Excellent Care for Sows – A Guarantee for the Success of Your Pig Farm

Lactation is a crucial period for sows, during which they expend significant resources from their bodies. Understanding the lactation process helps to identify factors that affect milk production. During this period, a sow’s diet must be rich in energy to ensure the proper nutritional content of the milk and high milk yield. After giving birth, one of the sow’s main functions is milk production to nourish her offspring and support their optimal growth. If piglets fed with artificial milk show better growth, it indicates that their growth potential exceeds what the sow’s milk can support.

Increasing the sow’s milk production and utilizing the full growth potential of her offspring is the most cost-effective and technologically convenient way to provide piglets with a balanced diet that is easily absorbed by their bodies. During lactation, a sow produces milk through other bodily functions, which is the primary component of her metabolic state. The main sources of energy for a lactating sow are the energy from feed and the reserves in her own body, which are activated during this period and serve as energy carriers for the sow during feeding.

To increase a sow’s milk productivity, it is important to know several key points:

Feeding. During pregnancy, feed the sow so that she maintains an average body condition and has a fat thickness of 14-17 mm. After farrowing, limit the sow’s feed intake because, in the first 10 days after farrowing, she can produce more milk than the piglets can consume. Excess milk can cause mastitis, so the amount of feed should be gradually increased to the established norm. Regularly check if the sows are consuming all the compound feed for pigs from the feeders and if they have access to quality water in the drinkers. The feed should be balanced in all nutrients, taking into account the genetic potential of the herd and the characteristics of the available feed base.

Care. After farrowing, monitor the sow’s body temperature to avoid fever and apply timely treatment if necessary. Fever in lactating sows is indicated by a body temperature of 39.4°C. Watch the mammary glands, as redness and swelling can cause the sow to lie on her stomach and prevent piglets from nursing, which is a sign of MMA syndrome. After farrowing, it is important to check if the sow has expelled the placenta. Monitor and evaluate the sow’s milk production by observing the piglets. At the end of lactation, assess the sow’s body condition, as this impacts future reproductive performance.

Housing. During pregnancy and lactation, ensure an optimal temperature (18-22°C) in the pig farm for each stage of the animals’ life. Optimize technological processes in the farrowing unit to minimize stress on the animals (avoid sudden noises, foreign sounds). Perform necessary disinfection measures, clean feeders and drinkers to prevent potential poisoning or other diseases in the sow and her offspring. Provide lighting that is as natural as possible to ensure the animals feel as comfortable as possible.

Excellent care for the sow after farrowing is the key to success in pig farming! Experts at Vitagro Nutrition recommend following these rules, and your results will be stable.