The impact of stocking density on gilt and piglet performance and welfare in group lactation housing

摘要

The farrowing crate was introduced to restrict sow movement so as to minimise piglet mortality from crushing. Confinement of sows resulted in impaired sow welfare (Moustsen et al., 2013) and therefore confinement-free options are being investigated. Group housing later in lactation may improve sow welfare, but this improvement may be to the detriment to piglet welfare from increased mortality rates. This experiment investigated the effect of stocking density of sows housed in groups during lactationon piglet mortality and performance and sow behaviour. We hypothesised that piglet performance will be compromised before weaning however will be increased after weaning.