Comparing feed efficiency and reproductive performance of gestating sows housed in conventional and group gestation

摘要

Consumers view gestation stalls as unnecessarily restrictive livestock housing. Several states and provinces have passed bills to phase out gestation stall housing. Group housing allows for increased movement of sows but poorly designed pens can result in aggressive interactions resulting in unequal feed distribution and decreased reproductive performance. Floor feeding sows multiple times per day has been proposed as an effective method to reduce fighting and competition for feed.1 There have been no published studies of production parameters when multiple times per day feeding is utilized in group gestation systems. Producers and veterinarians require this information to ensure that proposed transitions to group housing do not adversely affect sowwelfare or productivity. To address this knowledge gap, we investigated the effects of three housing systems on backfat (mm), feed efficiency and reproductive performance in 350 sows on a farrow-to-finish farm.