PREPARING A SOW FOR FARROWING

Any intra-vaginal examination results in some damage to the sow and the degree of damage depends on the size of the vagina canal relative to the hand and degree of care which one takes.

PREGNANT sow takes about three months, three weeks and three days before it can deliver or give birth to its young. Management factors has to be looked into which have to do with feeding of the pregnant sow. This factor has to be managed well. This to avoid dietary changes which may lead to upsetting the intestinal flora.

Gross increases or reduction in food intake also constitute a change. Lowering feed intake is often used as a treatment for farrowing fever. However, if these reductions are severe enough to cause less of the sow’s body weight then worse trouble may result. In order to reduce the milk, flush some reduction in food before farrowing is often wise. This must be carried out slowly so that body weight changes and metabolic upsets don’t arise. Therefore, a rough guide, a reduction of 1 kg, daily for four days before farrowing should be sufficient.

Overweight sows are prone to disease at farrowing, sows require lower levels of food than have been used in the past, but this will depend on many other factors such as the environment in which they live, their parasite burden and the length of the lactation.

The maximum level must be left to the discretion of the pigman, but there is no excuse for very high feeding levels, their use shows a lack of judgement on the part of the stockman. Sows should be lean, virile condition. You should not, however, be able to see their spines and they should be well fleshed over the lumbar region. One of the most common mistakes is failure to reduce the meal allowance when sows have access to supplementary fodder such as grass, potatoes, skim milk or swill. The allowances of their feeds should be carefully calculated.

When a pig farmer is expecting the sow to farrow. He should avoid poor quality rations. This type of feed causes both direct toxic effects and indirect effects such as changes in the intestinal flora or reduced nutritive intake with consequent metabolic upsets.

It is also important to give the animals clean water. Dirty water causes putrefactive changes in the pig’s stomach and so may allow certain pathogenic organisms to multiply. It also encourages multiplication of parasites and pathogenic organisms such as salmonellae. Water deprivation can also be dangerous, so adequate supply should be maintained at all times. Pregnant sows can drink up to 3 or 6 litres daily and so the container should be large enough to hold sufficient water for all the sows in the paddock.

Overstocking of pregnant sow accommodation is a common source of trouble. Too many sows in a pen or paddock leads to parasite build up and various psychological upsets in the groups which may result in dirty habits, loss of weight and bullying. A pig farmer should avoid an outdoor system to have a communal feeding paddock for sows from all the different paddocks.

The feeding paddock is a considerable danger from parasites and pathogen build up. It also invariably becomes very muddy and may lead to damaged feet and udders.

Sows are usually moved to their maternity quarters some time before farrowing to allow them to become used to their new surroundings and to adapt. Psychological upsets after farrowing are common and careful note should be taken of the actions of sows in the first 36 hours after farrowing. An abnormal extension of the psychology of parturition in which the sow’s response to any movement or interference which threaten their young.

Fat sows suffer a painful parturition due to excess fat around the vagina tend to be more hypersensitive than normal sows. Gilts are usually worse than sows. Quietness is essential and interference only necessary when something is amiss.

Constipation results in a hard mass of faeces in the rectum which narrows the birth canal even further, and should be avoided whenever possible. Reducing feed intake and replacing half of the ration with bran just before farrowing may help.to alleviate the condition.

Manual interference occurs with farrowing sows because sometimes the pigman may fail to realize what is normal at farrowing. A good number of sows will farrow one piglet and the rest for 1 to 11/2 hours before producing the rest in rapid succession. In practice there is no need to interfere until at least one hour has elapsed between births.

Sows should take between three and four hours to complete farrowing. If they take five to six hours, then trouble may be expected. Suggestion is to wait for one hour with a sow and one and half with a gilt before interfering. If the sow is straining for fifteen to thirty minutes, then a piglet is likely stuck and it should be removed.

When the hand is used inside a sow, the person doing this must realize that he is entering something as delicate as a role of wet toilet paper, this is to avoid causing damage. The hand must be scrupulously clean so the hand must be washed with a non-detergent soap before and after each entry into the sow.

Any intra-vaginal examination results in some damage to the sow and the degree of damage depends on the size of the vagina canal relative to the hand and degree of care which one takes. Sows which have been examined nearly always have a mucopurulent discharge for some days after farrowing and this may result in infertility later. Treatment with an antibiotic may then be necessary.

It must be also being remembered that dampness and cold are extremely dangerous for farrowing sows and piglets. Any system that allows the sow’s udder to get wet should be avoided or shapping and mastitis may result. Floor insulation is essential in any area where an animal is confined.

These are some of the highlights on a sow for farrowing.