced aggression and improved growth • Additional research is needed – More effective creep feeds – Feeds providing supplemental iron – Improving farrowing and nursery environment
Stalled or crated sows • Nesting material at farrowing – Small quantity of straw – Hemp/jute bags • Gestation stalls – Occupational enrichment – Fibre and satiety
Gestating Sows • Groups: reduced aggression at mixing – Enrichments distract animals- gives them something to do! • Higher fibre feeds- can be provided with feed or in a separate hopper – Beet pulp, chopped straw or hay • Increase satiety, reduce stereotypies • Other enrichments – Chains, suspended wood, ropes,
Current Research at PSC & UMB • Development and evaluation of successful enrichments for sows in groups
Gilt development • Enrichments reduce fear responses to novelty, and improve cognitive abilities • Especially important when developing replacement animals • Benefits for training sows to use ESF feeders
Enrichment: Get the benefits! • Rotate the enrichment! Rotation helps retain novelty (Trickett et al. 2009) • Delaying re-presentation (+ 5 days) of object enrichment preserved novelty (Gifford et al. 2007) • Remember: enrichment can also be sound and positive human interaction
DIY Enrichments
Straw Racks
DIY Enrichment
DIY Enrichment
DIY Enrichment Pure Cotton Rope Disc chain
DIY Enrichment: Mix it up!
Enrichment • Give it a go! Experiment! – See the responses for yourself • Consider the Six S’s when choosing enrichment • Resources available: CDPQ factsheet: “Enriching the living space of pigs to comply with the Code” • Lots of information available online- • Eg see Youtube site: Activepigs
Thank you to Maitoba Pork Thank you to sponsors
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