Farrowing

The Farrowing Room Facilities:

The farrowing pen provides protection, comfort and access to important resources like heat, food and water.

Before pigs are moved in, the rooms are thoroughly washed with hot, pressurized water, and disinfectant. Rooms are allowed to dry before each group is introduced. Cleanliness helps keep pigs healthy and thriving!

Farrowing pens limit sow movement to help keep the piglets safe. The sow can lay down and stand up, but cannot turn around. The sow will stay in the pen for about three weeks.

The Farrowing Pen:

The farrowing pen duplicates a pig’s natural desire for isolation at the time of giving birth and combines this with the need for safety and sanitation.

The sow leans on the pen’s bars lowering herself carefully when she lies down. The area on the sides of the pen has electric heat pads or lamps as well as small water drinkers and in some barns, feeders.

A bumper gate at the rear of the pen is also adjustable ahead of the back gate to prevent piglet crushing.

Pig Tales:

The sow weighs 150-250 kg depending on her age; this is approximately 100 times larger than her piglets. How does this compare to other animals?

Annie Hogg says…
“Mom told me that people go to the hospital to have their babies. This is the pig maternity ward.”

“Once Upon a Piglet”:

Piglets weigh about 1.5 kg at birth. Each piglet must find a teat to drink colostrum (nutrient rich milk) from the sow within hours of being born. Colostrum contains antibodies to protect the piglet from disease.

Warm and dry are priorities for piglets! Heat lamps or heat pads are added to each pen to give piglets their own very warm area. On some farms, incubators are used when there are too many piglets for the sows to raise.

Survival of piglets on modern farms has improved tremendously with housing, sanitation, less disease, better feeding, and the personal care given by the farrowing room technician.

Junior Hogg says:
“Piglets are able to walk at birth. My little sister didn’t walk till she was one year old.”

The First Week of a Piglet’s Life:

The first few days are busy. The farrowing technician will process the piglets to promote good growth and health.

• Removing the tip of the tail helps prevent it from being chewed on by other piglets. It is common practice to clip the tips of four “needle” teeth within the first 24 hours of life. These teeth are used for fighting and if left could cause cuts to the sow’s udder and other piglets.
• Piglets are born with low blood iron levels, so each piglet is given an iron injection between days 3 and 6.
• The routine castration of male piglets is carried out on days 3-7 to prevent “boar taint” in the meat.
• On some farms the ears of piglets are notched or tattooed to identify their litter and age.

The Cycle of Life:

The Cycle of Life begins again with the birth of the piglet here in the farrowing room. To “farrow” is to give birth. Do you know what it is called when a dog gives birth? Whelping! Or when a calf is born? Calving!

Sows are put in these farrowing pens to help protect the piglets from being crushed by the sow when she lies down.

All the sows in this room give birth within a few days of one another. The farrowing technician provides special attention during the birthing process and for the three weeks to follow.

Shirley Hogg admits…
“Last year one of our sows had a litter of 22 piglets. I’m glad people don’t have litters.”

The Sow’s Job is to be a Good Mom:

Sows typically have 9-14 piglets per litter, and give birth twice a year. Sows come in many sizes depending on their genetic ability to grow, and their age. Sows in this room may be giving birth to their first or perhaps as much as their 10th litter.

A sow’s pregnancy (gestation period) lasts for about 115 days. It’s easy to remember: three months, three weeks and three days! Once the piglets are born, the sow provides colostrum, the piglet’s source of nutrition and protection against disease.

The Life Cycle of a Pig:

The pig is first a Piglet, then a Weaner, then a Gilt or Barrow (Young Pig), then they either go to Market or are allowed to mature to a Sow / Boar.