What is the most suitable weaning time for piglets?
The weaning time of piglets affects the number of litters per year and the number of piglets raised alive per sow. In production practice, whether piglets are suitable for weaning can be judged based on the following aspects.
Piglets must have good growth and development
For piglets with good growth and development, the body weight at 3 weeks of age should be no less than 5 kg, no less than 6 kg at 4 weeks of age, and no less than 7 kg at 5 weeks of age. Otherwise, it indicates poor growth and development of the piglets, and weaning should be delayed. It should be especially noted that no matter when weaning occurs, the piglet's body weight must reach more than 5 kg. Otherwise, after weaning, the mortality rate is high and the survival rate is low.
Piglets should have a certain ability to consume feed
After weaning, all the nutrients needed by piglets come from feed. If the ability to consume feed is poor, it will easily cause nutritional deficiency after weaning, leading to stunted growth and development, and even death. Therefore, before weaning, piglets should have a certain ability to consume feed. Generally, weaning can be carried out only when the daily dry feed intake of piglets at weaning is above 150 grams.
The weaning age must be suitable
If the weaning age is earlier than 21 days of age, piglets have poor resistance and are susceptible to disease, and the survival rate after weaning is low. According to the actual conditions in China's rural areas, weaning at 35 days of age is more suitable. If feeding conditions are poor, it can be extended to 42 days of age for weaning; if feeding conditions are good, it can be advanced to 28 days of age for weaning. Regardless of feeding conditions, blindly pursuing early weaning brings more loss than gain.
The rearing conditions for piglets are good
After weaning, piglets generally feel uneasy, and in the early stage after weaning they often eat very little or even not at all, so their resistance will decline. When weaning piglets, avoid severe weather such as strong wind and heavy rain. The temperature of the pig house should not be lower than 18°C, and it should be kept warm and dry. If the ambient temperature is too low, warming measures such as adding thicker bedding straw and installing infrared lamps should be taken. After weaning, piglets should remain in the original pen, and the feed formula must ensure that the nutritional needs of the piglets are met and that the feed is complete in nutrition.
Piglets must be healthy
If piglets are weaned during illness, not only will their ability to consume feed decrease after weaning, but their growth and development will also be seriously hindered. Moreover, the stress brought to piglets by weaning will affect the treatment effect and may even worsen the condition. Therefore, at the time of weaning, piglets must be healthy and free of disease.
Weaning should not be carried out during immunization and castration
If immunization injection and castration are combined with the stress of weaning, it often aggravates the discomfort of piglets after weaning, is not conducive to safe weaning of piglets, and will affect the immune effect. Therefore, weaning should be separated from immunization injection and castration for a period of time, so as to help piglets pass through the weaning stage smoothly.