Precautions for the management of sows during pregnancy

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In recent years, with the continuous changes in the scale of pig breeding, the pig breeding industry has become more and more detailed in the technical requirements for pig feeding and management at various stages. In pig production, pig herds can be divided into breeding pigs [boars, breeding sows (empty pregnant sows, pregnant sows, lactating sows)], piglets (suckling piglets, weaned piglets), fattening pigs, and reserve breeding pigs. Pigs at each stage are different in feeding technology and are interlinked and indispensable. In the process of raising pigs, the feeding and management of sows is very important. The good health and reproductive performance of sows can effectively ensure the output rate and survival rate of piglets, maintain the sustainable development of the pig industry, and affect the efficiency of pig raising. The goal of feeding pregnant sows is to ensure the proper body condition of the sows and good postpartum lactation performance, and to increase the number of live piglets, the birth weight of the sows, and the uniformity of the newborn piglets, in order to ensure the health of the piglets and improve the survival of the piglets rate and uniformity. The article summarizes the precautions for sow gestation management in combination with production practice as follows.

1. Do a good job in the pregnancy diagnosis of the
breeding sows. After the breeding, the pregnancy diagnosis of the sows is done, mainly to avoid the missed mating of the sows, to prevent the production performance of the sow herd from being reduced due to empty pregnancy, and to strengthen the feeding and management of pregnant sows. . If the sow is no longer in estrus within 18-25 days after mating, and if the boar is used to test oestrus and refuses the boar to approach, it can be preliminarily judged to be pregnant. It can also be judged by external observation: pregnant sows are lazy, greedy and lethargic, quiet and docile, have a sharp increase in appetite, gain fat quickly, have a glossy coat color, and naturally droop their tails. Obviously, the sagging nipples are all close to the abdominal line. In addition, B-ultrasound examination can be performed 21-25 days after breeding, and the probe is placed at the back and upper position of the penultimate pair of nipples of the sow. The pregnant sow will display many developing black follicles on the B-ultrasound screen. B-ultrasound follow-up can be performed 35 to 42 days after breeding to prevent empty pregnant sows missed in the initial diagnosis, and early abortion sows can also be found.
2 Provide balanced nutrition for pregnant sows
Feed nutrient levels are critical to the performance of gestating sows. Too high a nutrient level may cause the sow to become overweight and difficult to give birth, causing problems such as udder edema, reduced milk production, and diarrhea in newborn piglets, as well as waste of feed and higher breeding costs; Poor, the weaning and estrus interval is long, and the piglets produced at the same time are weak and have a low survival rate. Pregnancy sows have different needs for nutrients at different stages. The following three stages of pregnancy, mid-gestation and late-gestation stages, respectively describe the nutritional needs of sows during pregnancy.
Early pregnancy usually refers to 1-28 days after breeding, fertilized eggs begin to attach, embryos grow slowly, and nutrients are mostly used to maintain the sow's own needs. The dietary protein required at this stage is 12% to 14%, lysine is 0.54% to 0.65%, crude fiber is 6% to 8%, and 0.5 to 1kg of green fodder needs to be added. For sows with good body condition, restricted feeding can be carried out, and the daily feed intake of each pig should not exceed 2kg. Sows with poor body condition can appropriately increase the feed intake to restore their body condition. At the same time, it should be noted that the feeding amount of concentrated feed within 1 week after breeding needs to be very accurate. Too high or too low feeding amount will reduce the survival rate of embryos in the early pregnancy of sows. Studies have shown that feeding high-energy and high-protein feeds in the early pregnancy of sows can accelerate blood circulation in the liver of pregnant sows, stimulate the metabolism of progesterone in the blood, and reduce the content of progesterone in sows and the specificity in the uterus. The secretion of protein inhibits embryo attachment and growth and reduces the embryo survival rate.
The second trimester is usually assigned 29-85d after breeding, the fertilized eggs have been implanted, and the main goal is to control the body condition of the sow. At this stage, the protein required in the diet is 14%-16%, lysine is 0.65%-0.77%, crude fiber is 7%, and 1.5kg of green feed is added at the same time, and the daily feed intake is 1.8-2kg. The demand for the nutritional level of feed in the second trimester is not very high, but a rich supply of vitamins and trace elements must be guaranteed. In addition, the intake of crude fiber can make pregnant sows feel full, and increase the crude fiber content in the feed, which can increase the feed intake and litter size of sows, improve the lactation performance of sows, and reduce weight loss during lactation.
The late pregnancy usually refers to the stage from 86 days after breeding to the stage before sow parturition. The fetus develops very rapidly 30 days before parturition, and the weight gain can reach 60% to 70% of the whole pregnancy stage. In addition to ensuring the normal growth and development of the fetus at this stage, Nutrients also need to be accumulated for later farrowing and lactation of the sow. Therefore, the daily feeding amount in late pregnancy can be increased to 2.5-3.5kg, and an appropriate amount of trace elements and multivitamins need to be supplemented. In addition, the replacement of pregnancy feed should be avoided for sows during pregnancy, and the lactation feed should be gradually replaced 1 week before labor to prevent the sudden change of feeding sows from not eating and affecting the milk production. Local pigs and hybrid pigs can appropriately lower the nutritional standards according to their breed characteristics and nutritional needs, and appropriately increase the feeding amount of green fodder or silage, so as to save energy and reduce emissions and reduce feed costs.
3. Avoid the abortion of sows during the critical period.
Fertilized eggs have three peak death periods, which are within 9 to 10 days after breeding, the third day after the successful implantation of fertilized eggs, and 60 to 70 days after breeding, resulting in the failure of normal implantation of fertilized eggs. And early death or fetal development stopped. During these three critical periods, the frequent movement of people in the pig house should be reduced to avoid the sow being frightened, and at the same time, the appropriate temperature, humidity and good ventilation should be maintained in the pig house. For pig farms that are highly intensive and raise foreign pig breeds, single-pen breeding can be adopted; for batch-production pig farms, 3 to 5 sows with similar mating periods can be placed in the same pen, but it is necessary to prevent pigs from interacting with each other. Grab food, fights, etc., must be kept in a single pen in the late pregnancy, and keep the pen dry and clean. Sows should eat well, sleep well, and exercise less in the early stage of pregnancy. They can move freely in the second trimester, and increase the amount of exercise appropriately. In the later stage of pregnancy, reduce the amount of exercise, and stop activities one week before labor.
4 Reduce the stress response of sows to hot and cold seasons
In winter and spring, due to the lack of sunshine time, the cold outside climate and the fluctuating temperature, sows are easily stressed, resulting in decreased body resistance and infection of various diseases. At the same time, the temperature drop is the main cause of premature birth, abortion and stillbirth in pregnant sows. Therefore, in winter in cold regions, heating equipment such as radiators should be installed in the pig house for pregnant sows. For the houses with poor thermal insulation performance, a closed breeding management mode can be implemented to strengthen cold protection and warmth, but pay attention to increasing the number of air circulation; Raise the temperature of the pig house first before ventilation to avoid sudden cooling to cause stress to the sows. The high temperature and high humidity environment in summer can easily lead to miscarriage or stillbirth of sows. Measures can be taken to prevent heatstroke and cool down, such as planting green trees around the farm to increase the green area, using reflective materials to build the roof of the pig house, and equipping the roof with sprinkler devices , Rinse the sow barn with cold water, install cooling equipment such as water curtains, and increase the ventilation in the barn by installing fans, fans and other facilities to achieve the cooling effect. At the same time, it is necessary to ensure that the sow has sufficient drinking water. Electrolytes can be added to the sow's drinking water to prevent heat stress in the sow.
5 Ensure feed quality and water supply Clean and
good feed quality is the key to maintaining good body condition of pregnant sows and ensuring fetal growth and development. The high temperature and high humidity environment in summer can easily lead to mold and deterioration of feed materials and compound feeds. Pregnant sows are more sensitive to mycotoxins, which can easily cause poisoning, abortion and stillbirth after feeding, and may also cause reproductive system diseases of sows. Green feed is also easy to generate toxic and harmful substances such as nitrous acid and hydrocyanic acid due to unreasonable storage environment and methods. Therefore, the feed should be stored in a ventilated and dry environment. In winter, it is necessary to check whether the feed in the feed trough is frozen, and if necessary, replace it in time. At the same time, it is necessary to regularly check whether there is moss or rust in the water pipe, and pay attention to washing the residual substances after feeding the health medicine in the drinking water, so as to provide the sows with clean drinking water.
6 Do a good job in the prevention and control of diseases in pregnant sows
According to the requirements of the health and epidemic prevention system, the sow pen and the surrounding environment are regularly disinfected, and the disinfectant in the disinfection tank and the disinfection basin is regularly replaced. During the period of high incidence of infectious diseases, the frequency of disinfection is increased, and the type of disinfectant needs to be changed regularly to avoid pathogenic bacteria, etc. Resistant to disinfectants. Before the pregnant sow is transferred to the delivery room, the pig body should be strictly disinfected, especially its vulva and udder should be thoroughly cleaned and disinfected, but attention should be paid to using warm water to wash it to prevent the sow from catching a cold. Before moving out, carefully clean the floor and feed trough of the delivery room with disinfectant, and do a good job in the disinfection of the delivery room in advance.
Minimize vaccination during sow gestation. Generally, only piglet diarrhea vaccines are injected, such as porcine infectious gastroenteritis, porcine epidemic diarrhea, and porcine rotavirus (G5 type) triple live vaccine, diluted with sterile normal saline to 1mL/head portion. The litters in the middle of the anus) are vaccinated; pregnant sows are vaccinated 40 days before delivery, and 2 times after 20 days, with 1 injection each time; piglets born to sows that have been immunized with this vaccine are vaccinated 10-15 days after weaning1 For the first dose, the piglets born from the unvaccinated sows were vaccinated at 3 days of age. Other vaccines can be vaccinated before sows after farrowing to minimize the stress of sows during gestation; different pig farms should be vaccinated with corresponding vaccines based on their own production practices. At the same time, it is necessary to strengthen the deworming and lice elimination of pregnant sows, and pay special attention to eliminating internal and external parasites (such as scabies mites) that are easily transmitted to piglets.
In the late pregnancy, with the growth of the fetus, the volume of the sow's uterus gradually increases, compressing the intestines, making it difficult to excrete feces and easily causing constipation. Constipation leads to a delay in the excretion of toxins from the sow's intestine, causing abdominal pain in the sow and even causing miscarriage. Therefore, it is necessary to provide an appropriate amount of green feed for sows, and an appropriate amount of magnesium sulfate or baking soda can also be added to the feed to relieve sow constipation.
7. Be gentle with sows and be careful when observing sows . Be gentle
with pregnant sows, do not beat or scold the sows to make them frightened, and keep the sows in a good mood to increase their feed intake. Pigs are prone to miscarriage and lactation performance after farrowing is affected. Breeders should pay attention to observe the feeding, drinking water, feces and mental state of pregnant sows every day, detect abnormalities of sows in time and take corresponding treatment measures to prevent the death of sows and fetuses, so as to reduce economic losses.
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