Temperature links to teed in the nursery

摘要

Feed intakes by piglets relate not only to a risk of chilling soon after weaning, but also to over-heating in the later stages of the nursery period. Even giving feed 4 times per day was not as good as feeding ad lib, in a recent comparison of widelyused ways of managing the weaned pig. The results have echoed some renewed advice internationally to forget about a restricted-feed regime after weaning. At the same time, increased feed intakes by weaners could add to problems with a doubtful environment inside their nursery pen. Textbooks say that the starting air temperature at pig level in weaner housing should not be lower than 29 deg C where the pen floor is of insulated concrete. Often they suggest a modest rise to 30 deg C for the lowest valuewith slatted floors, or a drop to 27 deg C if bedding is provided. But these recommendations refer to a weaning weight of about 7kg at 21-28 days old and they would obviously need to be amended upwards in the case of weaning before 3 weeks.