URBANA, Ill. — Slight modifications to sow gestation stalls may provide answers to one of the most controversial issues facing the swine industry.
Many companies and large swine operations are pulling sows out of gestation stalls and moving them to group housing. While group housing works, research at the U of I shows this practice does not answer welfare concerns or improve sow performance.
“In the United States, the individual gestation stall is being banned based on perception, not science,” said Janeen Salak-Johnson, a University of Illinois associate professor in animal sciences.
“Producers are being pressured to move sows to group pens, but research is showing that overall, no real benefits are being realized by this move,” Salak-Johnson said.
“Some sows do better in group housing and some do worse.”
Modified stalls
Illinois research is finding that slight modifications to current housing systems are positively affecting gestating sow behavior and performance.
In one study, sows were observed in both standard gestation stalls and adjustable flex stalls for behavior and productive performance.
Results showed using adjustable flex stalls positively affected behavior, performance and productivity of the gestating sow.
“Making minor changes in existing systems may truly improve the well-being of the sow and ultimately the welfare of the producer,” Salak-Johnson said.
Flexible width
The flex stall allows producers to increase the width, not the length, of the stall. It can be adjusted midway through the gestation period to compensate for the sow’s growth due to pregnancy.
When the flex stall width was adjusted to achieve more space between the sow and the stall when lying down, researchers observed fewer oral-nasal-facial movements and sham-chewing.
Sows also sat down more in the flex stall and drank less frequently.
Sows in the flex stall had more piglets born and kept more piglets born alive than sows in the gestation stall.
“This doesn’t solve all the issues — but it’s the first attempt in the swine industry to look at physical components and management strategies of various housing systems,” Salak-Johnson said.
“Our ultimate goal is to find the components of a housing system that truly affect the well-being of a sow.”
It is about time for the health and well being of the sows and her family. It still has a long way to go. Nothing made me happier than going down route 3 to Columbus and just outside of Mount Vernon on the left hand side as you were going south there is a hog farm with canopy housing where the sows and piglets can get out on the pasture. This is truly a humane way to raise our porkers!