Early culling linked to higher production costs

摘要

Early culling of sows adversely affects the overall productivity of the breeding herd by decreasing farrowing rate, potential litter size and progeny performance - traits linked to early parity sows, cautions Dr Cherie Collins, research and innovationmanager for Rivalea, Australia."A high turnover of early parity sows will have a negative impact on litter size," she says. "You are culling them before they reach their maximum performance level."