Weaning piglets: when to wean and how long to keep near the sow
In pig breeding, feeding suckling piglets and weaning them are of great importance for their further development. Consider the optimal timing of weaning piglets, at what age to pick up babies from the sow, how to properly wean them. How to prepare, the weaning process itself, how animals might react, and how to care for piglets after weaning.
At what age is it customary to beat off piglets from a sow
In pig breeding, 2 types of weaning are practiced: early and late. The choice of one or the other depends on the further use of the piglets. Early weaning is carried out until the brood is 2 months old, it is practiced on large farms with a significant livestock.Early breeding allows the sow to recover faster, more than 2 farrows per year can be obtained, the animal consumes less feed because it does not spend it on milk production, and the piglets' digestive tract develops much faster due to the introduction of solid feed.
Late weaning is common in households - at 2.5 months. Benefits: Strong, immune-boosted piglets.
How to wean weaned piglets
The process of weaning, or separation from the mother, is always stressful for babies. If taken incorrectly, the kids will start to get sick, lose their appetite, which will immediately affect development. The weaning process does not start abruptly, first they prepare: gradually feed the babies with solid food and gradually reduce the length of time when you need to keep the piglets with the mother.
Preparatory stage
3-day-old babies are fed boiled water to get used to it, and the beneficial microflora necessary for the digestion of solid food is produced in the stomachs.Week-old babies are given liquid oatmeal porridge, boiled in water or milk. At 1.5 weeks, pigs can eat finely chopped hay, at 2 weeks - grass and chopped root crops.
At the same time, it is necessary to reduce the time that piglets spend with their mother. The pig begins to be removed from the pen where the brood is located, first for 1-2 hours, and then the time is increased. By 2 months of age, the pig is brought to brood only for feeding time.
Weaning process
The sow is given less succulent feed a week before weaning to reduce milk secretion. At this time, the number of feeding offspring is reduced from 6 to 1 per day. After weaning, the brood is kept in its own pen for another 1-1.5 weeks to reduce stress and its consequences on animals.
Puppy transfer, sorting and vaccination can be done no earlier than 1.5 weeks after weaning.
Pig behavior
Piglets can get nervous and scream until they get used to being without a pig. They may eat poorly or refuse food altogether. This behavior is normal, after a while the kids will calm down. As for sows, they rarely experience stress from separation from offspring, their behavior hardly changes, their appetite is not lost.
Further animal care
Weaned piglets should be monitored for the first 2-3 weeks after weaning. Stress can stimulate appetite. In this case, you need to reduce the daily ration by 20%. This will eliminate overeating and problems with the digestive tract. Within 1-1.5 weeks, the amount of feed is gradually brought back to normal. The number of feed distribution - 5 times a day, in uniform portions.
They are given finely chopped grass, crushed grain, grated vegetables and root vegetables. Everything is mixed in a mixer. S alt, a little chalk, vitamins, nutritional supplements are added. If the diet and feeding regimen are chosen correctly, piglets should gain 350-400 g of weight gain per day.
After weaning, you can regroup the animals according to the level of physical development. You can make groups of 20-25 pieces. Smaller animals are also grouped and fed intensively.
After getting used to, young animals can be vaccinated, soldered from helminths. Vaccination and deworming will reduce the likelihood of disease and death of young animals. The conditions for keeping piglets are warm, dry, well-lit and ventilated premises. It is necessary to clean the litter every day, clean the feeders, change the water to fresh. The he alth of the piglets and their further productivity depend on the cleanliness in the pen.
The time of weaning piglets from the sow has long been determined in the pig industry. They take away babies not younger than 2 months of age, so that they have time to develop and not get sick. It is important to properly prepare for this process, as well as properly care for weaners after it.
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