What are the key points of piglet feeding and management methods?
As the name suggests, piglets are newborn pigs. Pig farming is very common all over our country, and the piglets farrowed by sows, after being carefully cared for and grown up, can in turn be prepared as replacement gilts. However, piglets are very weak after birth, and many farmers experience the phenomenon of piglets dying young, which causes their economic interests to suffer great losses. Therefore, after piglets are born, there must be a correct management method to effectively ensure the survival rate of piglets. So how should piglets be managed correctly? Let's take a look below!
1. Suckling and keeping warm
After piglets are born, the first thing is to supplement enough nutrition for them, so after birth all piglets should be allowed to consume enough colostrum, to appropriately improve the piglets' resistance. Colostrum refers to the milk secreted by the sow within about five days after farrowing. Colostrum is very beneficial to the growth of piglets, because colostrum contains a great deal of protein, vitamins, and other immune antibody substances. It can not only improve the piglets' digestive capacity, but also enhance the piglets' disease resistance. Within about 20 days after birth, attention should be paid to keeping piglets warm; the suitable growth temperature for piglets is around 30 degrees, and after weaning the temperature can be lowered to around 25 degrees.
2. Timely weaning
When piglets have grown to around one month old, attention should be paid to carrying out weaning work. During weaning, let the piglets live in the pen for about one week, keep the sow in the other pig pens, and then drive the piglets into the nursery house. Let the piglets gradually adapt to an environment without mother's milk, and during the weaning period properly feed the piglets feed, allowing them to eat freely. During the period of separate rearing, selection should be made according to the piglets' body size, feeding conditions, and other living habits. If some piglets are not growing ideally, they can be allowed to drink mother's milk for a longer period, and weaning can be carried out once their bodies are strong.
3. Iron supplementation for young pigs
After piglets are born, the iron content in their bodies is relatively low, and there is not enough iron to guarantee the piglets' growth. Within 3 days of birth, iron supplementation work should be carried out for the piglets in a timely manner; otherwise, in the later growth process of the piglets, diseases such as iron deficiency anemia may appear. In addition, in order to prevent and control the phenomenon of diarrhea, piglets should be started on creep feeding at 4 days of age, with an appropriate amount of feed placed in the pen to let them eat freely. This can effectively increase the piglets' body weight and enhance their bodily immunity, and as the piglets' days of growth increase, the amount placed should be appropriately increased.
4. Management of nursery pigs
Nursery pigs refer to the period within two and a half months after the piglets are weaned. Although nursery pigs have a certain ability to adapt to the environment, compared with adult pigs, they have not yet reached the requirements. Therefore, during the nursery pig period, special attention should be paid to some daily management matters such as the stocking density in the pig house and disease prevention and control. Keep the temperature at around 25 degrees, and then the stocking density must absolutely not be too dense; otherwise, it will cause pig herd fighting and various diseases. After weaning, the pigs should be promptly supplemented with feed, but they must not be fed too full, because their own digestive systems are not yet fully developed. Gradually increase the feed proportion every day, and after about two weeks they can basically be allowed to eat freely.
The above four points are a brief introduction to piglet feeding and management methods. When farming, everyone should note that piglets' bodies are relatively weak. Piglets must be carefully cared for, the surrounding environment must be well controlled, and they must be raised separately to prevent the sow from biting or trampling the piglets. Managing piglets well is the key to ensuring the ability to continue “carrying on the family line”, and only then can one better ensure one's own economic interests. This article is for reference only, and I hope it is helpful to everyone.