Selection of housing systems for pregnant sows has become an important issue for pork producers throughout the world. Many people perceive that individual stalls compromise sow welfare due to restricted space allowance, lack of exercise, and reduced socialisation. In contrast, group pens provide more space for sows to move and exercise, and more social interactions (Spoolder et al., 2009). However, aggression, injury, and stress usually result when sows are housed in group pens. Well-being of sows may affect sow performance and longevity. Anil et al. (2006) reported similar sow performance and longevity when sows were housed in stalls or group pens during gestation for one reproductive cycle. However, few long-term studies which evaluated sow performance and longevity between housing systems have been reported. Therefore, we hypothesised that housing sows in individual stalls or group pens would not affect productivity and longevity over three reproductive cycles.
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