Signs and Preparations Before Sow Farrowing and Tips to Reduce Stillbirths

Among pigs, any female pig that has given birth at any age is called a sow. Some sows are mainly fed semi-cooked feed, some are mainly fed cooked feed, and others eat raw feed.So what signs do sows generally show before farrowing? What preparations need to be made? What are the tips to reduce stillbirths?Let's take a look below!

What signs do sows generally show before farrowing?

As farrowing approaches, the sow's vulva becomes swollen and soft, and its color changes from red to purple; the mammary ridge rises, and the udder becomes swollen and glossy. Three days before farrowing, the sow's movements, lying down and getting up, etc. become steady and cautious; milk can be squeezed from the teats; the mammary ridge feels somewhat warm; the udder separates in a ”V” shape and stands upright. If the sow suddenly stops eating, is nervous and restless, repeatedly gets up and lies down, strikes the pen door or trough with her head, etc., passes small and soft feces, urinates small amounts and frequently, and thick milk can be squeezed out by gently pinching the teats, this indicates that farrowing is imminent.

What preparations generally need to be made before sow farrowing?

1. Farrowing tools and medicines: farrowing record forms, bath towels, scissors, iodine tincture, liquid paraffin or soap, ligature thread, scales.

2. Use 2% to 5% warm Lysol water, 0.1% benzalkonium bromide, or 0.1% potassium permanganate to wipe and wash the sow's udder and the area around the vulva.

3. For sows with an obese body condition, reduce feed by 1/3 to 1/2 3 to 5 days before farrowing; for those in poor condition, do not reduce feed; do not feed on the day of farrowing.

4. Induced farrowing: inject 0.1 mg of cloprostenol per sow 1 day before the expected farrowing date (can be diluted with normal saline) to make sows farrow at the same time, which facilitates management.

5. Before farrowing, management personnel should install heating lamps in advance to raise the local temperature; the place where piglets are born should be kept at 33 to 35°C.

What are the tips to reduce stillbirths in sow farrowing?

1. Strengthen feeding management in production, control the sow's body condition at farrowing, and prevent excessive fatness or thinness. In actual production, the sow's body condition at farrowing should be full along the back, with a flat upper line and no protruding bones; below the lumbar vertebrae, behind the ribs and in front of the pelvis there should be a depression; overly fat sows have no depression. Therefore, before day 98 of gestation, restricted feeding should be carried out according to the pattern of fetal growth and development and the sow's body condition; from day 100 of gestation to 3 days before farrowing, full free feeding should be provided, which can both increase the piglets' birth weight and prevent the sow from becoming too fat.

2. Sows must be feed-restricted before farrowing, that is, feed restriction before farrowing goes from more to less, and feed increase after farrowing goes from less to more, to prevent postpartum indigestion in sows. In order to reduce the adverse effect of excessive gastrointestinal burden on farrowing, sows should begin feed restriction 3 days before farrowing (based on the expected farrowing date). The feed restriction standard is: on the 3rd day before farrowing, 3 kg per sow per day; on the 2nd day before farrowing, 2 kg per sow per day; on the 1st day before farrowing, 1 kg per sow per day; when the sow is farrowing, do not feed during the farrowing meal, and feed 0.5 kg half a day later. For example, if the sow farrows in the morning, stop feeding in the morning and feed 0.5 kg in the afternoon; if she farrows in the afternoon, stop feeding in the afternoon, and on the morning of the 1st day after farrowing feed 0.5 kg, and also feed 0.5 kg in the afternoon; on the 2nd day after farrowing, 2 kg per sow per day; on the 3rd day after farrowing, 3 kg per sow per day; from the 4th day after farrowing to weaning, feed freely. That is, feed restriction before farrowing goes from more to less, and feed increase after farrowing goes from less to more, to prevent postpartum indigestion in sows.

3. Prevent constipation in sows before farrowing. It is recommended to mix 1% sodium sulfate and 0.5% rhubarb soda powder into the feed 1 week before and after sow farrowing, which can make the sow's feces soft and moist and help smooth defecation. If conditions permit, pig farms can use Mirexuan for better results.

4. In summer, strengthen heat prevention and cooling work for pregnant sows. This is especially true for sows in late pregnancy and sows about to farrow that have been moved onto the farrowing bed. Pregnant sows are kept in stalls with high density, making heat dissipation difficult. In particular, sows in late pregnancy eat more, and body heat increases after eating, with body temperature rising by about 0.5°C compared with before eating, reaching 39.5°C. When the body temperature of sows at 102-110 days of gestation remains at this temperature for a long time, the stillbirth rate of piglets at farrowing increases. Therefore, when the ambient temperature reaches above 30°C, it is recommended to spray and cool pregnant sows in the breeding house at intervals of half an hour, and flush water to cool sows about to farrow in the farrowing house, so as to minimize the impact of heat stress on sows.

5. Do a good job in vaccination to prevent reproductive disorder diseases in sows, and promptly treat sick pigs, especially sows with fever. To reduce the stillbirth rate of piglets at sow farrowing, it is necessary to strengthen feeding management in production and focus on prevention.

6. Keep the farrowing house quiet. For farrowing houses where farrowing is in progress, keep the house as quiet as possible, especially for first-time farrowing sows. When the sow is restless, massaging the udder can calm her down, which is very meaningful for promoting smooth farrowing.

7. Place piglets next to the sow's udder to suckle immediately after birth. After piglets are born, wipe off the mucus and dry the hair, then immediately place them next to the sow's udder to suckle. Through the piglets' continuous sucking of the teats, the sow's hypothalamus can be stimulated to secrete oxytocin, causing uterine contractions, which not only helps smooth farrowing and shortens the farrowing process, but also helps milk let-down.