1. Pigs
Lecture 1 ANS 101 / VET
Yvette Miller, Kim Nairn, and Kate Gannon
Murdoch University
Portec Veterinary Services

2. Pig industry overview Why are pigs important?
How did the pig industry develop?
What pig breeds are involved?
How is the industry structured?
What are the key performance indicators?
What influences these key performance indicators?

3. Why are pigs important? Meat – 40% of the global meat consumption
Skin and leather products
Pharmaceutical products – heart valves
Pleasure and company – pet pigs

4. MEAT
Yes… all from one wonderful, magical animal!

5. Pork cuts

6. Country Millions of pigs China 460 (62% global pork eaten in China)
India 17
Indonesia 6
Korea North 3
Korea South 9
Malaysia 2
Myanmar 4
New Zealand
0.4
Philippines 12
Taiwan 7
Thailand
Vietnam 22

7. Our impact on the planet – The Carbon Footprint of Pork
Food
kg CO2-e/kg (20 years)
kg CO2-e/kg (100 years)
Beef
111.1
55.5
Sheep meat and wool
96.3
32.7
Pig meat
10.5
3.5
Rice
2.4
0.74
Poultry
1.3
0.38
Wheat
0.35
0.32

8. The Artiodactyla – even toes
Pigs
Also cattle and camels
And even related to the whales - Ambulocetus

9. One of the early pigs
Entelodont

10. Today's suina - suborder
Hippopotamdae
Tayassuidae
Suidae

12. Sus scrofa – The domestic pig
Landrace
Large white
Hampshire
Duroc

13. Berkshire
Tamworth
Meishan
Duroc x LW

14. Meishan

15. How did the pig industry develop
Small numbers of pigs per farmer
Side business to other farming = grain production and/or dairy (to use by-products)

16. Feeding pigs in WA Barley and Wheat = main grains (energy)
Lupins and canola = protein.
Swill feeding is illegal:
Meat and bone meal does not count (heat treated)
Definition is different between states of Australia

17. The global change in pork $

18. Pork price, feed price and farmers…

19. Where is the grain? Where are the pigs? State Percentage NSW 30
Queensland 21
Victoria 19
South Australia 17
Western Australia 12

20. Western Australia 26,000 sows. Major foreign market Singapore
Sow Herd WA
10000
20000
30000
40000
50000
1992
2001
2004
2007
Year
Sows
200
400
600
800
1000
Producers
26,000 sows.
Major foreign market Singapore

21. How is the industry structured?
Multiplication farms
6000 sows
Commercial farms
90,000 sows
Males
(boars)
Females
(gilts)
Nucleus farm
500 sows

22. How is the farm designed
Breeding
Gestation
115 days
Farrowing
Weaning
Grow/finish
Slaughter
Selection
Nucleus farm
Basic Pig Life Cycle

23. Lets walk the farm… Breeder shed Gestation shed Farrowing shed
Weaner shed
Grower/Finisher shed
And speak the jargon and key performance indicators as we go…

24. Breeder shed Boar – entire male Barrow/Castrate – surgically castrated
Gilt – birth to first litter female
Sow – breeding female has had a litter

25. Breeder / Gestation shed – key performance indicators
Breeding/service/mating – As implied
Wean to service/breeding interval – Number of days between weaning and breeding
Repeat/Return – Failure to conceive (18-24 days)
Farrowing rate – Number females farrowed/Number females bred
Culling – Removal from herd/farm (eg. parity >6)
Target
Interference
Wean to re-mate (service) interval
5 days
>7 days
Sow feed in tonnes / year
1.1
>1.2
Farrowing rate
87 %
<82 %

26. Gestation shed Parity = Number of farrowings.
Gestation = state of pregnancy
Dry Sow = period other than lactating

27. Farrowing shed Litter = group of piglets reared by a sow
Piglet/Sucker = piglet still on a sow
Farrowing = parturition / giving birth
Lactating = producing milk

28. Farrowing shed – key performance indicators
Target
Interference
Pigs born alive/sow
10.9
<10.4
Pre-weaning mortality
10 %
>14%
Pigs sold per sow per year 23
<21.5
Pre-weaning mortality – % piglet deaths between birth and weaning

29. Mummified foetus or Mummy
Target <1.5%
Interference >2.5%
Stillborn
Target <7%
Interference >10%

30. Processing piglets Teeth clipping Castration Iron injection
Ear notching
Tail docking

31. More jargon for farrowing shed…
Fostering – practice of swapping piglets across litters
Colostrum – antibody rich milk
Body condition score

32. Weaning – removing piglets from the sow (usually 3-5 wks; 5-12kg)
Weaner – piglet from weaning until 10 weeks (30kg)
Weaner shed

33. Grower/Finisher Shed Grower (30-60kg; 10-16 wks)
Finisher (60-110kg; wks)

34. Post-weaning – key performance indicators
Target
Interference
Post-weaning mortality 3% 5%
Feed conversion ratio (4-100kg)
2.2
>2.4
Average daily gain (g/day)
570
<520
Post-weaning mortality = % piglet deaths after weaning

35. What influences the key performance indicators?
1. ANIMAL: Genetics
2. ENVIRONMENT (examples):
FEED – particle size, FCR, mash vs steam pelleted diets.
WATER – water access, flow rates
AIR – gases, drafts, temperature
FLOOR – stocking rate
Code of Welfare - Pigs

36. Web resource