Pigs which are small and relatively ill-thriving when their litter-mates are due to be weaned constitute a major problem in practice because they are much more difficult to establish after weaning than their larger litter-mates. Because of this, many producers foster 8 to 10 of these poorer pigs to a newly weaned ‘nurse’ sow following weaning from their own dam and delay weaning them for a further week or more. Such fostering of poor pigs when weaned from their own dam suffers from the disadvantage that it delays the rebreeding of the ‘nurse’ sow and it can be ineffective if the sow fails to milk well. The chore-time Baby Pig Feeder, developed at North Carolina State University, has the potential to cater for the needs of poorer pigs at weaning and to reduce the need for ‘nurse’ sows. The Chore-time is an automatic feeder which involves the mixing of dry milk substitute and cold water and delivery of the mixture to a round trough, around which up to 10 pigs can feed. It can be programmed for milk to be delivered at hourly intervals or less frequently. The usefulness of this equipment was evaluated on a 200 sow commercial unit in which weaning took place around 3 weeks of age.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.
customersupport@researchsolutions.com
10624 S. Eastern Ave., Ste. A-614
Henderson, NV 89052, USA
This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.
Copyright © 2024 scite LLC. All rights reserved.
Made with 💙 for researchers
Part of the Research Solutions Family.