How to raise sows during the empty gestation period? Master these feeding points

After farrowing, sows enter the lactation period, and the stage after the piglets are weaned until they are mated again is the empty gestation period of the sow. Management during this period is extremely important, as it affects the quality of the next litter. So how should sows be managed during the empty gestation period? Let's find out together.

1. Environmental conditions

The key point of feeding sows during the empty gestation period is to prompt them to come into heat as soon as possible and be mated in time so they conceive again. However, the physique of sows after weaning has not fully recovered, so the breeding environment must be kept dry and clean, and the temperature and humidity should also be suitable, not too high or too low, while maintaining good ventilation and air permeability to ensure fresh air. If the breeding environment conditions are poor, it will affect the sow's estrus, ovulation, and conception after mating, so the breeding environment is the prerequisite.

2. Strengthen feeding

Sows can come into normal estrus about one week after weaning, and the conception rate at this time is extremely high, reaching over 90%, but many sows cannot come into normal estrus, mainly due to poor body condition or inflammation of the birth canal. Many farms greatly reduce the amount of feed because sows continue to secrete milk, leading to mastitis, which causes nutritional deficiency in the sows and prevents normal recovery. This is the wrong feeding method. It should be changed in time: feed sows feed for inducing estrus in sows or feed for replacement gilts, and do not continue feeding lactating sow feed. Adding large amounts of vitamins and antibiotics to the feed can prevent mastitis. The daily feeding amount should be 3-4 kg, which can promote the sow to recover body condition as soon as possible and increase the number of ovulations.

3. Methods to control normal estrus in sows

When sows are not in normal estrus, a boar can be used to induce estrus by having a teaser boar chase and mount the empty gestation sows that are not in estrus. Through the hormone odor secreted by the boar and contact stimulation, it causes the sow's pituitary gland to secrete hormones and prompts estrus and ovulation. This is a simple and easy method in breeding, with good results. You can also play a recording of a boar's courtship calls to condition a reflex and prompt ovulation, or merge the empty gestation sows that are not in estrus into the pen of sows that are in estrus, using stimulating behavior to promote ovulation in the empty gestation sows.

The above is an introduction to the feeding points for sows during the empty gestation period. We hope it can help you. To learn more related knowledge, please stay tuned to us.