Do a good job in the feeding and management of winter and spring piglets to safeguard the economic benefits of the whole year
Sows that are mated and conceive in autumn and winter give birth in winter and spring, and this period coincides with icy and cold weather, which has a relatively large impact on the growth and development of piglets. Therefore, to obtain the economic benefits of pig farming throughout the year, doing a good job in high-quality feeding and management of winter and spring piglets is the most critical thing.
1. Keep both warmth and ventilation.
Maintain the temperature of the warming area for newborn piglets at 32-35°C. After piglets reach 1 week of age, begin lowering the temperature of the warming area, then lower it by 2-3°C each week, until it drops to about 22°C at 2 months of age. Particular attention should be paid to controlling the environmental temperature from birth to 2 weeks of age, because during this period piglets have very poor ability to regulate body temperature. Many pig farmers often only pay attention to keeping warm and neglect ventilation, which is very unfavorable to the health of piglets. In order to eliminate moisture and odors in the farrowing house and the heat given off by the pigs, ventilation must be provided.
2. Provide manual assistance so piglets can drink colostrum early.
Before farrowing, managers should fully understand the temperature of the farrowing house to prevent newborn piglets from catching cold. A warming box can be set up, and the temperature inside the box should be adjusted to about 33°C. After piglets are born, the mucous membrane on the body and in the mouth must be removed immediately so that the piglets can breathe freely. After birth, wipe the piglets dry and place them in the warming area, and help the piglets suckle colostrum. Piglets have the habit of suckling from a fixed teat, and manually assisting in fixing the teats is one of the measures for achieving full survival and vigor of the piglets. When the sow has dystocia or the farrowing time is too long, assist with delivery to reduce stillbirths and prevent crushing the piglets. After piglets leave the birth canal, the umbilical cord becomes a pathway for bacteria to invade newborn piglets. If handled improperly, it can cause bacterial infection. To prevent infection, after cutting the umbilical cord it must be disinfected with 2% iodine tincture. If umbilical bleeding occurs, use a piece of thread to tie the umbilical cord tightly. At the same time, immediately wipe dry the mucus, and after cutting and disinfecting the umbilical cord, help the piglets drink colostrum as early as possible. Colostrum is rich in nutrients and immune antibodies and has a special physiological effect on newborn piglets.
3. Do a good job in foster nursing and litter merging of piglets.
When dystocia during farrowing causes insufficient milk production, or when the number of piglets in one litter exceeds 12, foster nursing or litter merging is needed. Foster nursing should be carried out within two days after farrowing. Smear the sow's afterbirth, mucous membrane, and so on onto the fostered piglets (or pour sow urine over the foster piglets). At the same time, rub some iodine tincture on the sow's nose and on the piglets' bodies so that the sow cannot distinguish her own piglets from the fostered piglets. To prevent piglets from biting each other or biting the sow's teats when fighting, the two pairs of canine teeth and two pairs of corner teeth of the piglets can be clipped at birth, but be careful not to cut the gums. Usually, the tail is docked on the first day after birth to prevent tail biting. Generally, use a scalpel to cut off or use sharp scissors to cut off the last three caudal vertebrae, and apply medicine to prevent infection.
4. Carefully provide manual assistance in fixing the teats.
Piglets have the habit of specifically suckling from a fixed teat. In order to make all piglets in the litter grow and develop evenly and robustly and to increase the survival rate, within 2-3 days after birth, manual assistance should be used to fix the teats. Fixing the teats is a meticulous task. It is best to let the piglets choose on their own as the main approach, with manual control as a supplement. In particular, control the individual strong piglets that are good at grabbing teats. Generally, it can be placed aside, and when the other piglets have all found their teats and the sow lets down milk, it should immediately be placed on the designated teat to suckle. In this way, manual assistance in fixing the teats should be maintained at every feeding, and after about 3-4 days, the suckling order can be established, with piglets suckling from fixed teats.
5. Prevent piglet anemia.
At 3-4 days of age, inject 100-150 mg of iron preparation (iron dextran) to prevent piglet anemia. The iron preparation should not be injected into the leg muscles, but into the neck.
6. Feed starter feed in a timely manner.
After piglets reach 3 days of age, they can be trained to eat, in preparation for weaning. The starter feed should contain 1.25-1.5 lysine and 20%-22% crude protein. The purpose of supplying starter feed is to make the piglets' digestive tract tolerate the stimulation of solid diets, produce immune tolerance, and greatly reduce diarrhea after weaning. When piglets grow to 2-3 weeks, they should be castrated. The most suitable time is 7-14 days of age, using a clean, sharp surgical blade. Disinfect the surgical site with disinfectant.
7. Implement scientific weaning.
The suitable weaning time for piglets can be determined according to the specific conditions of the pigs. Large-scale pig farms have generally adopted early weaning measures, with a suckling period of 28-35 days. Generally speaking, in production it is best not to wean earlier than 21-28 days of age, so as to avoid bringing extra difficulties to piglet rearing and affecting the piglet survival rate. The body weight of weaned piglets should generally be greater than 5.5 kg, but reference should be made to the cumulative feed intake during the suckling period, and the cumulative intake per piglet should not be less than 1 kg. When weaning time is allowed to exceed 2-3 days, the larger ones in each litter should be weaned first. The environmental temperature should be maintained between 27-30°C. Weaned piglets should be raised in pens separated according to body weight. Provide one feed trough for every 4-5 piglets, and provide one drinker for every 20-25 piglets. Weaned piglets are in a stage of intense growth and development, and various tissues and organs still need further development, with functions still needing further improvement, especially the digestive organs. Sow milk is very easily digested and absorbed by piglets, and its digestibility can be as high as 100%, while after weaning the required nutrients come entirely from feed. Milk fat, the main energy source, is replaced by grain starch, and casein, which can be completely digested and absorbed, becomes plant protein with lower digestibility, and the feed also contains a certain amount of crude fiber. When weaned piglets eat a relatively large amount of feed, the protein and minerals in it easily combine with the free hydrochloric acid in the piglets' stomachs, and cannot fully inhibit the reproduction of Escherichia coli in the digestive tract, often causing diarrheal diseases.