A cross-sectional study on the prevalence and risk factors for foot and limb lesions in piglets on commercial farms in Ireland

Quinn, Amy J.; Kilbride, A. L.; Green, Laura

doi:10.1016/j.prevetmed.2015.02.016

Cited by 11 publications

(8 citation statements)

References 15 publications

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“…The prevalence of carpal abrasions and lameness in piglets increases with age (Quinn et al, 2015). In our study we included piglet age as a covariate in our analysis.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Do nurse sows and foster litters have impaired animal welfare? Results from a cross-sectional study in sow herds

Sørensen

Rousing

Kudahl

et al. 2016

animal

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Increasing litter size has led to introduction of so-called nurse sows in several EU countries. A nurse sow is a sow receiving piglets after having weaned her own piglets and thereby experiencing an extended lactation. In order to analyse whether nurse sows have more welfare problems than non-nurse sows a cross-sectional study was conducted in 57 sow herds in Denmark. Clinical observations were made on nurse and non-nurse sows and their litters. The clinical observations were dichotomized and the effect of being a nurse sow was analysed based on eight parameters: thin (body condition score < 2.5), swollen bursae on legs, dew claw wounds, vulva lesions, poor hygiene, poor skin condition, shoulder lesions and cuts and wounds on the udder. Explanatory variables included in the eight models were: nurse sow (yes = 1/no = 0), age of piglets (weeks old, 1 to 7), parity (1 to 8 + ) and all first order interactions between these three variables. The effect of using nurse sows on piglet welfare was analysed with five models. The outcomes were: huddling, poor hygiene, lameness, snout cuts and carpal abrasions. The explanatory variables included in the five models were: nurse sow (yes = 1/no = 0), age of piglets (weeks old, 1 to 7), parity (1 to 8 + ) and all first order interactions between these three variables. Herd identity was included as a random factor in all models. The nurse sows had a significantly higher risk of swollen bursae on legs (P = 0.038) and udder wounds (P = 0.001). No differences in risk of being thin or having shoulder lesions were found. Foster litters had significantly higher risk of being dirty (P = 0.026) and getting carpal abrasions (P = 0.024) than non-foster litters. There was a tendency for higher lameness in foster litters than in non-foster litters (P = 0.052). The results show that nurse sows and their piglets to some extent experience more welfare problems than non-nurse sows with piglets at a similar age.

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“…The prevalence of carpal abrasions and lameness in piglets increases with age (Quinn et al, 2015). In our study we included piglet age as a covariate in our analysis.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Do nurse sows and foster litters have impaired animal welfare? Results from a cross-sectional study in sow herds

Sørensen

Rousing

Kudahl

et al. 2016

animal

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“…Injury is another widespread problem associated with modern pork production (54) and was the most observed clinical sign observed in Danish finisher pigs (50). The prevalence of foot and limb lesions in preweaning piglets on commercial farms in Ireland ranged from 0 to 100% (56), and the overall prevalence on commercially representative pig farms in England was 39.6% (57). One study showed a high prevalence of lesions on the limbs (93%), body (20%) (58), and feet (59) of commercial sows in England.…”

Section: Sources Of Pain In Pigsmentioning

confidence: 99%

A Review of Pain Assessment in Pigs

et al. 2016

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There is a moral obligation to minimize pain in pigs used for human benefit. In livestock production, pigs experience pain caused by management procedures, e.g., castration and tail docking, injuries from fighting or poor housing conditions, “management diseases” like mastitis or streptococcal meningitis, and at parturition. Pigs used in biomedical research undergo procedures that are regarded as painful in humans, but do not receive similar levels of analgesia, and pet pigs also experience potentially painful conditions. In all contexts, accurate pain assessment is a prerequisite in (a) the estimation of the welfare consequences of noxious interventions and (b) the development of more effective pain mitigation strategies. This narrative review identifies the sources of pain in pigs, discusses the various assessment measures currently available, and proposes directions for future investigation.

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“…Bonde [ 59 ] recorded decubitus ulcers in 17% of lactating sows. Quinn et al [ 60 ], who studied the presence of limb lesions in unweaned piglets, reported frequent sole bruises (61.5%), abrasions on the limbs (55.7%) and sole erosion (34.1%). Harley et al [ 61 ], who analyzed findings at pig slaughterhouses, revealed that 16% of slaughtered pigs were affected by severe bruises and 44% had bursitis in the hind limb.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In pigs, the type of floors also has a major effect on their limb health. The greater prevalence of limb lesions resulting from housing on a hard floor was reported in piglets [ 60 ], in finisher pigs [ 35 ] and in sows [ 35 , 58 , 81 , 82 ]. Floors could be a serious problem for all categories of pigs in intensive farming but they are more frequently used in sows and piglets.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Welfare of Cattle, Sheep, Goats and Pigs from the Perspective of Traumatic Injuries Detected at Slaughterhouse Postmortem Inspection

Válková

Večerek

Voslářová

et al. 2021

Animals

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The welfare of cattle, pigs, sheep and goats was assessed by measuring trauma detected during veterinary postmortem inspection at slaughterhouses. The subject of this evaluation were all bovine, porcine, ovine and caprine animals slaughtered at Czech slaughterhouses in the monitored period, i.e., a total of 1,136,754 cows, 257,912 heifers, 1,015,541 bulls, 104,459 calves, 586,245 sows, 25,027,303 finisher pigs, 123,191 piglets, 22,815 ewes, 114,264 lambs, 1348 does and 5778 kids. The data on the numbers of traumatic findings were obtained retrospectively from a national veterinary database collecting data from slaughterhouse postmortem examinations. The results showed that findings of trauma were observed at a low frequency in the studied species. Injuries were detected most frequently in cows (1.71%). In contrast, no findings associated with the presence of trauma were recorded in does and kids. From the viewpoint of trauma localization, findings on the limbs were more frequent than findings on the body (p < 0.01). The only exceptions to this were lambs, does and kids, for which there was no statistically significant difference between findings on the limbs and the body (p = 1.00). The results show that housing system (bedding, the presence of slats, floor hardness), transport of animals to the slaughterhouse (moving animals to the vehicle, loading ramps, floors in transport vehicles and the transport of animals itself) and design of the slaughterhouse (unloading ramps, passageways and slaughterhouse floors) have a greater impact on the limbs than the bodies of animals in the majority of species. A difference was also demonstrated in the occurrence of findings of trauma in the limbs and body (p < 0.01) between culled adult animals and fattened animals, namely in cattle and pigs. A difference (p < 0.01) between ewes and lambs was found only in the occurrence of traumatic injury to the limbs. The results showed that fattened animals are affected by the risk of trauma to a lesser extent than both culled adult animals and young animals. Statistically significant differences (p < 0.01) were also found between the studied species and categories of animals. The category most affected from the viewpoint of injury both to the limbs and body was cows. In contrast to cows that are typically reared indoors, the low frequency of traumatic findings was found in small ruminants and in bulls, i.e., animals typically reared outdoors. Assumedly, access to pasture may be beneficial considering the risk of traumatic injury.

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A cross-sectional study on the prevalence and risk factors for foot and limb lesions in piglets on commercial farms in Ireland

Cited by 11 publications

References 15 publications

Do nurse sows and foster litters have impaired animal welfare? Results from a cross-sectional study in sow herds

Do nurse sows and foster litters have impaired animal welfare? Results from a cross-sectional study in sow herds

A Review of Pain Assessment in Pigs

The Welfare of Cattle, Sheep, Goats and Pigs from the Perspective of Traumatic Injuries Detected at Slaughterhouse Postmortem Inspection

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