Yvette Miller, Kim Nairn, and Kate GannonMurdoch University
Portec Veterinary Services
Pigs
Lecture 1 ANS 101 / VET 242 2012
Pig industry overview
Why are pigs important? How did the pig industry develop? What pig breeds are involved? How is the industry structured? What are the key performance indicators? What influences these key performance
indicators?
Why are pigs important?
Meat – 40% of the global meat consumption Skin and leather products Pharmaceutical products – heart valves
Pleasure and company – pet pigs
MEAT
Yes… all from one wonderful, magical animal!
Pork cuts
Country Millions of pigs
China 460 (62% global pork eaten in China)
India 17
Indonesia 6
Korea North 3
Korea South 9
Malaysia 2
Myanmar 4
New Zealand 0.4
Philippines 12
Taiwan 7
Thailand 7
Vietnam 22
Our impact on the planet – The Carbon Footprint of Pork
Food kg CO2-e/kg (20 years) kg CO2-e/kg (100 years)
Beef 111.1 55.5
Sheep meat and wool 96.3 32.7
Pig meat 10.5 3.5
Rice 2.4 0.74
Poultry 1.3 0.38
Wheat 0.35 0.32
The Artiodactyla – even toes
Pigs Also cattle and camels And even related to the whales - Ambulocetus
One of the early pigs
Entelodont
Today's suina - suborder
Hippopotamdae
Tayassuidae
Suidae
Sus scrofa – The domestic pig
Large whiteLandrace
DurocHampshire
Tamworth
Berkshire
MeishanDuroc x LW
Meishan
How did the pig industry develop
Small numbers of pigs per farmer Side business to other farming = grain
production and/or dairy (to use by-products)
Feeding pigs in WA
Barley and Wheat = main grains (energy) Lupins and canola = protein. Swill feeding is illegal:
– Meat and bone meal does not count (heat treated)
– Definition is different between states of Australia
The global change in pork $
Pork price, feed price and farmers…
State Percentage
NSW 30Queensland 21
Victoria 19South Australia 17
Western Australia 12
Where is the grain?Where are the pigs?
Western Australia
26,000 sows. Major foreign market Singapore
Sow Herd WA
0
10000
20000
30000
40000
50000
1992 2001 2004 2007
Year
So
ws
0
200
400
600
800
1000
Pro
du
cers
Sows
Producers
How is the industry structured?
Multiplication farms6000 sows
Commercial farms90,000 sows
Males(boars)
Females(gilts)
Nucleus farm500 sows
How is the farm designed
Breeding
Gestation115 days
Farrowing
Weaning
Grow/finish
SlaughterSelection
Nucleus farm
Basic Pig Life Cycle
Lets walk the farm…
Breeder shed Gestation shed Farrowing shed Weaner shed Grower/Finisher shed
And speak the jargon and key performance indicators as we go…
Breeder shed
• Boar – entire male • Barrow/Castrate – surgically castrated • Gilt – birth to first litter female• Sow – breeding female has had a litter
Breeder / Gestation shed – key performance indicators
Target Interference
Wean to re-mate (service) interval
5 days >7 days
Sow feed in tonnes / year
1.1 >1.2
Farrowing rate 87 % <82 %
• Breeding/service/mating – As implied• Wean to service/breeding interval – Number of days between weaning and breeding • Repeat/Return – Failure to conceive (18-24 days)• Farrowing rate – Number females farrowed/Number females bred• Culling – Removal from herd/farm (eg. parity >6)
Gestation shed
Parity = Number of farrowings.
Gestation = state of pregnancy
Dry Sow = period other than lactating
Farrowing shed
• Litter = group of piglets reared by a sow
• Piglet/Sucker = piglet still on a sow
• Farrowing = parturition / giving birth
• Lactating = producing milk
Farrowing shed – key performance indicators
Target Interference
Pigs born alive/sow
10.9 <10.4
Pre-weaning mortality
10 % >14%
Pre-weaning mortality – % piglet deaths between birth and weaning
Pigs sold per sow per year
23 <21.5
Stillborn
Mummified foetus or Mummy
Target <7%
Interference >10%
Target <1.5%
Interference >2.5%
Processing piglets
Castration
Teeth clipping
Iron injection
Ear notching
Tail docking
More jargon for farrowing shed…
Fostering – practice of swapping piglets across litters
Colostrum – antibody rich milk Body condition score
Weaner shed
Weaning – removing piglets from the sow (usually 3-5 wks; 5-12kg)
Weaner – piglet from weaning until 10 weeks (30kg)
Grower/Finisher Shed
Grower (30-60kg; 10-16 wks) Finisher (60-110kg; 16-26 wks)
Post-weaning – key performance indicators
Target Interference
Post-weaning mortality
3% 5%
Feed conversion ratio (4-100kg)
2.2 >2.4
Average daily gain (g/day)
570 <520
• Post-weaning mortality = % piglet deaths after weaning
What influences the key performance indicators?
1. ANIMAL: Genetics
2. ENVIRONMENT (examples): FEED – particle size, FCR, mash vs steam
pelleted diets. WATER – water access, flow rates AIR – gases, drafts, temperature FLOOR – stocking rate
Code of Welfare - Pigs
Web resource
http://www.portec.com.au